Drift Email classifies replies using machine learning techniques and natural language processing. Here are the categories we use to classify email replies, and what they mean.
Reply Categories
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Type
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Definition
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Bounce
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Auto-replies indicating the email could not be delivered. Sometimes a reason is given, such as a full inbox, or just that the address is inactive. These are known as soft bounces.
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Changed
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Auto-replies indicating the recipient has changed their email address - common examples of this are during a company rebrand or acquisition, or if they're changing their name after getting married.
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Human Direct
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Emails that we've determined are not automated, but are also not in response to something you sent - for example, someone sent a brand new email to one of your connected Siftrock addresses.
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Human Reply
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Replies that our system has determined is not from an automated source. These are the replies that you'll want to route to your team, to make sure someone gets in touch.
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Left Company
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Auto-replies indicating the recipient has left the company.
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Out of Office
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Auto-replies indicating the recipient is out of the office.
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Spam
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Direct emails (not in response to something you sent), that we've filtered as spam.
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Spam Shield
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Auto-replies from services such as Spam Arrest. Contacts using these services will not receive your emails without a manual validation step (usually clicking a link found in the auto-reply).
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System
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Auto-replies that are not a Left Company, Out of Office/Vacation, or Bounce. One example is a "thank you for your inquiry" email from a support or helpdesk email address.
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Unknown
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A catch-all for when we cannot place an email in any other category. The most common cause of this is emails in a language we don't support. Another common case is replies with no content in the email body.
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Unsubscribe
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Human replies that specifically include a request to be unsubscribed from future emails. Some users will ignore your unsubscribe links and instead respond to your emails asking to be removed from your list.
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Vacation
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Out of office emails that specifically indicate the recipient is on vacation or holiday.
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