Spam trigger words are words and phrases common in spam, such as "100% free", "act now", "guaranteed", "risk-free" or "no credit card required". Some filters add points for them, and many readers react to them the same way.
How much they matter
Less than lists online suggest. Modern filters at Gmail and Outlook judge mostly the sender's reputation and how recipients react. One word won't send a good sender to spam. A pile of them, with heavy formatting and many links, can tip a borderline email over.
The bigger reason to avoid them
They make a cold email sound like an advert. People reply to emails that sound like one person writing to another about something specific to them.
What to do instead
- Plain, specific language: what you noticed, what you offer, one question.
- No all-caps, no strings of exclamation marks, few or no links in the first email.
- Check a draft with the free spam word checker, then read it aloud.