It’s happened to all of us. You hit an “I Agree” or “Subscribe” or “Buy” button without reading the fine print, only to discover that you’ve inadvertently signed up for a monthly newsletter, weekly promotional flyer, and daily deal alerts, all without intending to. When the first email arrives, you franticly click the unsubscribe button only to be told that your request may take up to a week for processing and that in the meantime you will continue to receive daily emails until your request is processed.
While you can hope that these experiences don’t happen to you on a regular basis, they should spur you to think about your own email marketing practices. With a little effort, you can create an experience that lets your subscribers know you care about their preferences by giving them the right to choose.
- Automate Your Unsubscribe Feature
When a customer wants to unsubscribe, let him. You’re not going to win any brownie points by making him wait 7-10 days or by trying to convince him at the last minute to stay. Instead, these tactics will encourage him to report you as spam. eConnect Email automatically handles unsubscribe requests (immediately) and we also provide you with a suppression feature so that you can prevent emails addresses/ domains from subscribing to your mailing list.
- Let Customers Make Their Own Decisions
When you give a customer the option of signing up for your various newsletters, resist the urge to pre-select options for them. Allowing customers to choose the contact options themselves will reduce the number of people who sign up accidentally and then become frustrated when they receive unexpected emails.
- Offer Detail Modification Options
Can your customers modify their contact details and subscription preferences easily? A customer should be able to update his email address or unsubscribe from one newsletter while continuing to receive others. With eConnect Email you can give your subscribers the ability to manage their contact information and subscription options through the preference center. Giving customers the opportunity to choose will make them more likely to remain on the lists they want rather than unsubscribing altogether.
Giving your customers the opportunity to choose their preferences and to say good-bye if they so choose will leave a positive impression in their minds about your company. Even if a subscriber opts out of your list, he’ll be more likely to buy from you later if you haven’t irritated him with your list management practices. By taking advantage of the easy list management options available through eConnect Email, you can create a positive experience for your customers.