Eight Ways To Reduce Unsubscribes
Once you’ve built a list of subscribers to your electronic offerings, your challenge is to play the fine line between annoyance and valued correspondence. Follow these guidelines to keep them coming back for more.
- Make content and frequency clear during opt-in. If recipients know whether they’ll be receiving monthly newsletters or daily specials they’re less likely to be annoyed when they arrive.
- Offer a range of contact levels. Above the opt-out line, give readers another option that reduces frequency such as “Send me monthly health tips only” or “Send me weekly specials only” or simply “Contact me once a month only.”
- Consider double opt-in. If you’re not already doing this, try it. You’ll increase the commitment level of your list and you might see better ROI on future mailings as a result.
- Target your message. Switch the lead article in your newsletter to match buying history or self-reported interests. You might use the same three articles for everyone; just switch the order and/or graphic treatment.
- Make it easy for customers to update their profile and change their preferences. A customer profile page should provide access to all the data you have on them. If it’s not easy to change, they’ll unsubscribe.
- When you send a new type of email, ask recipients if they want to “continue to receive correspondence like this.”
- Make it scannable. With readers spending only an average 20 seconds per email, it’s easy for them to miss that valuable nugget of information that would maintain their interest. Headline all your topics on one screen with links to full articles.
- Make unsubscribing easy. That’s right. A simple, easy-to-find, one-click unsubscribe gives readers a feeling of control that makes them more comfortable with your offering.
