3 Ways to Win Back Unsubscribers from Your Email List

December 19, 2018

“Someone has unsubscribed from your emailing list.”

Before you begin to wonder, “Was it something I said?” hit the Pause button and remember, losing subscribers isn’t a problem – it’s a learning opportunity. Behind every unsubscribe is a key insight into the type of content and user experience your customers crave. To learn how to create content that wins back unsubscribers while keeping your current readership engaged and entertained, keep on reading.

  1. Utilize Social Media Marketing

With people across the globe spending on average 135 minutes a day on social media, utilizing this platform in the battle to win back your unsubscribers is a no-brainer. One tactic you can use is social media retargeting, or simply, retargeting. Retargeting uses cookies to serve social campaigns to customers that have previously interacted with your brand, whether that’s viewing a product or making a purchase. This is a great way to get in front of people who are interested in your brand without being too nosey or invading their privacy. It’s subtle, but it makes sure that your brand stays top-of-mind. Social media is also a great work around the Federal Trade Commission’s CAN-SPAM Act, which gives email recipients the right to deny commercial emails from brands. If a brand continues to email unsubscribed consumers, it could lead to harsh penalties. However, social media strategies, such as retargeting, are a way to get in front of email unsubscribers without violating the Act. You should also think about the type of content you are creating. Make sure to post engaging, thought-leading content on social media to entice the user to sign up to the newsletter and receive more of this amazing content.

  1. Find Out Why They’re Clicking Unsubscribe

As previously mentioned, unsubscribes can be an opportunity to optimize your current email marketing strategy. From UX to content quality, there are many factors that could lead someone to unsubscribe. Luckily, there are ways to figure out why your current marketing strategy is no longer resonating. One way to do this is sending unsubscribers a survey asking them why they unsubscribed. To make things as easy as possible for your consumers, consider including a few options for them to choose from. Were they receiving too many emails from you? Did they not like the content of your emails? Or were they just attempting to declutter their inbox? After you accumulate a few responses, you may start to see a pattern emerge that can provide insight into what changes need to be made. If you find the issue lies in your content, take a good, long look at the analytics and make note of what’s performing. Chances are the content that garners the most clicks are the type of rich media people want to see.

  1. Improve User Experience

Another powerful way to optimize email marketing strategies is getting to know your audience. Once you become familiar with the people who are spending time on your social media pages and browsing your website, you can compose emails that will be more engaging. Including graphics in your emails is a great way to make them more effective. The addition of graphics will increase open-rates and click-through rates, but be careful not to go overboard. A study by SuperOffice found that image heavy emails don’t perform as well as plain text even though the majority of consumers claim to favor more images over more text. Try to satisfy both spectrums by incorporating graphics that enhance your copy. And don’t forget that the frequency of your emails is just as important as look of them. According to HubSpot, 78% of consumers opt-out of subscriptions because they felt they received too many. You can avoid overwhelming consumers with emails by providing them with options for frequency and content. These choices will let your subscribers know that your email is in their inbox for a reason.

Having someone unsubscribe can be stressful, but with this list of tactics to optimize your email marketing strategy, there’s nothing to fear! You will be winning back unsubscribers AND gaining new subscribers in no time. For more insights on email marketing, visit orangelabelmarketing.com.

Written By: Michelle Torr

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