Ignore these 9 Steps to Lose Customers and Infuriate Subscribers

My colleague Sue Walsh recently covered how Google accidentally sent out accidental spams to members of the CR-48 Google Group. A user learned of the group before it was ready for production, and sent an email that was then automatically forwarded to all members of the group. OOFs, unsubscribes, and other angry comments all were sent back to the group which then forwarded them on to all other users. Sue closed with the very important observation “This is an excellent reminder of what can result from a misconfigured mailing list!”

What we will cover in this post is how to ensure that your mailing list is properly configured so that your subscribers will read your messages instead of flagging them as spam. In essence, we want to learn from Google’s mistakes. Whether you are sending to a mailing list or maintaining a discussion group, there are several basic practices you want to follow to ensure happy subscribers and responsible emailing. Here they are.

1. Use only opt-in lists

Whether you purchase a mailing list from a market research company, or compile your own, only use lists confirmed to be opt-in. That way, you know that the people you email want to receive your communications.

2. Use only BCC

One of the worst things you can do when sending email to a group of external users is send an email which exposes their email addresses to one another. Always send email using the BCC option, so that you are protecting your subscribers’ privacy.

3. Define, and enforce, the appropriate topics for your group

Making sure that your groups’ communications remain relevant to the purpose for the group helps to keep subscribers happy, and prevents off-topic messages from being considered spam.

4. Moderate your groups

If you maintain a discussion group where anyone does not know everyone else, make sure that your group is moderated. Members may be allowed to email the list, or to respond to other emails, but their responses should be checked to confirm that they are relevant, and adhere to the terms of the group, before they are forwarded on to the other members.

5. Confirm your subscriptions annually

People’s interests change, and frequently people subscribe to groups using their work email addresses, but then change jobs. Have your membership opt-in annually to minimize the amount of mail sent to invalid addressees.

6. Have a prominent, and easy to elect, unsubscribe option in each message

If someone wants to unsubscribe, let them. Do it quickly, and immediately, and do not nag them to stay. If you want to send a one time only email thanking them for their past participation, and inviting them to resubscribe in the future, you should. But do not require them to provide an email address or a password, or do anything else other than click one link and be done. Do not take a week to unsubscribe them, sending a dozen more emails in the interim. I unsubscribe to lists frequently, and those that make it difficult find themselves blacklisted at the edge.

7. Offer subscribers the option of HTML or Plaintext

Some users like to read emails with graphics. Others cannot. Giving users the choice lets you send your graphics to those that want them, but ensures that those who do not can still read your messages.

8. Format your mailings for mobile devices

As smartphones and tablets grow in popularity, more users are reading email away from their desks. Emails that are formatted so that you have to have a 1024×768 or higher resolution display run the risk of being deleted unread. Ensuring that your text can reflow to any width, and that images can be viewed on smaller screens like those on portable devices makes the mobile workforce happy.

9. Offer options for frequency

If you are using a high-volume list, offer subscribers the option of receiving each message individually, or in daily or weekly summaries. That way, those who also get a high volume of mail can tailor things to suit their needs. Weekly summaries will frequently get more attention than a dozen or more individual emails.

What other practices do you follow with mailing lists or discussion groups?