Step two: Double check your unsubscribe process
Just as auditing your subscription process is very important for complying
with the CAN-SPAM act, auditing your unsubscribe process is also important.
Amazingly, some companies have been operating without any working unsubscribe
process whatsoever. Of course, the CAN-SPAM act mandates a working
unsubscribe in every email, but this is something that every responsible
email marketer should have been doing all along anyway.
The action to take here is to physically test your unsubscribe process
with your own email address. It's amazing how many times companies
think they have a working unsubscribe link, but then ultimately find
out that the link isn't working properly at all. A non-working unsubscribe
link will certainly land you in hot water with both your email subscribers
and possibly the FTC.
The second action of this step is to make sure that your email unsubscribe
handling technology updates your source database in a timely manner,
so you’re not accidentally emailing that person a second or third
time after they've asked to be unsubscribed from your list. This sounds
simple, but again, it’s stunning how many companies fail to update
their databases in a timely manner following unsubscribe requests.
This is especially difficult if you're using an email service to conduct
your email marketing campaigns, since email services require that unsubscribe
requests be sent back to you in a batch, and then consolidated with
your source database. An easier approach is to use email marketing
software like Campaign Enterprise that automates this entire process
for you: it places the link in your outbound emails, it hosts the unsubscribe
confirmation page, and it writes the unsubscribe requests back to your
source database in real-time, so that your data always reflects the
wishes of your subscribers.
No matter what approach you use, make sure your unsubscribe process
is working properly right now, and is updating your database in a timely
manner.
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