Keep it simple when it's time to go

It's a fact of life that e-marketers need to be terribly careful about how they relate to their audience.


Some marketers arrogantly act as if they own the relationship. They don't. The customer does. (Ask me why).


Take this example. After receiving a blanket e-mail, the customer signed up and completed a survey. The relationship lasted a while, but when the client decided to end it, they found that far from a single click to say "it was good, but now it's over", they had to give:

• First name
• Last name
• Street address
• e-mail address
• Whether the address is at home or work
• Reason for opting out
• Categories from which they wish to opt out

A lot of information, most, probably all of which the e-marketer already had from the initial sign-up. And this e-marketer has a separate 'change of details" form, so this opt-out form should not be fulfilling multiple objectives.

Summary

When it's over, it's over. Offer a single-click, immediate, automated unsubscribe facility in every e-mail newsletter you send, take the customer's e-mail address into account (after all, you just e-mailed them) and let them go, no more questions!

If you badly want to know why it's over, then present a separate, skippable (optional completion), "hate to see you go" form after the opt-out has been submitted. And expect an attrition rate.

Sometimes it's harder for the customer to say why, than 'bye!

Need help?

Contact ASVP Group if you need help to implement a single-click, automated e-mail unsubscribe facility.