An unsubscribe link is a link that allows subscribers to opt out from receiving marketing emails sent by a particular brand. It is usually placed in the email footer and leads to the unsubscribe page.
Why should I add an unsubscribe link?
- It is a legal requirement
- It influences your sender reputation
- It has an impact on email deliverability
- Its’ absence discredits your business
- It encourages your mailing list’s self clearance
- It is a legal requirement. CAN-SPAM Act and other laws regarding unsolicited email activity require adding unsubscribe link to every email that you send. These legislations were drafted to protect users from getting spam and give them control over their communication with brands via emails.
- It influences your sender reputation. If you make it hard to find the unsubscribe link, those users who want to leave will mark your email as spam. It will damage your sending reputation even worth than unsubscribing.
- It has an impact on email deliverability. Email service providers like Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo analyze your sender reputation: if it seems doubtful, they may block your emails before they even get to the subscribers’ inboxes. The fewer emails reaches people, the less revenue you can get from your email marketing.
- Its’ absence discredits your business. If you hide the unsubscribe link, your audience may feel trapped, which will raise questions of trust among your subscribers. If you try to keep your subscribers from opting-out by not allowing them to do so, it will return in a negative attitude towards your brand and a wish to leave your mailing list as soon as possible.
- It encourages your mailing list’s self clearance. A normal unsubscribe rate is 0.05% from all delivered emails. Unsubscribing within these numbers is OK because it means you will communicate with the engaged part of your audience, achieving higher click-through and conversion rates.
You need to understand that unsubscribing does not necessarily mean the end of any relationships. Your unsubscribe link can lead to an unsubscribe page where you can make a small optional survey to find out why users unsubscribe. Besides, you can suggest continuing communication in socials or setting preferences on email sending frequency.
How to Add an Unsubscribe Link
Even if you forget to add an unsubscribe link, SendPulse will insert it automatically to every email template, caring about your sender reputation and your subscribers’ user experience.
You can customize the unsubscribe link by changing the wording, the font, its size and color, and the color of the background. Here’s an instruction on how to customize your unsubscribe link.
In the drag-and-drop editor, you can create a block called “Footer,” which contains that unsubscribe link, privacy terms, your company’s address, etc., and use this block throughout your email campaigns.
Unsubscribe Link Examples
Some of the unsubscribe link examples we’ve gathered breach the CAM-SPAM act; the others show how to conduct your email marketing with transparency. Let’s see the difference between them.
Poor examples
Architectural Digest. In this example, the unsubscribe link is hidden in one line next to the “Private Policy.” Chances are that users won’t find it here. Besides, the wording in the result isn’t logical: “View our Unsubscribe.”
Valfre. This brand places an unsubscribe link correctly but makes the font size so small, that it’s almost impossible to find the link without the magnifying glass. ?
Victoria’s Secret. The unsubscribe link is lost in the text at the email’s bottom. The word “Unsubscribe” is not underlined or highlighted in any way, so users will have a hard time finding it. Give it a try!
Good examples
Art.com. In this case, the unsubscribe link is highlighted in blue color — a uniform color for all types of links, which users find easily. It is separated from other elements in the email, has a larger font size, and placed along with “Contact us” and “Privacy.”
Mitsubishi. It’s quite easy to find the essential word “unsubscribe” here because it is underlined and bold. If it wasn't, you wouldn’t find it in the text.
National Geographic. The unsubscribe link has its paragraph, and it is underlined and bold, as well, so there’s no trouble to find it.
Gain more insights into why an unsubscribe link is your marketing friend in this blog article.
References
- The article “Why Unsubscribe is Better Than to be Marked as Spam” by Litmus answers the question of why you should use unsubscribe links and be transparent with your audience.
- The article “Unsubscribe link: Why it’s critical for your email marketing campaigns” by Mailjet allows you to discover how unsubscribe link enables you to comply with regulations.
FAQ
⚙️ How can I automatically add the unsubscribe link to all my emails?
SendPulse automatically adds an unsubscribe link to every email that you send using our service to help you abide by the CAN-SPAM Act requirements. Of course, you can customize the look of the unsubscribe link to your liking and use your template for all of your email marketing campaigns.
⚖️ What law requires adding an unsubscribe link to marketing emails?
It’s called the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. Aside from the unsubscribe link, it requires using double opt-in subscription forms, sending emails en masse only from a warmed-up IP address, and adding your company’s legal address to the footer of every email. Register with SendPulse and send bulk emails legally.
? How can I keep unsubscribing users on my mailing list?
With SendPulse, you can create an unsubscribe page that pops up after a click on the unsubscribe link. Your unsubscribe page is the last chance to keep your subscribers on your list or at least find out why your subscribers are leaving. Read this article about unsubscribe pages with detailed instructions and beautiful examples that may help you reduce the unsubscribe rate.
Last Updated: 28.09.2024
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