[Patty Jansen]

Ha! That made you look, right?

This post is about mailing list cleanups. Especially if you take part in the odd competition or get email addresses from Noisetrade, you can very quickly fill up your 2000 free mail quota from Mailchimp with people who don't really want to be there.

How to cull them so that you only keep the ones who want to receive your updates?

Mailchimp offers a star rating for subscribers, but as many have pointed out, some people will see your email and will go straight to your page at whatever retailer they buy. Some will just file the email unread for later (I'm one of those people). Some will read it in the preview pane which apparently doesn't register as an open. So, you don't really just want to cull everyone who has two stars.

You want people who don't want to get the email to unsubscribe, preferably without filing your email in their junk folder.

Well, it's easy: Make it easy for people to unsubscribe. I've started my last three newsletters with a very short hello and how people ended up on the list, followed by the unsubscribe link. So far, about 80 (out of 900) people have used it.

It's a bit ouchie, reading emails in the morning and getting a flood of unsubscribes, but it beats me having to arbitrarily make the decision to cut someone based on an inaccurate and not very relevant star rating.

ETA: I'm the world's worst typist.

 

[Lionel's Mom]

That's very smart, I'm going to do that on my next send-out. I'm getting close to the 2k mark and I'd rather they all want to be there, but I don't think I could make myself cull for the very reasons you list.
I am one of the people who mostly read my emails in the preview area on my phone. Unless they are from someone I personally know or expecting something from, I rarely open, especially stuff like youtube or blog updates. I just see there's something new and go at my leisure.

 

[Patty Jansen]

Last mailing was absolute carnage (I added about 400 addresses through Noisetrade and a competition), but I also got a good number of sales, and this time I'm giving away a free book, and about 20 people have downloaded it. These would be new people because older members would already have that book.

I think it was a good step to take, because if people file your mailing as spam, then certain providers will block your mailings.

 

[Becca Mills]

Last mailing was absolute carnage (I added about 400 addresses through Noisetrade and a competition), but I also got a good number of sales, and this time I'm giving away a free book, and about 20 people have downloaded it. These would be new people because older members would already have that book.

I think it was a good step to take, because if people file your mailing as spam, then certain providers will block your mailings.

Great advice. I'm going to (nearly) lead with the unsubscribe link next time. If they don't want my emails, I don't want to be buggin' them (and eventually paying for the privilege).

 

[Sever Bronny]

Make it easy for people to unsubscribe. I've started my last three newsletters with a very short hello and how people ended up on the list, followed by the unsubscribe link. So far, about 80 (out of 900) people have used it.

That's genius, Patty

 

[Raquel Lyon]

Well, it's easy: Make it easy for people to unsubscribe. I've started my last three newsletters with a very short hello and how people ended up on the list, followed by the unsubscribe link. So far, about 80 (out of 900) people have used it.

How do you know how people subscribed, Patty?

 

[Patty Jansen]

How do you know how people subscribed, Patty?

Because I added some of them manually.

The first line will say something like "You are getting this because you subscribed to receive updates, you downloaded a book from Noisetrade or you took part in [competition]"

I often get newsletters that I don't know how I ended up on the list. If only they'd say "This is the newsletter of YaddaYadda Book Promo Service" I'd go "fair enough" and unsubscribe instead of hitting "unsubscribe" and then "I never subscribed to this list" in the little questionnaire that often comes up after you unsubscribe.

 

[Raquel Lyon]

Hmm... I was hoping there might be something on Mailchimp I'd missed, as I'm wondering whether I should split my list up somehow, as people on here have mentioned doing, but I've no idea how? something to research when I have a minute, I guess.