Email Opt-In

Opt-in is an inbound marketing approach whereby a marketer solicits a potential customer’s permission to send them promotional or other types of content about a brand. It is also known as permission marketing and can be single opt-in or double opt-in.

Sending several unsolicited messages to a prospect’s email can hurt a sender's reputation and image. But unlike outbound marketing strategies where marketers advertise to the market as a whole, opt-in is a more targeted, effective, and ethical approach. In opt-in marketing, prospects agree to receive a company’s content. This content can contain advertising, newsletters, offers, and so forth.

In the eyes of potential customers, there are a lot of things that can be regarded as spam. These may be emails they do not want, emails they do not expect in their inbox, and anything they subscribed to but later decided to opt-out. Therefore, e-commerce owners need to up their marketing game to avoid being blacklisted. The good news is that using opt-in can benefit a business’s marketing in several ways.

• Build a mailing list fast. Opt-in, specifically single opt-in, helps marketers to create big mailing lists quickly. Single opt-in is a one-step process, and prospects can register even from third-party websites.
• Help tailor promotional content to meet subscribers’ interests. When prospects opt-in for a company’s emails, the marketer is in a better position to predict the type of content that appeals to each subscriber.
• Increases open rate. Most promotional emails end up in the trash without being opened. But with opt-in, a brand can enjoy high open rates of sent emails.
• Make it simple to follow up on a buyer. Marketers can follow up on customers who have made purchases to either up-sell or cross-sell to them. On that note, SendPulse has a convenient feature know as Automation 360 that allows online business people to automatically send welcome emails, thank you emails, offer discounts on future purchases or ask for feedback after a customer makes a purchase.

Using Subscription Forms in an Opt-in Marketing Approach

A signup form is the best way to encourage prospective clients to opt-in for email marketing messages. This form typically prompts a site’s visitor to enter their email address to receive marketing emails. Subscription forms can be placed on any page of a website and can have different designs. To create a subscription form that prompts many visitors to subscribe, register with SendPulse.

SendPulse offers a convenient and easy-to-use editor that helps users build custom subscription forms. Four types of forms suit different users’ needs:

• Embedded form
• Floating form
• Pop-up window
• Fixed form

To get started creating a subscription form using SendPulse, you should:

1. Go to subscription forms. On the SendPulse homepage, click on products then subscription forms. On the subscription forms page, click on “create custom subscription form” to build subscription forms for a website.
2. Select “Form Builder” or Form Templates. Pick a template form and edit it or create a new form using SendPulse's form builder with a wide choice of layouts, colors, images, and fonts.
3. Add a mailing list or create one. One can add an existing mailing list that SendPulse will update with new subscribers, or create a new list. Plus, it is also possible to add several lists at one time.
4. Choose elements to add to the form. There are many elements one can add to a form using our form builder. They include an input box, checkbox, radio buttons, drop-down lists, text, images, and spacer.
5. Set up design parameters. Depending on your preferences, SendPulse allows you to specify settings such as width, background, borders, font, and design the corners of your form.
6. Apply Changes, save, and get the code. Once everything is setup, click on “Apply Changes” followed by “Save and Get Code.”

Double Opt-in Marketing Technique

Double opt-in is when a user signs up for email marketing messages, and an automated email with a link is sent to the subscriber to confirm the subscription. This email typically requires the user to click on the link and confirm that they are the owner of the email and that they agreed to join the mailing list.

• A better quality mailing list. Double opt-in helps marketers gain high-quality addresses. Plus, there is a smaller risk of retaining inactive and non-existent addresses on a mailing list.
• Opportunity for immediate interaction. Online marketers can communicate with subscribers through confirmation emails to talk about their brand or provide product/service offers.
• Low unsubscribe rate. With double opt-in, a smaller number of prospects are likely to unsubscribe from a brand’s marketing emails than with single opt-in since these users expressed their wish to receive emails from you twice.
• Better click-through rate and conversion. Online businesses that utilize a double opt-in approach record higher open rates, click-through rates, and ROI.

Confirmation Emails with Double Opt-in Marketing

A confirmation email is the most effective way of carrying out double opt-in. It involves sending a triggered email to a visitor who subscribes to marketing emails through a subscription form. The email confirms that a customer has subscribed to a brand’s marketing content. By using SendPulse, an online marketer or business owner can create and send subscribers automatic confirmation emails with ease.

How to Setup Confirmation Emails with SendPulse

SendPulse is an easy-to-use email service that allows users to create subscription forms for websites, confirmation emails, thank you pages for double opt-in, and a host of other things.
For double opt-in confirmation or thank you emails, you should do the following:

1. Create a subscription form using SendPulse's Form Builder. Use a template or form builder, create a signup form to get new subscribers.
2. Make a notification about a subscription. In the form options, enter a subscription notification title.
3. Fill in the text of the confirmation email. Add a corporate/registered domain address in the “From address” section. You can then edit the email text by inserting code or using an HTML editor.
4. Enter a URL for the Confirmation Page. The last step of creating a confirmation email using SendPulse is choosing a page where the subscriber is redirected after clicking the confirmation link.

References

1. The article "Opt-in email" on Wikipedia defines the term and explains the opt-in forms.
2. The article "What is an opt-in form?" on BigCommerece defines an opt-in form and explains why it is required by law.
3. The article "What is Opt-In Email Marketing: 12 Best Practices To Better Results" on Hello Bar blog covers the subject of an opt-in email marketing, highlights the difference between a single opt-in and double opt-in, and provides 12 tips to create useful forms.
4. The article "Opt-in and Opt-out for Email" on The Balance Careers defines opt-in and explains why it is essential in email marketing.

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Last Updated: 06.12.2023