Unsubscribing

Unsubscribing is the process of opting out of a company’s mailing list, SMS notifications, or subscription-based service. By unsubscribing, users show they are no longer interested in receiving updates from a specific business, promotional messages, or content from any other brand.

In this article, we’ll uncover why people unsubscribe and why it’s essential for businesses to let them do it. We’ll also review unsubscribe requirements under CAN-SPAM and GDPR and provide strategies for reducing unsubscribes.

Why do people unsubscribe?

There are several reasons why people unsubscribe from certain email newsletters, SMS campaigns, and automated messages on messengers and social media. In addition to losing interest, recipients might choose to opt out for the following reasons.

• Irrelevant content. When subscribers receive messages that don’t resonate with their needs, preferences, interests, or problems, they are unlikely to engage with your brand. If users don’t open your messages and fail to explore the content by clicking through, it may indicate that these messages are irrelevant or lack personalization. After a long time of no contact, people tend to unsubscribe, and it’s better to let them do so effortlessly. This approach helps you avoid being reported or marked as spam when recipients aren’t satisfied with hearing from your company.
• Messages overload. Sending messages too often is also a negative practice. Generic, excessive emails, SMS messages, or chatbot messages might annoy receivers. When these messages occur too frequently, they may feel intrusive to subscribers and prompt them to unsubscribe from your email newsletter, SMS campaigns, or chatbot messages.
• Negative user experiences. When messages are of low quality due to hard-to-read formatting, excessive images, broken links, slow loading times, or poorly visible CTAs, subscribers become dissatisfied. To prevent this, you should enhance your messages to ensure a seamless user experience and greater satisfaction.
• Lack of personalization. Among the many companies that utilize personalization, if you don’t customize your offers according to customers’ preferences and needs, your business will struggle to be competitive. Generic content and a surplus of sales pitches without value are no benefit to prospects. To reduce unsubscribes, you should consistently aim to offer helpful guides, tips, and personalized offers.

Now that you understand why people opt out of receiving automated messages from brands, it’s crucial to figure out why every business must let people do it seamlessly when they want to.

Why is it important to let people unsubscribe?

When subscribers have strong reasons to opt out of your email newsletters, SMS, or chatbot messages, you must allow them to do so easily. First, you should take this step to comply with GDPR, the CAN-SPAM Act, and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, helping you avoid various fines and penalties. Additionally, by providing an unsubscribe option, you demonstrate to your customers that you respect their choices, ensuring transparency for all your subscribers.

Implementing a clear opt-out process helps prevent subscribers from reporting your messages or marking them as spam. When customers have an unsubscribe button readily available, they can stop receiving emails and SMS whenever they lose interest or for any other reason. A quick and easily accessible opt-out process protects your company’s reputation and helps you avoid getting blacklisted.

When you don’t pressure anyone to remain with your brand, they appreciate your messages. Personalized content, timely communications, and an easy opt-out process are essential for maintaining positive relationships with your subscribers and avoiding negative reviews.

Now that you know why it’s crucial to let people unsubscribe, it’s time to proceed to the next section to explore unsubscribe requirements under CAN-SPAM and GDPR.

Unsubscribe Requirements Under CAN-SPAM and GDPR Explained

You need to explore the requirements of CAN-SPAM and GDPR. This section provides information.

According to the CAN-SPAM Act, when you automatically send email campaigns, SMS, and other types of messages, they must include a clear and visible unsubscribe button. This allows people to unsubscribe easily. The unsubscription process should not take more than 10 days. After subscribers submit such a request, you must promptly stop sending promotional messages to them within that timeframe.

Another requirement of the CAN-SPAM Act is not to ask users to pay extra fees or to take additional steps. It should only take customers one click to opt-out of email newsletters, SMS, or automated social media messages. When subscribers receive your content, they need to be able to clearly identify the sender. To help subscribers recognize that your company is legitimate, your messages should include your physical address and feature clear subject lines.

To comply with GDPR, customers must consent before receiving promotional content. Users should also be able to opt out once they are ready to do so easily. For this reason, every email and SMS should include a clear unsubscribe link without several steps.

Unlike the CAN-SPAM Act, the GDPR requires businesses to let users unsubscribe immediately. They don’t need to wait for days to stop receiving promotional emails or SMS. Additionally, if subscribers want, they can request that your business delete all their data from your database. Your company should react to such messages immediately.

Now that you know how to comply with these main guidelines, which operate based on your location, it’s time to figure out how to effortlessly let your customers opt out.

How to Make the Unsubscribe Process Seamless?

There are several reasons to provide a seamless unsubscribe process for each of your subscribers, including legal compliance, trust, and user experience. When you do it right, users won’t hurt your brand reputation, and you’ll be able to continue delivering messages to customers who are still interested. We’ll provide you with tips on ensuring a clear and easy opt-out process.

• Let subscribers opt out in one click. When customers want to stop receiving certain messages, it’s best to let them do so seamlessly. By including an unsubscribe button in your messages, you enable users to opt out when they lose interest in your content. Avoid adding extra steps, passwords, or surveys. An instant opt-out process that requires just one click is the most effective way to prevent dissatisfied subscribers from damaging your brand's reputation.
• Add a visible unsubscribe button to your email footer. If you send email campaigns to your subscribers, you should ensure that your opt-out button is visible and is placed in the email footer. It’s the usual placement for opt-out buttons, where people typically look to stop receiving email newsletters.
• Ensure that subscribers can set their preferences rather than fully opt out. Not all subscribers want to completely stop hearing from your company; some may only need to choose their message frequency. Additionally, you should allow them to set other preferences, including the type of content they wish to receive in their inboxes. This way, you can demonstrate your respect for subscribers’ choices.
• Send a confirmation message after users unsubscribe. After users opt out of your email newsletter, consider sending them a polite and simple message to confirm their unsubscription. The message should be positive, brief, and free of sad emotions. Let subscribers know that they can opt in again at any time.
• Comply with CAN-SPAM & GDPR requirements. Depending on whether your business is located in the U.S. or the European Union, you must comply with CAN-SPAM or GDPR, respectively. Always monitor your unsubscribe process and ensure that users’ requests are processed immediately with a single click. Avoid using multi-step forms or any fees for opting out, and steer clear of fines for non-compliance.
• Stop sending promotional messages once users opt out. You should process users’ requests to unsubscribe immediately. When you are in the U.S., these requests should be accepted within 10 days, while similar requests should be processed right away. The best way to respond instantly to unsubscriptions is to automate the process and remove these users from your contact lists.
• Use a simple keyword to let users stop receiving SMS. When you send SMS messages to your contacts, you should also provide comprehensive information about the opt-out process. For instance, you can allow them to stop receiving content by clicking the “Stop” button located beneath the message. After they click it, they should immediately cease receiving these SMS messages. Notify them about this in a confirmation message.

Now that you know how to provide your subscribers with an easy opt-out, it’s time to jump into the strategies helping you reduce unsubscribes.

8 Strategies for Reducing Unsubscribes

While there may always be unsubscribes for various reasons, you can still take steps to prevent it. You can utilize the following tips to enhance users’ experiences with your email campaigns, SMS, chatbot messages, and more. So, let’s dive in.

1. Use segmentation. Consider grouping users based on similar characteristics, such as location, age, interests, preferences, and problems. After segmenting contacts in your lists, you can create content that resonates with their needs and encourages them to engage with these messages. The more relevant the content, the more likely users are to convert.
2. Personalize your content to sound more relevant. Whether you deliver emails, SMS messages, or chatbot messages, you can always craft them based on users’ preferences, needs, and pain points. This enables you to resonate with different audience segments and provide value to each one. Relevant and enjoyable content makes subscribers stick to your brand and interact with it more.
3. Stay consistent in your message frequency. There’s no need to deliver promotional messages too frequently. The best way to capture subscribers’ attention is by maintaining a consistent sending time. Consider developing a schedule for your messages and determining their frequency. This way, users will know when to expect your content.
4. Tailor appealing subject lines. Spammy or uninteresting subject lines can lead to unsubscribes. However, by crafting engaging, short, clear, and compelling subject lines, you can capture your subscribers' attention and encourage their engagement. When delivering email campaigns, ensure they include eye-catching visuals, visible calls to action, concise messages, and relevant content. After selecting a couple of main subject lines, consider conducting A/B testing on them. This will help you determine which one achieves the highest engagement.
5. Share valuable content. When you send content to your audience, ensure that it’s useful to your subscribers. Based on their browsing habits, shopping history, and pain points, you can deliver content based on this data. Consider sharing messages with exclusive offers and enticing discounts for products people have explored or provide a special price for new subscribers. This approach will motivate users to take the desired action more eagerly.
6. Take advantage of marketing automation. To reduce unsubscribe rates, you can incorporate automation. With its help, you’ll be able to deliver timely and relevant messages to users’ inboxes when they expect them. You can welcome new subscribers, remind customers about their shopping cart items, or request feedback after a purchase. This keeps your subscribers engaged throughout their customer journey. While utilizing Automation 360, you can integrate eight marketing channels—email, SMS, web push, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Telegram, and WhatsApp chatbots—to ensure effective communication with your target audience on autopilot.
7. Review contacts in your mailing lists regularly. Cleaning your contacts regularly is essential if you want to maintain your company’s reputation, deliverability, and unsubscribe rates. Your contact lists may include invalid or inactive email addresses and phone numbers, negatively affecting your brand. Individuals no longer interested in your products typically show no signs of engagement, so it’s wise to remove them from your lists. This will help you prevent them from unsubscribing or even marking your messages as spam.
8. Ensure that messages are mobile-friendly. When you send messages, particularly email campaigns, it’s essential to make them mobile-friendly. This requirement is evident in a world where an increasing number of people check their inboxes on smartphones. By employing layouts and navigation that are suitable for even small screens, you guarantee that recipients can navigate your content effortlessly and take the desired action with minimal effort.

Overall, when it comes to unsubscribing, your primary responsibility as a business is to maintain your brand's reputation. To keep it favorable, you must provide users with the option to opt out when they choose to do so. Ensure the process is easy, straightforward, and hassle-free to leave a positive impression of your company.

Last Updated: 21.02.2025