Recipient

An email recipient is a person who receives emails from a specific individual, business, or organization either without or after signing up for their email newsletter. Before sending emails, businesses should get consent from recipients.

In this article, we’ll unveil the difference between a recipient and a subscriber, review the types of recipients, and provide reasons for building a recipient list.

The Difference Between a Recipient and a Subscriber

Often, people use the words “recipient” and “subscriber” interchangeably in marketing, membership services, and communication. Although these two terms are very similar, they still have distinct characteristics. We’ll uncover them in this section below.

A recipient is a person or organization that receives different types of messages, including emails, notifications, and other messages. When we talk about email recipients, these people get emails without necessarily signing up for email campaigns and providing consent. Businesses can deliver emails not only to people who opted in but also to those who might be interested in their products or services using cold emailing. In this case, a recipient and a business don’t have any prior relationships.

A subscriber is a person who opts in to receive a brand’s emails with updates, company information, promotions, etc. Usually, when users subscribe to businesses’ email newsletters, they give their consent to receive content and thus establish the beginning of relationships with a specific brand. People often agree to join a mailing list of a company when they visit the website and see a subscription form. Companies can use lead magnets to encourage site visitors to provide email addresses. In exchange, marketers give subscribers access to educational materials, reports, surveys, infographics, etc.

In short, subscribers receive emails from a specific company regularly, while recipients can get information from a company only once. This happens because brands have subscribers' consent, while companies can send their emails to new people only once to avoid spam complaints. Sending emails without any previous relationships and consent can potentially bring problems to businesses, including spam reports, email deliverability issues, bad sender reputation, etc.

Now that you know the distinct meanings, it’s time to explore the types of recipients.

Types of Recipients

There are different types of recipients based on the channels you use and the people you target. If you strive to send messages based on how close you are with your audience, here are the types of recipients you’ll come across:

• Leads. These are individuals who show interest in your products or services. They visit your website, explore your offers, and sign up for your email newsletter. When prospects opt-in, you can send them all the content they need with their consent to take the desired action. These emails usually contain product recommendations, promotions, discounts, promo codes, and price decreases for the first purchase. All of these help your company encourage recipients to explore emails and accept the offers. After recipients complete the purchase, they convert into customers.
• Customers. The content in emails differs when you send it to those people who have already bought your products. These messages usually contain surveys and review forms encouraging customers to share their experiences and ensuring seamless after-sales service. In this case, email marketing provides you with customer insights and helps boost customer loyalty.
• Former customers. These clients have purchased your products but are not showing any activity. You can re-engage these recipients by sending them email campaigns with special offers and promo codes to make them return. By regularly sending emails, you can remind these inactive clients about your brand and spark interest.

You can divide recipients based on how you send email campaigns into the following groups:

• Primary recipients. These are people businesses send emails directly. In this case, an email campaign is created based on this particular person’s needs and problems.
• Carbon copy recipients. This type of email is usually delivered to recipients on the list to share some updates about the company, provide product information, and notify them about promotions. Recipients get emails regularly to stay up-to-date.
• Blind carbon copy recipients. You can deliver emails to recipients without them knowing about others on the list. It lets you close people’s email addresses and send email campaigns to specific subscribers, resonating with their needs.
• Mass email recipients. You can send bulk email campaigns to many subscribers and provide them with all the necessary information. These newsletters can include various content covering subscribers’ pain points, needs, challenges, etc.

Now that you know the types of recipients, let’s discover why it's crucial for a business to create a recipient list.

Why build a recipient list?

Creating a recipient list is a strategic step necessary for every successful business. It’s crucial for marketing, communication with potential customers, and sales. Here are some more details for doing it.

• Better communication with customers. Since a recipient list usually contains the personal information of each of your customers, it allows you to tailor your content based on their demographics, pain points, challenges, and needs. By grouping recipients based on these criteria, you’ll be able to improve engagement, resulting in more conversions.
• Higher efficiency. When you have a well-defined recipient list and a clear understanding of each person’s preferences, you can optimize your budget by allocating resources more effectively. This approach prevents wasting money on emailing contacts who are not interested in your products and unlikely to make a purchase.
• Increased engagement. Reviewing your recipient list and identifying people who show activity ensures real interaction with prospects. After understanding what these subscribers are looking for, you can deliver relevant content that resonates with their needs. As a result, they will open your emails, click through the offers, and finally buy from you. Relevant messages and enticing offers will help you build stronger connections and higher engagement.
• Personalization. Having a recipient list at hand ensures that you can divide your contacts into groups based on their similarities. These might include preferences, demographics, search history, website activity, etc. After this, you can personalize communication and deliver relevant messages. In turn, personalized communication positively influences customer loyalty and satisfaction.
• Visibility. If you craft well-targeted messages with the right offers, your company will remain top of mind for your audience. Unique and eye-catching headlines, compelling offers, and limited-time discounts can significantly boost the visibility and engagement of your emails.
• Compliance with regulations. When you create a recipient list of people who signed up for your email newsletter, you comply with all the regulations, including the CAN-SPAM Act. Having recipients who opted in for your updates allows you to prevent complaints, spam reports, and reputation issues.

Overall, email recipients, especially those who have agreed to receive your email newsletters, are a must for every business. When implemented effectively, your email marketing strategy can convert recipients into loyal customers, driving your company’s scalability and growth. Strong communication with your subscribers increases the likelihood of conversions and fosters long-term brand loyalty.

Last Updated: 10.12.2024