Are re-engagement email subject lines and practices deceptive and how should you deal with engaging with old leads and unsubscribes?

Summary

Re-engaging with old leads and unsubscribes presents a complex challenge, requiring a careful balance between ethical practices, legal compliance, and effective marketing strategies. Key themes include the importance of respecting unsubscribe requests, maintaining a clean email list, and avoiding deceptive practices. Experts emphasize that mailing unsubscribed contacts is generally inappropriate and can lead to legal and reputational damage. Furthermore, engagement naturally decays over time, requiring marketers to assess the value of re-engagement efforts and understand why subscribers became inactive in the first place. Employing segmentation and personalization, crafting compelling subject lines, and offering value are important to a re-engagement strategy. From a deliverability perspective, documentation emphasizes techniques like sunsetting inactive subscribers and implementing email authentication to protect sender reputation and improve campaign ROI. Understanding the nuance of GDPR and consent laws, and having a well-managed suppression list are also critical in ensuring email compliance and avoiding severe penalties.

Key findings

  • Prioritize Ethics and Transparency: Avoid deceptive practices and misleading subject lines; transparency builds trust.
  • Respect Unsubscribes: Mailing those who have unsubscribed damages deliverability and opens you up to legal issues.
  • Time Decay: There's a golden window, after which, engagement will sharply decrease.
  • List Hygiene is Crucial: Removing inactive subscribers, hard bounces and spam traps improves deliverability.
  • Personalization is key: Use segmentation to personalize content and increase subscriber action.

Key considerations

  • GDPR Compliance: Ensure GDPR and other regulations are met by all leads and unsubscribes.
  • Authentication: Implement SPF, DKIM, and DMARC for enhanced deliverability.
  • Offer value: Compelling offers and a good call to action are key to re-engaging leads.
  • Suppression Lists: Use a well maintained suppression list.
  • Understanding of audience: Understanding the audience and the reasons for them not being engaged is crucial.

What email marketers say
11Marketer opinions

Re-engaging old leads and unsubscribes requires a delicate balance between reminding them of your value and respecting their preferences. A key theme is the importance of segmentation and personalization to target inactive subscribers with compelling offers or relevant content, while avoiding deceptive practices. Experts recommend having a golden window to engage, after which sales become less likely. Maintaining a clean email list by sunsetting inactive subscribers and honoring unsubscribe requests is essential for protecting sender reputation and deliverability. Subject lines should be clear and honest, and re-engagement campaigns should focus on reminding subscribers of the value they receive. Finally, it's crucial to understand why subscribers became inactive and tailor the re-engagement strategy accordingly, whether that involves offering exclusive discounts, showcasing recent updates, or setting expectations for future communications.

Key opinions

  • Segmentation is Key: Segmentation and personalization enable marketers to send more relevant and engaging re-engagement emails.
  • Golden Window: There's a limited time frame for effectively re-engaging leads, after which the likelihood of conversion decreases.
  • List Hygiene: Maintaining a clean email list by removing inactive subscribers improves deliverability and sender reputation.
  • Clear Subject Lines: Subject lines should be honest, clear, and avoid deception to prevent spam complaints.
  • Focus on Value: Re-engagement campaigns should focus on reminding subscribers of the value they receive from the brand.
  • Understand Inactivity: Understand why subscribers became inactive and tailor the re-engagement strategy accordingly.

Key considerations

  • Unsubscribe Respect: Always honor unsubscribe requests and avoid adding unsubscribed individuals back to the mailing list.
  • Deliverability Risks: Re-engaging old subscribers without caution can damage email deliverability and sender reputation.
  • Offer Value: Provide value in the re-engagement email, such as exclusive discounts, personalized recommendations, or updates on recent improvements.
  • Sunset Inactives: Consider sunsetting inactive subscribers after a certain period to maintain list health.
  • Behavior: Understand subscriber behavior and tailor re-engagement strategies accordingly.
  • Tone: Use an appealing design and concise copy to ensure emails are attention grabbing.
Marketer view

Email marketer from Campaign Monitor explains that segmentation allows you to send targeted re-engagement emails. It highlights different types of segmentation, such as demographic, geographic, and behavioral. They recommend using this data to create targeted campaigns and use dynamic content to ensure the emails are as relevant and engaging as possible.

May 2022 - Campaign Monitor
Marketer view

Email marketer from Moosend explains to make your re-engagement emails stand out, use visually appealing design, clear and concise copy, and a strong call to action. They also suggest adding a touch of humor or creativity to capture subscribers' attention. The article recommends A/B testing different design elements and copy to optimize the campaign's performance.

May 2024 - Moosend
Marketer view

Email marketer from Litmus explains the benefit of sunsetting inactive subscribers which is a process where you remove inactive subscribers from your email list. They explain this helps to improve the overall health of your email list, and improves your deliverability rates.

April 2024 - Litmus
Marketer view

Email marketer from Neil Patel's Blog explains that re-engaging inactive subscribers involves identifying them based on metrics like inactivity duration, sending targeted emails with compelling offers or content, and using segmentation to personalize the approach. They also emphasize the importance of respecting unsubscribes and removing truly inactive subscribers from the list.

September 2023 - Neil Patel's Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from Shopify explains that re-engaging inactive customers is important for ecommerce businesses. They suggest offering personalized recommendations, exclusive discounts, or a reminder of past purchases. The article emphasizes the importance of understanding customer behavior and tailoring the re-engagement strategy accordingly.

October 2024 - Shopify
Marketer view

Email marketer from Automizy shares that they feel one of the biggest email marketing mistakes is not re-engaging with old leads. They suggest setting reminders, using the information you already have about them, and sending them something they value or offers them something of value.

December 2024 - Automizy
Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that there's a golden window to engage with a lead, and after that, any sales should be considered flukes, also they share they have seen companies treating unsubscribes as a soft bounce in transactional email.

May 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view

Email marketer from Reddit shares the use of curiosity-inducing subject lines for re-engagement, such as 'We Miss You!' or 'Is Everything OK?'. They caution against overly aggressive or misleading subject lines and advises A/B testing different approaches to see what resonates with the target audience.

May 2023 - Reddit
Marketer view

Email marketer from Email on Acid explains that email deliverability and sender reputation can be damaged by re-engaging old subscribers if they are not careful. If old leads or unsubscribes are added to your list then are marked as spam you could see your email deliverability and sender reputation severely damaged.

August 2024 - Email on Acid
Marketer view

Email marketer from HubSpot Blog shares that crafting effective re-engagement emails requires a clear understanding of why subscribers became inactive in the first place. They suggest offering valuable content, exclusive deals, or a chance to update preferences. The article emphasizes using compelling subject lines that convey urgency or value and providing an easy way for subscribers to unsubscribe.

August 2024 - HubSpot Blog
Marketer view

Email marketer from ActiveCampaign Blog answers that win-back email campaigns should focus on reminding subscribers of the value they receive from the brand. They advise personalizing the emails, showcasing recent updates or improvements, and offering incentives to return. The article also suggests setting expectations for future communications and providing a clear call to action.

January 2023 - ActiveCampaign Blog

What the experts say
6Expert opinions

Experts emphasize the importance of ethical and transparent re-engagement practices. Deceptive tactics like changing domains to avoid blocks or mailing unsubscribed contacts are strongly discouraged. A key point is the decay of email engagement over time, necessitating careful consideration of whether re-engagement is even worthwhile. Mailing those who have opted out is almost always a bad idea, as it can violate agreements and legal requirements. Subject lines must be honest and clear, avoiding any misleading language that could lead to spam flags. The focus should be on respecting subscriber preferences and maintaining a trustworthy relationship.

Key opinions

  • Avoid Deception: Practices such as changing domains to evade blocks are indicative of potentially deceptive email marketing.
  • Engagement Decay: Email engagement naturally decays over time, making it essential to assess the value of re-engagement efforts.
  • Respect Opt-Outs: Mailing those who have unsubscribed is generally inappropriate and can lead to legal and reputational issues.
  • Honest Subject Lines: Subject lines must be clear and truthful to avoid being flagged as spam.

Key considerations

  • Ethical Practices: Prioritize ethical considerations in all re-engagement efforts.
  • Subscriber Preference: Respect the preferences of subscribers, especially regarding opt-out requests.
  • Legal Compliance: Ensure re-engagement practices comply with all applicable laws and regulations.
  • Brand Trust: Maintain a trustworthy relationship with subscribers by avoiding misleading or deceptive tactics.
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says there are very limited circumstances where mailing unsubscribes is okay, but it's rarely what a marketer thinks it is.

June 2022 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise answers the question of re-engaging with old leads with the advice of not mailing people who have asked not to be mailed. She says 'We're going to suggest you simply do not mail people who have asked not to be mailed. Ever. If you don't, then there's no problem.'

July 2024 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks shares an example of a disclaimer used by Clum Creative, highlighting the potentially deceptive practice of changing domains frequently to avoid blocks.

July 2021 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that re-engaging old contacts or unsubscribes can be deceptive if it violates the original agreement or legal requirements. She advises against tricking people into being mailed who have asked not to be mailed.

February 2022 - Word to the Wise
Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks explains that there's a decay curve for email engagement that starts immediately after someone opts in.

August 2024 - Email Geeks
Expert view

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that subject lines should not be deceptive or misleading, especially when re-engaging old leads. Honesty and clarity are important to avoid being flagged as spam or violating regulations.

March 2024 - Word to the Wise

What the documentation says
5Technical articles

Email deliverability and regulatory compliance heavily depend on managing unsubscribes and maintaining a clean email list. Documentation emphasizes the importance of honoring unsubscribe requests promptly and customizing the unsubscribe process for feedback. Regular list cleaning involves removing inactive subscribers, hard bounces, and spam traps. Consent, under GDPR, must be freely given, specific, informed, unambiguous, and easily withdrawn. Suppression lists ensure that unsubscribed or bounced addresses are automatically excluded from future emails. Implementing email authentication methods like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are recommended for improved deliverability. Sending to inactive subscribers can harm deliverability by increasing bounce rates and spam complaints.

Key findings

  • Unsubscribe Management: Proper management of unsubscribes is crucial for regulatory compliance and list health.
  • Email List Hygiene: Regularly cleaning email lists improves deliverability, engagement, and ROI.
  • Consent Requirements: GDPR mandates specific requirements for obtaining and managing consent, including the ease of withdrawal.
  • Suppression Lists: Suppression lists are essential for automatically excluding unsubscribed or bounced addresses.
  • Authentication: Implementing email authentication methods enhances deliverability.

Key considerations

  • Prompt Action: Honor unsubscribe requests promptly.
  • Customize Unsubscribe: Consider customizing the unsubscribe process to collect feedback.
  • Regular Cleaning: Make email list cleaning a regular practice.
  • GDPR Compliance: Ensure compliance with GDPR's consent requirements.
  • Implement Suppression: Implement and maintain suppression lists.
  • Avoid Inactives: Avoid sending to inactive or unengaged subscribers.
Technical article

Documentation from SendGrid explains that email best practices include regularly cleaning email lists, segmenting audiences, and personalizing content. They also emphasize the importance of authentication methods like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to improve deliverability. The documentation highlights the risks of sending to inactive or unengaged subscribers, including increased bounce rates and spam complaints.

July 2022 - SendGrid
Technical article

Documentation from GDPR explains that consent must be freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous. It also explains you need to have a record of this consent. This is important as consent can be withdrawn at any time and the process of withdrawing consent needs to be as easy as giving it.

September 2022 - GDPR
Technical article

Documentation from SparkPost explains that email list hygiene is the practice of regularly cleaning your email list by removing inactive subscribers, hard bounces, and spam traps. They also explain that it helps to improve deliverability, engagement, and ROI by ensuring your emails reach only the most active and interested subscribers.

March 2023 - SparkPost
Technical article

Documentation from Postmark explains the purpose of suppression lists, is that they hold a record of email address which have either unsubscribed or bounced and as such should be automatically suppressed from future emails.

January 2025 - Postmark
Technical article

Documentation from Mailchimp explains that managing unsubscribes is crucial for maintaining a healthy email list and complying with regulations. They detail the process of how subscribers can unsubscribe, how Mailchimp handles unsubscribe requests, and the importance of honoring those requests promptly. They also discuss options for customizing the unsubscribe process and collecting feedback.

February 2023 - Mailchimp