When is double opt-in (DOI) necessary for email marketing?
Summary
What email marketers say13Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Entrepreneur.com answers that double opt-in is necessary when you need to demonstrate to your audience that your company takes their personal data privacy seriously, helping to build trust in your business.
Marketer from Email Geeks sees no drawbacks to DOI, suggesting even a 'faux' version provides valuable engagement data for analysis and segmentation.
Email marketer from Reddit user answers that double opt-in is necessary when the possible costs of poor deliverability outweigh the costs from losing subscribers who don't confirm. They highlight that this is most important when protecting a company's sender reputation is the primary goal.
Marketer from Email Geeks notes that anti-spam systems have improved, diminishing the need for DOI. They estimate that fewer than 3% of senders benefit enough from DOI to justify the effort and signup losses, especially if they have a good captcha in place.
Email marketer from ActiveCampaign shares that if your goal is to build a high-quality email list with engaged subscribers, then double opt-in is the way to go, but if fast growth is more important than list quality then single opt-in may be sufficient.
Email marketer from G2 answers that double opt-in is necessary when you operate under GDPR or other strict privacy laws, as it provides explicit consent from subscribers to receive your emails, which is required for compliance.
Email marketer from HubSpot shares that double opt-in is beneficial for building a cleaner, more engaged email list, reducing bounce rates and spam complaints, and improving overall sender reputation. They recommend it, especially when growing a list organically.
Email marketer from Reddit user explains that when you have a small email list, DOI is very helpful as a means to filter out any bad email addresses right away. They expand that this is due to how important each email address is when you have a very small list.
Marketer from Email Geeks discusses the opportunity cost of not sending to those who don't confirm. They suggest alternatives like applying confirmed opt-in (COI) only to non-paid signups or reconfirming the entire list with COI annually after a major sales season.
Marketer from Email Geeks views DOI as one tool among many for security, protecting against emailing personally identifiable information (PII) to spam traps. They recommend securing forms with rate limiting, captcha, and email validation.
Email marketer from EmailToolTester answers that double opt-in is necessary when a business has a high need to only email engaged users, prioritising engagement rates and deliverability.
Email marketer from Moosend suggests that single opt-in is appropriate if you are confident in your data collection methods and have implemented strong measures to prevent spam sign-ups, however, they recommend DOI if list quality is paramount.
Email marketer from MailerLite shares that single opt-in can be suitable for brands with a strong reputation and a clear understanding of their audience, allowing for faster list growth. However, they advise careful monitoring of deliverability and engagement.
What the experts say5Expert opinions
Expert from Email Geeks recommends DOI for small senders to protect against blocklists, especially hyperlocal news and newsletter senders.
Expert from Email Geeks advises against dissuading clients who want DOI, suggesting confirmations are common enough that most users understand the process and those who don't may not be valuable customers.
Expert from Word to the Wise answers that DOI helps to protects your business in several ways; it limits complaints which are costly, protects your reputation and deliverability, and helps ensure you have permission to send which will help protect against legal problems.
Expert from Spamresource explains that DOI provides advantages in terms of list hygiene, deliverability, and legal compliance (especially with GDPR). It ensures that subscribers genuinely want to receive emails, leading to higher engagement and a better sender reputation.
Expert from Email Geeks describes DOI as a crude but effective general-purpose tool, suggesting other tools may be better in certain situations.
What the documentation says3Technical articles
Documentation from Mailchimp answers that double opt-in is necessary to protect your sender reputation by only sending to subscribers who have confirmed their interest, helping you avoid spam complaints and improve engagement metrics.
Documentation from Sendinblue explains that double opt-in is necessary when you want to ensure high-quality subscribers who are genuinely interested in your content, improve deliverability, and comply with GDPR and other privacy regulations.
Documentation from Klaviyo explains that using double opt-in can significantly improve deliverability rates by ensuring only valid and engaged email addresses are added to your list.