As much as we hate to see our subscribers go, we can’t make them stay without their consent. It’s their right to unsubscribe from an email list if they no longer wish to receive updates from you.
A common mistake by most businesses is making it difficult for their respective audiences to unsubscribe from an email list. This not only affects their credibility but also gives a negative impression of the brand.
No marketer would want people unsubscribing from an email list as it affects the lead generation process. But, if you look at the bright side, people unsubscribing from an email list enables you to reflect upon your mistakes and make things right.
So, you shouldn’t be hesitant to add the unsubscribe button in your emails. If leveraged properly, a strategically placed unsubscribe button helps you maintain a list of relevant subscribers that are actually interested in hearing what you have to say.
Here are five examples of unsubscribe buttons that help you keep your customers.
What is an Unsubscribe Button?
An unsubscribe button is an option added to emails by marketers that enables their respective audiences to discontinue hearing from the brands. It’s not necessarily a button in all scenarios, in some cases, it’s just a hyperlinked text.
An unsubscribe button allows your audience to opt-out of an email list to stop receiving messages from respective brands. And it’s ethical to add this option to your emails.
It’s reported that 91% of users are likely to unsubscribe from email lists they’ve opted-in to previously. And if they’re not given the option to do so. They won’t shy away from reaching out to you.
This can be an unpleasant encounter so just make it easier for them to opt-out of your list by simply adding an unsubscribe button.
Why Marketers Use an Unsubscribe Button
Having an email list is essential for running effective email marketing campaigns. It helps you capture quality leads and reach out to a relevant audience.
However, growing an email list is one of the biggest challenges faced by email marketers worldwide. People are often reluctant to share their information, especially with unfamiliar brands. So, it can be very difficult to increase your email list subscriptions.
Despite all this, email marketers give users an option to unsubscribe from their list. This may seem like an unwise strategy to newbies, but email marketing pros know that this tactic pays off in the long run.
Let’s talk email metrics.
Email open rate is one of the most important metrics tracked by marketers to gauge the success or failure of their campaigns. It represents the percentage of people from your list who actually opened your message. Sadly, the average open rate for email campaigns is less than 2%.
Now, imagine sending your emails to people who don’t want to receive messages from you. There’s a strong likelihood of your open rate dropping further down the average, which leads to a poor click-through rate and conversions.
So, having a big email list is a good thing, but only if it comprises a relevant audience that actually wants to receive your messages.
That’s why marketers use an unsubscribe button in their emails. Not just because giving your audience an option to unsubscribe is the right thing to do but to also cleanse your email list of subscribers who are less likely to convert.
Things to Remember When Adding Unsubscribe Button to Emails
Even though most email marketers are in favor of adding an unsubscribe button to their emails, not many do it the right way. Here are a few best practices that you need to consider when adding an unsubscribe button to your emails.
Add Clear Instructions
One of the common mistakes made by email marketers is not adding clear instructions when adding an unsubscribe button. Marketers often use complex phrases instead of simple words that suggest the required action.
The best thing to do here is to add a self-explanatory unsubscribe button. You shouldn’t prefer marketing gimmicks over user convenience. Make it easier for people to unsubscribe from your list.
Make Unsubscribe Buttons Easy to Find
Whether you add an unsubscribe button or a simple link to unsubscribe from your email, make sure that it’s easy to find.
Some marketers just don’t like to see their subscribers leave. So, what they end up doing is making it difficult for their audience to find the option to unsubscribe.
This can lead to dire consequences. Not making it easy for your audience to unsubscribe from your list can hurt your brand image and lead to regulatory violations.
So, always make your unsubscribe options easy to find to earn the respect of your audience and avoid legal repercussions.
Enable Your Audience to Update Preferences
This is one of the best strategies to keep a relevant audience subscribed to your list. People may be unwilling to receive some of your messages. But they might not want to unsubscribe from your list altogether.
In this case, it’s best to give your audience a few options to choose from. They can either unsubscribe from the email list or choose to update their email preferences.
Being able to update email preferences allows your audience to discontinue receiving certain messages from you without having to unsubscribe from your list.
This allows you to engage your audience by sending them tailored messages best suited to their needs and preferences.
Never Play a Victim Card
When people unsubscribe from your list, take it like a champ and move on. Don’t try to gain their sympathy or make them feel bad about their decision.
It’s common for businesses to bid farewell when people unsubscribe from their list. However, you should choose your words very carefully when curating the message and avoid pestering at all costs.
Playing a victim card does more harm than good. It’s a huge turn-off for your audience and can lead you to lose their respect and the opportunity to retarget them in the future.
Instead, focus on engaging people that are still subscribed to your list and revise the way you curate your email content.
Make It Easier for People to Unsubscribe
You should make it easier for people to unsubscribe from your emails. It shouldn’t be a complicated process requiring users to go through a series of steps. Just one click should be enough to unsubscribe them from your list.
Businesses often complicate their unsubscription process by asking users to provide personal information or login details while they’re trying to unsubscribe. This is never a good idea. Asking for information at times like this may backfire and lead you to lose them for good.
Collect Feedback
It’s best that you collect feedback from users when they opt out. It shouldn’t be mandatory, but adding it as an option would help you obtain useful insights.
As a matter of fact, it’s reported that around 17% of users expect to be routed to a survey when they unsubscribe from an email list.
Suggestions from users who have unsubscribed from your list would pave the way for you to rectify your mistakes and restructure your email campaigns to engage your current subscribers.
Examples of Unsubscribe Buttons
It can be difficult for many to come up with bright ideas for unsubscribe buttons. Here are a few examples to take inspiration from.
Stripo
The first example comes from Stripo. Stripo is an email automation solution that enables users to create professional and responsive email templates with no HTML expertise required.
Stripo has a single-click unsubscribe button that instantly removes you from their list. Furthermore, the color scheme and the size of the button make it clearly visible and easy to find.
They have also added other details such as privacy policy, terms of use, and contact information in their email footer. There’s a short note at the end which tells you why you receive emails from Stripo.
The best thing they did was add their social media profiles to the email footer. Clicking on the icons routes users to Stripo’s official social media pages. This is a subtle way of giving your users an option to stay connected with the business even after unsubscribing to its email list.
The second example is from Reddit, a network of online communities built around the diverse interests and hobbies of users worldwide.
The unsubscribe button Reddit has used is a hyperlinked text which is clearly visible thanks to the color scheme. They also give you the option to update your preferences. And you get instructions on how to update your preferences.
Lastly, they’ve added clickable buttons that route you to AppStore and Google Play for downloading the app. This enables users to stay connected with the platform even after unsubscribing to its emails.
Steam
Steam is a globally acclaimed digital video game distribution service and an online community for gamers. The way these guys have set up their email unsubscription process is absolutely genius. Below mentioned is the snapshot taken from one of their emails.
Steam gives you the option to unsubscribe from its emails by clicking on hyperlinked text. Moreover, they also give you the option to update your email preferences. All you have to do is click on the links provided to perform your desired actions.
The options given by Steam are clearly visible and really easy to find. But, what shines the brightest is their copy. They have curated their message in a way that inclines readers more towards updating their preferences than unsubscribing.
SEMrush
SEMrush is a keyword planning tool used and loved by marketers worldwide. Below mentioned is a snapshot taken from one of their emails.
SEMrush uses hyperlinked text as an unsubscribe button for users to remove them from the email list. You don’t have to put effort into finding the unsubscribe button, as it’s clearly visible. Furthermore, they have also given links to their privacy policy and contact details.
The footer section of their email also gives you a brief overview of SEMrush as a solution and contains social media icons that route you to their official social media pages.
Another worthy effort of making it easy for users to unsubscribe from the email list along with the options to stay connected with the company via social media.
Loom
Loom is a professional video messaging software that enables you to send interactive messages to your team with visual guidance. The snapshot below is taken from one of Loom’s emails.
Loom gives its users an option to unsubscribe from its emails by clicking on the hyperlinked text. They have a pretty simple unsubscribe button with a self-explanatory copy. The unsubscribe option is also clearly visible and can be easily found at the footer of their emails.
Other than the unsubscribe option, Loom has given the company address, and that’s pretty much it. Sometimes, keeping it simple is the best thing to do.
Summary
There you have it. The five examples of unsubscribe buttons that help you keep your customers. Taking inspiration from the examples listed and embracing the best practices can help you maintain a list of relevant subscribers who are actually interested in receiving your messages.
When someone unsubscribes to your emails, you don’t lose them for good. There are other ways to stay connected with your audience even after they’ve unsubscribed from your email list.
However, if they leave with no intention of coming back, it’s best to end things on a good note than to pester.
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