Should You Ever Clean Up Your E-Mail List?

Should you clean your email list?

Just got this email message the other day. And, it seemed urgent too:

“NOTICE: We are Doing a House Cleaning of Our eMail List!

If you would like to remain on the ______________ Group eMail list, please click the confirmation link below.  If you don’t respond to this email you will be taken off the list. 

We are doing this to improve our database of eMails, and to make sure eMails aren’t going to people that no longer want to receive them.”

Do you think this is a smart and necessary action for your email list and subscribers?

Yes?  _______

No?  _______

Maybe?  _______

If you inject your emotion into this, you may be right. However, if you look at statistics and results, the answer is NO. (However, I’m NOT saying that you should not have a segmented list, or at least access to that type of data. Not everybody on your list will be interested in the same topic, necessarily).

The reason you get these messages from time to time is more likely that the list owner is not getting the response (open rates to start) they are wishing for.

Therefore, by pruning “non-engaged audiences”, their numbers will look better, and they don’t have to look at the low performers. Your subscribers will vary in levels of “hotness”. Some will engage and read every email, some only a few, irregular intervals, and some will not read for months.

I have readers who have come back months (6 months+) later, only to state that they haven’t seen the emails, and end up becoming active.

Rather than sending the email that says “you will be removed”, offer more value, new programs – and continue to build. Some of the best email marketers in the world say the same. Unless you have such a huge list that storage is an issue, or some other technical problem (not sure what they would be) – keep them on your list. It’s ok to remove hard bounces and spammy looking emails, but your email system will help you with that. No need for a message like that.

Do you agree or disagree with me?

P.S.
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