If you’re GDPR compliant, you will have heard of the term opt-in email marketing.
When a prospect opts-in to your email list, they're giving you permission to send them email marketing campaigns. Since GDPR came into effect, you need clear acknowledgement that the consumer actually wants to receive your marketing emails.
Email marketers can no longer assume consent from customers.
Don’t worry, though. It’s not all bad.
Perhaps you’ve seen a significant decrease in your email list since GDPR became effective. That’s normal.
Look on the bright side – you’ve now got a cleaner, healthier email list, full of people who actually want to hear from your company. This means that your open rates will now grow considerably, and you’ll see your conversion rate get higher, too. Hurrah!
What is opt-in email marketing?
Also referred to as ‘permission marketing’, it’s the process of gaining someone’s consent by opting-in to hear from you.
It lets you invite your website visitors to sign up for your marketing communications. If you use it correctly, you can significantly increase your revenue from your email marketing.
There are two signup methods available in email marketing: single opt-in and double opt-in.
Both are simple, secure ways to collect information from your prospects and to interact with your audience.
Single opt-in email marketing is what most people are familiar with. Your consumer fills out and submits an online form with their details, and that gives you permission to send them messages straight away.
The double opt-in introduces an extra step to the signup process.
What does it mean to ‘double opt-in’?
You’ve more than likely seen double opt-in for email marketing in action.
You visit a website, and you sign up to their newsletter. You then receive an email asking you to confirm your subscription. If you do want to join, you have to click the link in the email. If you don’t click, you won’t hear from the company again.
It’s a good way of making sure your email list is as organic as possible.
People make mistakes. They might have typed in the wrong email address which belongs to another person, or they might just simply change their mind.
Asking them to confirm their consent means you know that it’s an accurate and active email address.
What are the advantages of single opt-in email marketing?
It’s the quickest way to build your email list. The extra step involved to double opt-in will inevitably reduce the number of people who complete the signup stage. With a single opt-in, a larger audience will see your email campaigns, which should logically result in more leads.
It’s also easier on the user. The subscriber only has to enter their email address once. They won’t need to search for an extra email in their inbox or remember to click on a confirmation link. They can start receiving your emails immediately, which some will prefer.
What are the advantages of double opt-in email marketing?
It improves the quality of your email list. Even though it might take longer to grow it, your list will be full of loyal subscribers. They’ve confirmed that they want to receive your email campaigns, so you can be assured that they want to engage with your brand. As a result, you’re likely to see higher open and click-through rates.
It will reduce your unsubscribe rates. Because your readers genuinely want to receive your content in their inbox, it’s logical to expect that fewer of them will leave. Your leads should stick around for longer and be more likely to result in a conversion.
Why opt-in email marketing is vital
Which one should you choose? Well, there really is no right or wrong option here. GDPR doesn’t require you to use the double-opt-in.
Deciding which opt-in email marketing will suit you best really just comes down to what your priorities are.
Do you want to build your email list quickly, or do you want higher quality leads? Is it quality you want, or quantity?
Either way, getting some form of content is crucial. As you should know by now, it’s actually illegal to send unsolicited emails to your consumers. There are strict UK regulations in place to protect people’s data.
Don’t give your readers a reason to unsubscribe. You don’t want to bug them and make them feel like they can’t trust you.
