14 Ways To Figure Out Why Users Unsubscribe And Fix The Problem

No marketer wants to see users unsubscribe from their client’s email list, especially when it seems as if they’re all doing it at the same time. You may be wondering what went wrong and whether you can fix the problem so that the exodus stops and doesn’t happen again.

After taking the time and care to help your clients build relationships with their customers, don’t ignore it if subscribers start dropping en masse. Use the advice of marketing pros who have experienced their own fair share of users unsubscribing from email lists. To help, 14 members of Forbes Agency Council offer their best suggestions below.

1. Ask The Right Questions

First, does your content deliver on expectations that were set when subscribers first subscribed? Second, does your content align with their interests? Third, is the content of your email delivering value and piquing interest with a compelling subject line, section headings and a concise yet engaging body? Finally, are your emails reaching the inbox, or are they getting filtered as spam? – David Hall, GeniusVets

2. Evaluate The Value Of Your Emails

Most consumers unsubscribe because they no longer see any value in staying subscribed. Ask yourself if your business is providing valuable content in each email. If the answer is “no,” then you may be overselling in your emails. – Melissa Litchfield, Litchfield Media

3. Confirm That All Users Actually Signed Up For Emails

First and foremost, it is important to understand the reason why it is happening. It could be because you are sending too many promotional emails, there are technical issues with your marketing software, your content is not relevant or the user never signed up. Your solutions could include enabling double opt-in (with this option, the list grows more slowly but creates a relevant database), sending relevant, valuable emails and reducing the number of promotional emails. – Sanil Subhash Chandra Bose, Ayruz Data Marketing

4. Ensure That You’re Addressing The Right Audience

It’s probably not a problem with your email if you have a high unsubscribe rate. You might assume that there is something wrong with the content of your emails, but it could just as likely be about who you are targeting. The first thing I would recommend is checking for mistakes in segmentation. – David Rollo, Acronym

5. Consider The Frequency Of Your Emails

First, look at frequency. If your users are receiving too many emails from your organization, then they may quickly become frustrated and choose to unsubscribe. Second, if there isn’t a lot of content, your email looks more like spam than useful information that the user wants. Be sure that your emails deliver value so that people look forward to receiving them. – Jodi Amendola, Amendola Communications

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6. Make Sure Your Content Is Memorable

Due to the massive uptick in e-marketing, many professionals are now “cream skimming” and opting out of those communications that don’t add value. This trend will only continue. Make sure every piece of content you deploy is compelling, useful, colorful, beneficial, relevant and unique. Be memorable and engaging, not spammy! – Nancy A Shenker, theONswitch

7. Analyze How Much Of Your Content Is Evergreen

To understand what the issue is in this case, doing an analysis of your email marketing content as of late would be very important and helpful. If a lot of content has gone out that is not evergreen, there is a good chance that the problem may be the content itself. – Jon James, Ignited Results

8. Quickly Collect Customer Feedback

Consider sending a quick e-survey to your remaining subscribers. For example, a Net Promoter Score survey asks, “How likely are you to recommend our brand to a friend?” This question is followed with an open-ended “why” to pinpoint the issue. To reach lost subscribers, share the survey on social media, but be prepared for potentially negative comments. – Sara Steever, Paulsen

9. Utilize A/B Split Testing

Use A/B split testing with your email marketing content. Test and validate what works and what doesn’t. If something isn’t working, change it! Change it with the best solution you’ve tested. – Jonathan Laberge, Reptile

10. Double-Check Assumptions You Made About The Audience

Reexamine every aspect of your current campaigns to assess where things went wrong. One often-overlooked issue is the audience. It’s important to double-check the assumptions you made about the audience. It’s possible that your content didn’t align with the audience’s interests, personas or preferences, or you may have mistakenly included messaging that was insensitive or off-brand. – Paula Chiocchi, Outward Media, Inc.

11. Check Social Media For Customer Relations Issues

The first thing the company should do is rule out a technical issue, such as an expired security certificate or a downed server. If that’s not the culprit, then the company should check social media for a possible customer relations issue that would lead to widespread cancellations. In order to get ahead of something such as that down the line, the company should invest in a social listening program. – Larry Gurreri, Sosemo LLC

12. Make Sure Your Messaging Isn’t Polarizing

If a sudden drop in subscribers occurs, the company or brand should look at its messaging to see if it could be polarizing. Avoid pushing an agenda that is not directly related to your brand, as this type of messaging may not resonate with your subscribers. Stick to key traits of your brand and distribute messaging aligned with those traits instead of speaking on macro-environmental topics. – Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, Hawthorne LLC

13. Try A Win-Back Campaign And Offer Incentives

Was something offensive sent out, causing people to unsubscribe? If the answer is “yes,” try a win-back campaign to address the issue and offer incentives for resubscribing. Note that if the user unsubscribed completely, most customer relationship management systems won’t let you email them again. In other instances, people have unsubscribed from one list, but not all of them. – Ralph Burns, Tier 11

14. See If There Has Been A Glitch

First, you should check to see if there has been a glitch in the system, or if any changes you made may have influenced the mass opt-out (increasing the number of emails you sent, for example). Suppose the unsubscribing comes from too many emails or a lack of relevance. If that is the case, the marketing team can solve this by creating a more accurately segmented list by asking customers which emails they want to receive and how often. – Jonas Muthoni, Deviate Agency

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Author: Expert Panel®, Forbes Councils Member