A Comprehensive Guide to Managing Your Email List

Over 81% of marketers use email marketing, but did you know that your email list can quickly become harmful to your business’s success if you do not manage it efficiently? 

The work does not stop once you gain email subscribers. In order to leverage the benefits of email marketing, you need to continue to nurture your list. Otherwise, your email list can quickly deteriorate, with emails ending up in spam without accurate data to effectively manage your marketing strategy.  

We have put together this comprehensive guide to help you manage your email distribution list for long-term marketing success.

Importance of Managing an Email List

Did you know the average person receives around 120 emails per day? If you are one of the emails that are sitting unopened in their inbox – or worse, in their spam box- you need to take action. 

Managing your email list ensures you keep subscribers engaged, and, more importantly, it ensures you keep the right subscribers. Not all subscribers are going to be part of your target audience, and that’s okay, but you can take charge of your email list to keep its high value on your side. Some other benefits of managing your email list include:

• A deeper understanding of the target audience 
• More accurate data analytics
• A thriving email list
• Cost savings

Taking charge of your email list ensures your content is targeted and being sent to the right users. If your emails are constantly ignored, certain email inboxes will filter them as junk. Cleaning your list ensures it continues to thrive and you have accurate insights to create the best content for users. 

You can also experience cost-savings, as you will be removing unengaged contacts, incorrect emails, and other spam risks. Most email tools charge based on the number of users, so managing your email list makes it more cost-effective. 

Manage Your Email Distribution List Effectively

So, where do you begin with managing your email list? It begins with cleaning your current list and working on strategies for more effective email marketing. Here are some of our top tips to make that happen.

Opt-in Forms and Verification 

Ensure your opt-in forms are precise, clear, and secure for users. You want the form to align with our email list so it can automatically update. Email marketing is a form of permission marketing, meaning you need the audience to consent to be added to an email marketing list. 

You can use a single opt-in, or to help ensure users know what they have signed up for, you can use a double opt-in. This requires users to verify their email and confirm they want to sign up for your email distribution list.

Be sure to follow regulations, including keeping emails GDPR compliant. Signup forms should be easy to find, aesthetically appealing, and simple to navigate too. Using concise language will also help users understand they are being added to your email list.

Entice Potential Leads

When creating an email list, you want to target the right users who will be interested in receiving information from you. Another way to do this is to provide an incentive or something of value.

For example, you could offer a discount code, e-book, or something else of value. Be clear they are also signing up to your mailing list with this offer. 

Engage New Users

When new users subscribe, send a welcome email to create a positive first impression. It can increase the chance they are receptive to emails and stay engaged. Some tips for creating a successful welcome email include:

• Personalize email by greeting with their name
• Direct subscribers as to what to do next
• Offer a welcome incentive
• Share social media channels 
• Ask users to add your email to their approved sender’s list

Personalizing emails, such as adding a subscriber’s name, can help increase open rates. Your welcome email is the perfect opportunity to tell subscribers about your social media handles, services, and products, so they know what they can do next. 

You can also encourage subscribers to add your email to their approved sender’s list to reduce the chance it ends up in their spam folder.

Provide Subscription Preference Options

It can be tempting to send an email blast, but it can also deter subscribers if you do it too frequently. A simple resolution to managing email frequency is to provide subscription management options. Use a service that allows a subscriber to specify if they want fewer emails or personalized emails, which can reduce the chance of them unsubscribing.

Clean Your Email List

One of the main aspects of email list management is keeping your email list clean. This means you regularly assess your email lists to remove subscribers that are negatively impacting your campaigns. These subscribers may include fake email addresses and long-term disengaged subscribers.

These types of subscribers can cause your email campaigns to have high bounce rates. There are two main types of bounce rates:

• Hard bounce rate
• Soft bounce rate

A soft bounce is usually a temporary bounce due to reasons such as the user’s server being down. A hard bounce is when an email address is invalid. Maybe a subscriber entered an incorrect address, changed emails, or their email is no longer active. 

By reviewing these types of subscribers and removing them, you maintain a healthy email deliverability. You can also avoid ending up in the spam folder. Frequent bounced emails can mean your email becomes blacklisted by certain email providers.

Use Email Technology 

So, where do you start with cleaning your email list? The most effective way of doing this is to use a tool such as MailVerifier.io. We provide a method to verify the identity of each email address, so you can protect your sender’s reputation and improve your email campaign success.

Reengage Inactive Users

Another technique to manage your email list is to attempt to reengage inactive subscribers before removing them. There are several ways you can try to capture their attention, including:

• Offer an interesting incentive
• Improve your subject lines
• Ask for feedback
• Give them a deadline

Incentives can re-ignite a subscriber’s interest in your business and remember why they originally signed up for your email list. Writing interesting subject lines can also entice users to at least click on the email. Include questions, and keep the title simple and engaging.

You can also ask for feedback, which can provide valuable insights as to why they have disengaged from your service. You may find they want particular information, and then they can be added to an email group. Asking for feedback can also make subscribers feel valued, which can also encourage them to engage with your business.

You can also send an email telling them they will be unsubscribed by a certain date, which may encourage them to reconnect.

Provide Unsubscribe Options

It is essential you have a simple way to unsubscribe users, and they can unsubscribe easily too. You do not need to take this personally, as people unsubscribe from email lists for a variety of reasons. They may be overwhelmed with emails, are no longer interested in the content, or think the email is spam. 

It is better to have an easy way for users to unsubscribe so you keep a healthy delivery rate and a clean email list. Otherwise, you risk subscribers thinking your email is spam or disengaging due to a lack of clarity around subscription management. 

Segment and Tag Email Groups

Have you tried tagging and segmentation yet? These tools can help keep your email list clean and organized.

For example, you can use tags related to a person’s actions, such as if they signed up due to a welcome incentive. This might mean you focus marketing efforts on welcome gift follow-up, other incentives, or showing how your business can offer further value. 

Segmentation also helps manage emails by putting users into smaller email groups. You can then manage what emails you specifically send users. For example, customers who signed up due to a purchase and those who specifically signed up for marketing communications.

Organizing your email list into email groups provides more effective communications and targeted campaigns. Your audience will be more active and will lower rates of disengagement. Studies have found that around 78% of campaigns that personalized and segmented their audience had the most success.

Utilize Metrics

You can also use email list tools that analyze data to inform future email campaigns. You can evaluate what works well and where there is room for improvement. When you do not have a method to analyze data, you cannot accurately manage user engagement or provide the best experience for users.

Keep Your Email List Clean for Success

Follow these tips to ensure your email list is active, engaged, and thriving. There is no point in having many subscribers but no engagement. Save costs, time, and energy by decluttering your email list.  

There are many tools out there to help you manage your email list with ease. MailVerifier.io is the tool you need to improve email campaign success. Sign up for a free trial today to learn more about how our tool will benefit your email list.