Your Opt In Email Marketing
Questions Answered

Use opt in email marketing, if you're not, you either don’t understand it or you don’t want to be successful.

Since you are reading this article, I’m hoping it is the former.

In the simplest terms, the phrase “opt in email marketing” means that your subscriber is giving you permission to contact them via email about what you are doing.

There are many reasons why someone will give you their email address (we’ll discuss those in a second) but the most important thing…

…is what you do with it.

WHO?

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The first and most important question, is WHO should use opt in email marketing?

The easiest answer is…E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E.

And only on days that end in "Y" ;)

My friend…do your part to make the world a better place and follow these words of wisdom.

Don’t buy a list.

Don’t harvest email addresses online.

Don’t compile a list from a bunch of business cards from a fish bowl.

Understand this:

Anytime you send a “mass” or “bulk” email to a list of people without their permission you are spamming…plain and simple.

If you are not using any form of opt in email marketing, you are sending email to people who have not asked to receive communication from you.

If you develop a list without using opt in, 1 of 2 things will happen:

When you send to your “subscribers”:

1. They will unsubscribe, complain, and report you as spam. This will result in your URL being blacklisted, your emails not getting delivered, and your email service provider refusing to let you use their platform
   
   
2. You will send to your “subscribers, they will ignore your emails, internet service providers will determine that no one is engaging with your emails, your emails will end up in the Spam folder, and you will eventually get labeled as a Spammer by the software (potentially getting yourself blacklisted).

One way or the other…neither scenario benefits anyone.

Sending unsolicited email is unethical and ineffective.

You can certainly “build” a list by using the “Don'ts” mentioned above but that is playing the short game and you’re setting yourself up for failure.

I know it can be tempting, but please trust me when I say...use opt in email marketing.

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WHAT?

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What does it mean to use opt in email marketing?

In short, having your reader “opt in” means they give you approval to send them email marketing messages.

Coined “permission marketing” by the legendary Seth Godin, it is the standard for sending any type of email message to a large group of people.

First let’s discuss the different types.

Implicit Opt In

This is when a reader uses their email to make a purchase, fill out a contact form, or sign up for an event or download on your website.

After doing so you add them to your database and begin sending them additional emails...without permission.

Single Opt In

This is typically a form on your site that a reader voluntarily enters their information in to because they want to hear from you.

Double Opt In

This is the same as single opt in, except when a reader submits their information, they get some type of follow up email asking them to confirm that they submitted their email address to you.

It’s important to note that permission is technically only granted when a reader single or double opts in.

You may find that your list of implicit opt ins are not as responsive as you anticipated because they didn’t give you their email address thinking/knowing you would continue sending to them.

To move implicit opt ins to single opt ins, set up an automated welcome message sequence (kind of like this one) in which you provide the reader with the option to keep getting emails from you or opt out.

I do this on my other site when readers subscribe for one of my free downloads. 

The email service I use has a really simple and organic way to double opt in my subscribers by sending a follow up email with a button they must click to access the download.

When the subscriber clicks the link to download the freebie, they are double opted in.

This may seem like overkill, but once they are double opted in, I still send them an email with two clickable links.

One link says “Keep sending me valuable content and resources", and the other link says “No thanks, I don’t need valuable content and resources”.

If the user clicks “Keep sending…” they are tagged as a “Weekly Newsletter” subscriber and sent to a “Thank you for subscribing” page on my site.

If they click “No thanks…” I tag them as “Remove from list” and they are sent to a “We understand, you can always subscribe anytime in the future” type page on my site.

To be clear, I create this once and then automate the entire thing using my email marketing service.

Doing this will hyper-qualify the subscribers on your list and improve engagement.

I would much rather have a list of people who want to hear from me vs. pay for a large list that only a small percentage interact.

Quality is better than quantity. 

And don’t worry about subscribers opting out.

If you create trust and value they will remember it and will have a much higher chance of subscribing again later.

Plus, they will be more inclined to tell their friends to join your list...word of mouth marketing at it's finest.

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WHY?

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Why is it important to collect emails via opt in?

There are many advantages (and disadvantages) to using opt in email marketing.

The last disadvantage is very important to remember. You must be compliant with laws like the CAN-SPAM act and the newly developed General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) laws.

Failure to follow CAN-SPAM could cost you a lot of money, up to $42,530 per violation, yikes! Not to mention potential legal trouble.

Granted GDPR laws are more stringent for people living in the European Union, but, if you’re really trying to build a relationship, abiding by the rules will show that you’re legit.

I know if I met someone who was compliant with a country’s laws even if she didn’t live in that country, she would definitely earn trust points in my book. 

Most email marketing services should have this already built in and it gives me peace of mind knowing that mine does.

If you're unsure whether yours does, a simple Google search should provide the answer.

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WHICH?

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Now that I have (hopefully) sold you on the idea of using opt in email marketing with your readers, the next question you might have is...

Which type of opt in email marketing is better? Single or Double?

I'm glad you asked.

Advantages

DISadvantages

There are different schools of thought here and you will definitely have to choose for yourself.

Personally, I prefer double opt in email marketing for a few reasons:

1. I want subscribers who want to hear from me - the cost of email marketing goes up as list size increases. I only want people on my list if they engage with my messages.
2. I want my emails to get delivered.
3. I don't want a list of fake email addresses
   (i.e. if you use single opt in with a free download someone can get the free download by submitting a fake email address).

Double opt in is the default setting on the email marketing service I use and they say "Single opt in is like leaving your front door unlocked all the time!"

Ask yourself this question...what is the point of having a big list if only 10% or less are actually getting, seeing, and acting on my message?

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WHERE?

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Where do you let readers opt in?

There are a variety of places on your website that you can and should place opt in forms to capture your readers email address.

The biggest rule of thumb here is to make the opt in form visible without ruining the user experience (more on that below).

Also, one warning: don’t overdo it.

An excellent tactic is to create a stand alone subscribe page (#9) and link to it so you don't litter your site and bombard your readers with opt in forms.

My best advice is to choose a couple of options and try them for a few months (or less depending on how much traffic you get), then swap those out for new ones and see which options get you more subscribers).

Listed below are many strategical options of where you can place an opt in form on your site (most all of which I use with my email marketing service)...

1. Slide In Form

2. Floating Bar at the Top of the Page (Sticky Bar)

3. Side Bar (Inline)

4. In Between Content (Inline)

5. At the End of a Content Article (Inline)

6. In the Website/Blog Footer (Inline)

7. About Page (Inline)

8. Landing Page

9. Stand Alone Page

10. Home Page (Inline)

11. Exit Intent / Full Screen Popup (Modal)

A word about full screen pop ups.

They can be very effective, however, as of Jan 10, 2017 Google will now place your website lower in search rankings if the mobile version of your website contains popups that cover main content.

Per their Blog:

"To improve the mobile search experience, after January 10, 2017, pages where content is not easily accessible to a user on the transition from the mobile search results may not rank as highly."

My recommendation is to use exit intent popups.

They don't ruin the user experience and only appear when the reader moves their mouse toward the top of their screen to leave.

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WHEN?

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When should you use opt in email marketing?

A-L-W-A-Y-S.

If you do decide to follow the "wrong ways" to build a list (which I still don’t recommend by the way), at the very least send the people on the list a way to opt in before you start mass sending to them.

Make a note of this: It doesn’t matter how large your list is, if people don’t engage with your email messages. 

I've said it once, but I'll say it again...

...the QUALITY of your list is much more important than the QUANTITY of your list.

Always give your readers and subscribers the chance to opt in and opt out! 

It’s also worth mentioning that even if a subscriber opts in for one thing from you, does not mean that they opt in for everything.

For example, just because a reader opts in to your newsletter doesn't mean she is interested in the ebook you are trying to sell.

This is where segmenting your list based on interest comes in very handy.

HOW?

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How do you do opt in email marketing effectively?

Now you've learned of the numerous places to put your opt in form, but there is an entire science to getting it to convert readers into subscribers.

How your form looks and what it says is crucial to getting readers to opt in.

Integrating these tips into your opt in forms will improve conversion rates and make readers happy to subscribe.

In conclusion...

Opt in email marketing is paramount when building any type of email list.

There are many ways to gather email addresses but you must do so legally and effectively.

Double opt in email marketing is going to better qualify your subscribers, increase your engagement, and improve deliverability.

Your success depends upon the quality of your list and how well they engage with you, your content, and your purpose.

So get out there and start building your empire, 1 opt in subscriber at a time.

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