Summary
Determining the ideal engagement rate and timeframe for automatically churning non-engaged email subscribers is a complex issue with no universal answer. Recommendations range from 90 days for dire situations to 12 months as a starting point, but the prevailing advice emphasizes a data-driven approach tailored to individual circumstances. Key factors to consider include industry, sending frequency, business goals, and the sending habits of your subscriber list. Experts and marketers alike stress the importance of balancing list hygiene with the potential loss of future conversions and the need to maintain a healthy sender reputation. Before automatically removing subscribers, it's recommended to implement re-engagement campaigns and use automation tools for efficient list management. Clear guidelines for defining inactivity and proactively managing subscriber engagement are essential for optimizing email deliverability.
Key findings
- Timeframe Variability: The ideal timeframe for churning non-engaged subscribers ranges from 90 days to 12 months, depending on the specific situation.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Analyzing your own engagement data is crucial for determining the most effective timeframe.
- Importance of List Hygiene: Regularly removing unengaged subscribers is essential for maintaining a healthy sender reputation and improving deliverability.
- Balance Business Goals: It's important to balance list hygiene with the potential loss of future conversions and other business goals.
- Re-engagement Campaigns: Running re-engagement campaigns before automatically churning subscribers can help to win back inactive users.
- Automation for Efficiency: Using automation tools can streamline the process of identifying and removing unengaged contacts.
Key considerations
- Industry and Sending Frequency: These factors can influence engagement patterns and the optimal timeframe for churning.
- Multiple Engagement Metrics: Consider various engagement metrics beyond just opens, such as clicks and website logins.
- Impact on Business: Evaluate the potential impact of removing inactive subscribers on your business goals.
- Clear Guidelines: Establish clear, data driven guidelines for identifying and unsubscribing non-responding recipients
- Monitor Engagement: Proactively manage subscriber engagement through monitoring key engagement metrics
- Segment your lists: Segment your lists to identify and remove users for better IP and domain reputation
What email marketers say
9 marketer opinions
Determining the ideal engagement rate and timeframe for automatically churning non-engaged email subscribers involves a multi-faceted approach. While specific timeframes like 90, 180, 270 days, or 6-12 months are mentioned, the consensus leans towards a data-driven strategy. This involves analyzing your own engagement metrics, segmenting your list based on activity, and considering factors like industry, send frequency, and business goals. Running re-engagement campaigns before a cull is also recommended. Automation is key to managing this process efficiently.
Key opinions
- Timeframe Varies: The ideal timeframe varies; some use 90 days for urgent cases, 180 days as a standard, or 6-12 months based on business specifics.
- Data-Driven Approach: Analyzing your own engagement data is crucial for determining the best cut-off point.
- Segmentation: Segmenting your list by engagement level allows for targeted re-engagement efforts.
- Automation: Automation tools can streamline the process of identifying and removing unengaged contacts.
- Re-engagement Campaigns: Before churning, attempt to re-engage subscribers with targeted campaigns.
Key considerations
- Industry and Frequency: Industry and send frequency can influence engagement patterns and the optimal timeframe.
- Engagement Metrics: Consider multiple engagement metrics beyond just opens (e.g., clicks, website logins).
- Business Goals: Balance list hygiene with business goals and the potential loss of future conversions.
- Sender Reputation: Regular list cleaning improves sender reputation and deliverability.
- Segmentation Strategy: A solid segmentation strategy should be used to identify users for removal, to improve IP and domain reputation.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks suggests to look at your data, and slice and dice your sends by those past engagement ranges/windows. Mentions using Sailthru and setting up nested smart lists to control those windows to show how much an audience shifts if we move from looking back 90 days to 180 to 270. States that 180 to 270 is almost always a negligible increase.
16 Dec 2021 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Email marketer from StackExchange noted in a thread that they define inactive users as those that haven't logged into your website or haven't engaged with emails within the last 6-12 months. The timeframe that works will depend on your business.
17 Dec 2023 - StackExchange
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
The ideal timeframe for automatically churning non-engaged email subscribers is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Experts suggest that it can depend on the severity of the engagement rate issues, ranging from 90 days in dire situations to 12 months as a starting point. It's crucial to consider the sending habits of your list and balance the removal of inactive email addresses with overall business goals, along with maintaining email list health, IP and domain reputation.
Key opinions
- Varied Timeframes: Timeframes for churning range from 90 days (dire) to 12 months (starting point).
- No One-Size-Fits-All: The optimal timeframe is highly dependent on specific circumstances.
- List Hygiene: Removing unengaged subscribers is vital for a good sender reputation.
- Balance Required: Balance list hygiene with overall business goals.
Key considerations
- Severity of Issues: Consider the current state of engagement rates when determining the timeframe.
- Sending Habits: Tailor the timeframe to align with the typical sending habits of your list.
- Business Impact: Evaluate the potential business impact of removing inactive subscribers.
- Reputation: Be aware that list hygiene improves sender IP and domain reputation.
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource highlights the need to balance the removal of inactive email addresses with business goals. Highlighting the need to maintain email list health in relation to IP and Domain reputation.
12 Oct 2024 - Spam Resource
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares that 12 months is usually where they start when clients are having issues with engagement rate, and then continue to dial it in if things don't improve quickly.
12 Apr 2022 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Email deliverability and sender reputation are significantly impacted by unengaged users. Leading email platforms and services like Gmail, Microsoft, SparkPost and Validity recommend actively managing subscriber engagement and removing inactive users. This practice reduces the likelihood of emails being marked as spam, prevents spam traps, and maintains overall list hygiene, all of which improve deliverability. Establishing clear, data driven guidelines for identifying and unsubscribing non-responding recipients is critical.
Key findings
- Improve Deliverability: Removing unengaged users directly improves email deliverability rates.
- Prevent Spam Traps: Inactive email addresses can turn into spam traps, harming sender reputation.
- Maintain List Hygiene: Regularly removing unengaged subscribers is essential for maintaining good list hygiene.
- Reduce Spam: Reducing the percentage of unengaged users lowers the chances of emails being marked as spam.
Key considerations
- Clear Guidelines: Establish clear, data driven guidelines for identifying and unsubscribing non-responding recipients.
- Proactive Management: Actively manage subscriber engagement through monitoring engagement metrics.
- Strategic Removal: Develop strategies to identify and remove unengaged subscribers effectively.
- Monitor Metrics: Regularly monitor engagement metrics to identify and address unengaged segments of your audience.
Technical article
Documentation from Microsoft Docs advises that you should remove inactive subscribers from your list. Highlighting that inactive email addresses can become spam traps, which can negatively impact your sender reputation. Microsoft recommends defining clear inactivity criteria.
11 Oct 2023 - Microsoft Docs
Technical article
Documentation from Gmail Help indicates that Google recommends removing unengaged users from your mailing list. They state it will help improve deliverability and reduce the chances of your emails being marked as spam. Senders should establish clear guidelines about how long to wait before unsubscribing non-responding recipients.
19 Dec 2022 - Gmail Help
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How should I define unengaged subscribers for removal from my email list?
Should I unsubscribe inactive users and what are the best practices?
