Summary
The consensus from email marketers, experts, and documentation sources is that emailing users inactive for 4+ years is generally detrimental to email deliverability and sender reputation. There are several reasons for this: inactive users are more likely to mark emails as spam, they may have forgotten subscribing, their email addresses may have become spam traps, and sending to such addresses wastes resources. It is recommended to implement a sunset policy, clean email lists regularly, re-engage inactive subscribers with targeted campaigns and incentives (while respecting data privacy regulations like CASL's implied consent rules), and validate email addresses to avoid hitting spam traps. Maintaining a clean list helps improve deliverability, engagement, and overall ROI, while also mitigating security risks associated with storing outdated data.
Key findings
- Negative Deliverability: Emailing inactive users has a negative impact on email deliverability.
- Spam Traps & Complaints: Sending to old addresses can lead to hitting spam traps and increased spam complaints.
- Damaged Sender Reputation: Engaging with inactive users damages sender reputation, potentially resulting in being blocked by mailbox providers.
- Wasted Resources: Emailing inactive addresses is a waste of money and server resources.
- Security Risks: Maintaining outdated email lists poses security risks from hackers and data thieves.
- Consent Violations: Sending emails without reconfirming consent can violate data privacy regulations like CASL.
- Importance of Cleaning: Regular email list cleaning is crucial for a healthy sender reputation.
Key considerations
- Implement Sunset Policy: Establish a sunset policy to automatically unsubscribe inactive users after a defined period.
- Re-engagement Campaigns: Employ re-engagement campaigns with targeted offers to incentivize users to resubscribe.
- Email Validation: Validate email addresses regularly to identify and remove invalid or spam trap addresses.
- Respect Consent: Reconfirm consent from users who have been inactive for an extended period, adhering to regulations like CASL.
- Prioritize List Hygiene: Make email list hygiene a top priority to maintain good deliverability and engagement rates.
- Address Security: Delete old user data to reduce the risk of data breaches.
What email marketers say
16 marketer opinions
Emailing users inactive for 4+ years is generally considered detrimental to email deliverability and sender reputation. Experts and marketers advise against this practice due to risks such as increased spam complaints, hitting spam traps, and damaging sender reputation, potentially leading to deliverability issues. The consensus is that inactive users are less likely to remember subscribing, more likely to mark emails as spam, and may have abandoned their email addresses, which could now be spam traps. Instead of directly emailing these users, it is recommended to implement a sunset policy, re-engage them through targeted campaigns, reconfirm consent, and remove those who don't respond. Regularly cleaning email lists by removing inactive subscribers is also crucial for maintaining a healthy sender reputation, improving engagement rates, increasing conversions, and protecting against potential security risks.
Key opinions
- Deliverability Impact: Emailing inactive users negatively impacts deliverability by increasing spam complaints and hitting spam traps.
- Sender Reputation: Maintaining a clean email list is crucial for a healthy sender reputation, as email providers assess engagement to determine where to deliver emails.
- Consent Issues: Reconfirming consent is essential when re-engaging inactive users, especially considering evolving data privacy regulations.
- List Hygiene: Regularly cleaning email lists and removing inactive subscribers is essential for maintaining a healthy sender reputation and improving engagement rates.
- Security Risks: Holding on to old email addresses increases the risk of security breaches and data theft.
Key considerations
- Sunset Policy: Implement a sunset policy to automatically unsubscribe users who haven't engaged within a defined period.
- Re-engagement Campaigns: Consider implementing re-engagement campaigns to try and reconnect with inactive subscribers, offering incentives to resubscribe.
- Email Validation: Validate emails before sending to ensure they are still active and reduce the risk of hitting spam traps.
- Segmentation: Segment inactive users and send them targeted campaigns before removing them from the main list.
- Data Privacy: Be mindful of data privacy regulations and reconfirm consent for users inactive for extended periods.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks explains there’s a discussion to be had about reconfirming consent for users that have been inactive for an extremely long amount of time and suggests validating emails on a service like Kickbox.io if there's no proof that the users have been logging into your site/service.
6 Sep 2022 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Email marketer from Litmus states that keeping your email list fresh is a critical part of running a successful email program. By sending to engaged contacts, it helps improve deliverability, boost engagement rates, and drive better ROI.
11 Jun 2023 - Litmus
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
Experts generally agree that emailing users inactive for 4+ years is a detrimental practice. Sending to old addresses risks hitting spam traps and damaging sender reputation. Furthermore, from a user experience perspective, recipients are more likely to mark such emails as spam. Maintaining outdated email lists poses security risks, making the stored data a target for hackers.
Key opinions
- Spam Traps: Old email addresses may have become spam traps, leading to deliverability issues.
- Damaged Reputation: Sending emails to inactive users can negatively impact sender reputation and cause blocking by mailbox providers.
- User Experience: Inactive users are more likely to mark unsolicited emails as spam.
- Security Risks: Outdated email lists pose a security risk and are a target for hackers.
- Wasted Resources: Sending emails to addresses that are no longer in use wastes time, money, and server resources.
Key considerations
- List Cleaning: Regularly clean email lists to remove inactive subscribers.
- Data Validation: Validate email addresses before sending to minimize risks.
- User-Centric Approach: Prioritize user experience to prevent spam reports.
- Data Security: Safeguard user data by removing outdated records.
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that sending to old, unvalidated email address is a good way to damage your reputation and get blocked by mailbox providers. She recommends cleaning your lists regularly.
14 May 2024 - Word to the Wise
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares no one should be holding on to 4-year-old inactive email addresses because a larger database just makes you a larger target for internal and external hackers and data thieves, and just gives you a larger notification cost if you have to end up sending them all a postcard or sitting opposite them in a class action lawsuit when your data invariably gets into the wrong hands.
10 Apr 2022 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Emailing users inactive for 4+ years is detrimental to deliverability, as highlighted by various documentation sources. These sources recommend list cleaning, implementing a sunset policy, and avoiding sending unwanted emails to prevent negative impacts on sender reputation and increased spam complaints. Metrics such as complaint rates are crucial for evaluating sender reputation, and a proactive approach to removing unengaged subscribers is advised.
Key findings
- Deliverability Harm: Emailing inactive subscribers can hurt deliverability.
- Sender Reputation Impact: A high spam rate negatively affects sender reputation, leading to delivery issues.
- Complaint Rates Matter: Complaint rates (spam reports) are key factors in determining sender reputation.
- Sunset Policy Importance: A sunset policy is a strategy for removing unengaged subscribers.
- Unwanted Emails Risk: Sending unwanted emails increases the chances of being marked as spam.
Key considerations
- List Cleaning: Regularly clean your email list to remove inactive subscribers.
- Re-engagement: Segment inactive subscribers for re-engagement, before permanent removal.
- Archiving: Archive those who don't respond to re-engagement attempts.
- Sunset Policy Implementation: Implement a sunset policy with clear criteria for inactivity and communication with subscribers.
Technical article
Documentation from Google Support explains that sending unwanted emails increases the chances of being marked as spam. It indicates that a high spam rate can negatively affect your sender reputation and lead to delivery issues.
29 Jun 2024 - Google Support
Technical article
Documentation from SparkPost explains that a sunset policy is a strategy for identifying and removing unengaged subscribers from your active mailing lists. It highlights the importance of setting clear criteria for inactivity and communicating with subscribers before removing them.
7 Feb 2024 - SparkPost
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