The Beatles once sang, “I don’t know why you say goodbye. I say hello.” Unfortunately, that thought is echoed all too infrequently by opt-in email marketing professionals. According to a recent study by Lyris Inc.’s EmailLabs, many companies are not taking full advantage of the opportunity to continue a customer dialogue when a subscriber opts out of receiving promotional messages.

EmailLabs surveyed more than 400 Web marketers and found that less than 20 percent include any kind of goodbye message in their unsubscribe confirmations. Worse, only 10 percent make any outreach to entice subscribers to stay or find out why they are opting out.

Stefan Pollard, director of email marketing best practices at Lyris, offers these suggestions for turning an unsubscriber into a long-term customer:

• Make it easy. In addition to providing multiple opportunities for opting out of an e-newsletter, companies should provide easy access to a user profile that gives subscribers other options besides simply ending the email relationship. A subscriber may just want to change the address an e-newsletter is sent to, or the frequency with which he or she receives messages.

• Make it quick. Only about half the respondents to the EmailLabs survey said they confirm unsubscribe requests instantly. Some continue to send messages within the 10-day window allowed by the CAN-SPAM Act. Pollard recommends an instant, polite message acknowledging that the request has been granted and thanking the subscriber for their patronage. This message could also offer other ways to get information.

• Make it obvious. No one likes tricks, so don’t hide your unsubscribe options in lighter or smaller type, or push them too far down in the body of your email. Earn the trust of your subscribers by keeping them in control of the messages they receive. An unsubscribe link that is in the same type and font size and located close to other live copy will help maintain a cordial and respectful customer relationship.

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