The Importance of a Great Unsubscribe Experience
Having a list of great leads that you nurture along over time is an essential part of your law firm marketing efforts. Through your e-newsletters and compelling email blasts you stay top of mind with those prospective clients and ensure that you are the person they will call when they need legal services.
But some of them don’t want to be nurtured. Some of them will lose interest in the great information you are providing, and they will unsubscribe. Although a certain number of your leads will do this, it is never an encouraging thing to have happen.
However, that user unsubscribe can present you with a great opportunity if you handle it correctly.
Building the Experience
Even though you’re losing a subscriber, you don’t have to lose brand equity or goodwill. The unsubscribe experience can make or break a potential client’s feelings toward your firm. In order to benefit from that opportunity, though, you have to build a positive unsubscribe experience. That said, here are a few ideas for doing just that.
1. Make the Unsubscribe Link Easy to Find
Since deep down you don’t want them to unsubscribe, it may be tempting to put the unsubscribe button or link in a small font, nestled in other text including copyright information in contact info. You may think you are keeping the focus on other calls to action, but it doesn’t create the best user experience.
Instead, use bold text to draw attention to more positive calls to action on your unsubscribe page, rather than reducing the font on the unsubscribe link.
2. Nail the Right Vibe for the Moment
In writing website content, you naturally want to sound distinct and memorable. You want your language to be compelling. But you should be careful about doing this when it comes to the unsubscribe language. Doing so runs the risk of not striking the right tone for the moment, and thus turn off your potential client. When people are unsubscribing, they just want to get it done and get on with their day. As such, functional and clear language is always preferred.
In addition, you don’t want to leave the person who is unsubscribing frustrated or unhappy. They may already be feeling that way, which is why they want to unsubscribe, so don’t make it worse. Be mindful of those emotions, and choose language that meets them where they are.
3. Give Options Where Appropriate
You should always be aware that the unsubscribe process is not necessarily binary. Don’t assume that someone who had been receiving various types of content from you over the past several months never wants to hear from you again. They may be enjoying your monthly or biweekly e-newsletter, but don’t want to get the other stuff.
Instead of offering your leads an option to unsubscribe entirely, you may want to make the experience more granular. For example, on the unsubscribe page, you can have a checklist of different types of email streams. Have a box next to each of them, and give the lead an opportunity to check or leave blank each of them. Thus they may agree to continue receiving your newsletters, but not anything else.
This accomplishes two things. First, it gives you the opportunity to keep nurturing the lead, but on a smaller scale and more focused. Second, it gives you some key marketing intel as to which of your email streams are more popular and/or effective.
4. Don’t Let the Options Get in the Way
If someone just wants to unsubscribe, let them. The box to unsubscribe to everything should be at the top, thus allowing them to check that box and move on. Don’t force people to select a reason in order to stop receiving emails. For example:
[ ] Unsubscribe to All
[ ] Unsubscribe to Newsletter
[ ] Unsubscribe to offers
[ ] Unsubscribe to Surveys and Feedback
You can even put your unsubscribe survey on the confirmation page so that prospects don’t see it until they know they’ve been unsubscribed. This is a great way to still collect important info from your potential clients without making the unsubscribe unpleasant.
5. Unsubscribe People Immediately
Don’t make them jump through any hoops before unsubscribing. It goes without saying—but I’ll say it anyway—that this doesn’t result in a great user experience. Removing someone from an email list (even a big one) isn’t particularly challenging, and in most cases, the process can be automated. So make it simple and do it immediately.
6. Make Sure the Experience Works
Another thing that goes without saying — but I’ll say it anyway — is that the unsubscribe link should work! Test the link and be sure that it goes to your unsubscribe landing page.
It doesn’t matter how easy to find, friendly, or customizable your unsubscribe experience is if it doesn’t work. Check your links periodically to make sure they’re up to date.
So keep a customer-first mindset, even when they’re choosing to opt out of your marketing. In the long term, crafting a positive user experience is way more valuable than keeping low-interest, annoyed people on your mailing list.
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