Opt in emails
No one enjoys being pestered no matter what form it takes. There are few tasks more annoying than having to wade through an email inbox filled with nuisance emails or spam from sources that have not sought your permission to send emails.
As an online marketer the goal is to get your message viewed by as many people as possible. However there are legal limitations to how this can be achieved. First and foremost concerns spam - you may not under any circumstances "cold call" using email as the communication medium. Only those who opt in voluntarily may be targeted.
Opt in emails are excellent for online marketing providing a fast and easy way to maintain customer contact and remind people of your existence. Permission based email marketing can be achieved at two levels resulting in either single opt in mailing lists or double opt ins.
Single opt in lists are created when permission is requested once only, normally during an online submission procedure to join a newsletter or to get a free report etc. The email address list is built from visitors supplying their email address usually on the web form.
With double opt ins there is an extra level of permission sought. After the initial opt-in request an email is sent requesting confirmation of permission previously sought. Often internet users especially those unfamiliar with online marketing practices don't associate supplying an email address in exchange for some freebie with giving permission for ongoing email communications. Double opt in addresses this issue. It leaves no doubt as to the purpose of subscribing and give the pseudo interested an opportunity to opt out. Whilst the single opt in can be passive and ambiguous, t he double opt in email normally requires the recipient to take definite action with clearly defined consequences e.g to click a link for inclusion. If no action is taken by the recipient then the email address is automatically excluded from the mailing list resulting in a better quality although smaller email address list.