How not to write an email opt-out page | Hacker News Reader

How not to write an email opt-out page

newcome.wordpress.com

26 pointsdnewcome11 comments

Johnson! Develop an email opt out page immediately!

Sir! Yes, Sir!

Oh, and Johnson?

Sir?

As you know our organization rides itself on our customer service and ability to extend customer relationships. Therefore, Marketing will be using analytics to measure customer retention. If your page does not meet their target of 87% retention, you will be terminated.

And now, how not to write a blog post: use that javascript "Snap" preview thingie.

Because people like it, it adds real benefit for users and never obstructs what they really want to read.

Good point. I just disabled snap previews.

Thanks.

The worst are the ones that ask you to type in your email address. Most of the time they just give you an "Error: That email address is not in our database". Lovely, you just wasted my time twice.

My favorite are when it says that it "may take up to 2 weeks to process". Doesn't inspire much confidence in your development staff if a simple table update or delete takes 2 weeks to run.

I assume that usually means that they put your address in a removal queue, and then batch them out to the external firm (i.e. botfarm) that handles their actual mailing. They might even have to send the list by mail/fax, or read it over the phone to the third party; you never know how backwards some systems can work, especially when there's no conferred survival advantage in evolving that "organ" of them.

I hate the ones that don't let you unsubscribe because they need you to login first. Then you don't have the login information so you need to do a password recovery, which you can't do without supplying the town your mother was born in/a phone number from 6 years ago both of which you either have either have no idea about or have since long forgotten.

This was my unsuccessful attempt at getting rid of the WAR newsletter. :(

Haha! Good comparison of a company who considers their use cases vs. one who doesn't.

if the goal is to not allow easy opt-out, perhaps the first one is well designed.

Personally I think an opt out page should have an are you sure you want to opt out incase the person accidentally unsubscribed. But yes it should be an easy yes or no button.

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