Scrub Your Email List and Improve Your Deliverability | EP 140

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You spend time writing engaging, value-packed emails to send to your list. Emails that - when people read them - help you connect with your audience and generate sales are incredibly valuable to your subscription box business. But are your emails ending up in spam folders? How and why does this happen and how can you keep it from happening? 

One way to maintain a healthy email list is by scrubbing it. Email list scrubbing is the process of regularly cleaning your email list - removing inactive, invalid, or unengaged email addresses. With a scrubbed list, you’re sending your emails to a receptive audience which improves your email marketing performance. 

When you scrub your list, you’re getting rid of people who are weighing it down, costing you money, and bringing you no value. 

A clean list results in: 

• Improved deliverability 
• Higher open rates
• Increased engagement 
• Improved ROI 

Not scrubbing your list can result in “list decay,” the gradual decline in the quality of your email list over time. List decay can be caused by: 

• Email bounces - occur when the recipient’s email address is invalid, no longer exists, or their mailbox is full.  
• Inactive subscribers - people who subscribed to your list but have not engaged with your content or opened emails for an extended period of time. 
• Spam traps - emails set up to identify senders with poor list hygiene practices. 
• Unsubscribed contacts - continuing to send emails to people who have opted out or unsubscribed. Can also result in legal violations. 

The effects of list decay include reduced deliverability, lower engagement rates, and damage to your reputation as a sender. 

Scrubbing your list to increase its health is obviously beneficial. But… before you scrub your list, I want you to set up a Re-engagement Campaign. 

Reengaging your list is a LOT more cost-effective than growing your list, so make sure you’ve done all you can before removing them. 

Create a set of 2-3 emails that provide value and remind them why they should open and engage with your emails. The hook is VERY important here. Think about what makes you open an email from someone. 

Be fun and casual and let them know they’re missing something. You don’t have to lead with a discount. Discounts are not what this is all about. It’s about helping them fall back in love with your brand and your business. 

Text me the words SUBJECT LINES to 940-204-0023 and I’ll send you 10 super-engaging subject lines! 

The goal of a re-engagement campaign is simple. Get them to OPEN the email and CLICK over to your website. This will re-engage them on your list. 

After your re-engagement campaign is complete, it’s time to scrub your list. I’m taking you through the steps in Klaviyo, the email CRM we teach inside Launch Your Box. 

First, set up a segment - “Unengaged Segment.” Set the parameters around this segment. Your time frame depends on how frequently you send emails. You can choose 90 days, 120 days, 180 days. I choose 90 days.

You have options for “scrubbing” this segment: 

1. Save this segment and EXCLUDE it from your regular emails. Only send emails to this segment when you have something new, fresh, and fun happening. They’ll receive a few emails a year instead of weekly. 
2. Suppress this segment. This means they will no longer receive any emails from you. 
3. Create a second list with a longer time frame - say 180 days or a year. Suppress only that segment and keep the 90-day segment around for big promotions. 

How do you know if your email list is healthy? Measure your performance. After you’ve scrubbed your list, look at open rates, click rates, and purchase conversions. The higher these stats are, the healthier your email list is. 

Make a plan. Every six months, scrub your list. Put it on your calendar so you won’t forget. Think of it as necessary maintenance - like changing the air filters. 

Is it better to have a smaller list that is much healthier? Or a bigger list that drags down your list health? Having the RIGHT people on your list is more important than vanity metrics. 

Join me for this episode and learn why the health of your email list matters and how scrubbing your email list regularly can improve your email health and deliverability.