Unsubscribes and Suppressions
Qik keeps track of people who don't want your messages, and of email addresses that can't receive mail. This article explains the different opt-out and suppression lists, which kinds of message each one blocks, and how to view or undo them.
The four kinds of opt-out
| List | How someone gets on it | What it blocks | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Messaging topic unsubscribe | The person unsubscribes from a topic, or you remove the topic from their profile | They're no longer a subscriber, so sends that target that topic leave them out | Per topic, per person |
| Email unsubscribe | The person clicks Stop all email communications on their email preferences page, or an admin unsubscribes them | Email campaigns | Per email address, within your organisation |
| SMS unsubscribe | An admin unsubscribes them from SMS | Recorded against the phone number (see below) | Per phone number, within your organisation |
| Email suppression | Automatic: the address hard-bounced, was rejected, or the person marked an email as spam | Bounces and rejections block all email. A spam complaint blocks campaigns only | Per email address, across all of Qik |
Topics are covered in Messaging Topics and Subscriptions. The rest of this article covers the other three.
Email unsubscribes
How recipients unsubscribe
Each email has its own preferences page. Email templates can link to it with the {{unsubscribeURL}} merge field. On that page the recipient sees your messaging topics and can subscribe to or unsubscribe from each one. They can also click Stop all email communications to unsubscribe from everything. If they change their mind, the same page shows I would like to receive emails again.
Plain emails don't add an unsubscribe link automatically. Make sure the templates you use for campaigns and newsletters include {{unsubscribeURL}}, so recipients always have a way out.
What an email unsubscribe affects
- Campaigns automatically leave out anyone whose email address is on the unsubscribe list.
- One-off emails you compose, notification emails and workflow or action emails are not filtered by this list. Think of these as transactional messages. If you're sending something promotional, use a campaign so unsubscribes are respected.
Unsubscribes are tied to the email address, not the profile. If a person has several email addresses, campaigns check the first (primary) address on their profile.
Unsubscribing or resubscribing people yourself
If someone asks you by phone or in person to stop receiving messages (or to start again), you can update them yourself:
- Go to the people list and select one or more profiles.
- Open the actions menu and choose Manage subscriptions.
- Choose Unsubscribe or Resubscribe.
- Choose the channel: Email, SMS, or Email and SMS. Only the channels your organisation has enabled are offered.
This applies to every email address and phone number on each selected profile. You need permission to edit a profile to change its subscriptions. Profiles you can't edit are skipped, and the summary tells you how many were processed and skipped. Each change is recorded on the person's profile timeline, for example "Jane Smith unsubscribed Alex from all emails".
Finding unsubscribed people
In the filter builder for people, use the Unsubscribed conditions to find (or exclude) profiles whose email address or phone number is on the unsubscribe list. Unsubscribes and resubscribes also appear in the person's timeline and in dashboard activity.
SMS unsubscribes
Admins can unsubscribe a phone number from SMS with Manage subscriptions (above). The unsubscribe is stored against the number in international format, and you can find these people with the Unsubscribed phone number filter.
Qik doesn't process "STOP" replies to text messages. If someone replies asking to stop, unsubscribe them with Manage subscriptions. Before a bulk text send, check your recipient list against the Unsubscribed phone number filter and leave those people out, so you don't text people who have opted out.
Email suppression (bounces and spam complaints)
Qik records what happens to every email after it's sent. When the recipient's mail server reports a problem, Qik acts on it automatically:
| Event | Email status | Suppression |
|---|---|---|
| Permanent bounce (for example, the address doesn't exist) | Bounced | The address is suppressed for all email |
| Temporary bounce (for example, a full mailbox) | Delayed | None. Delivery is retried |
| Rejected by the provider | Blocked | The address is suppressed for all email |
| Recipient marks the email as spam | Marked as spam | The address is suppressed for campaigns only. One-off, notification and workflow emails still send |
When Qik skips an email because the address is suppressed, the email is marked Failed and its details show the reason, such as suppressed: bounce.
The suppression list protects your organisation's sending reputation. It applies to the address across all of Qik, not just your organisation, because an address that bounces for you will bounce for everyone. Bounce and complaint messages are handled by Qik. They aren't sent to the sender's mailbox.
Removing a suppression
You can't remove an address from the suppression list in the dashboard. If an address was suppressed by mistake, for example after a temporary problem with the recipient's mail server, or the person has fixed their mailbox, contact support and ask for it to be removed. If the person has a new address instead, update their profile.
Quick reference: what blocks what
| Campaigns | One-off emails | Notification / workflow emails | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email unsubscribe | Blocked | Not blocked | Not blocked |
| Suppressed: bounce / blocked | Blocked | Blocked | Blocked |
| Suppressed: spam complaint | Blocked | Not blocked | Not blocked |
| Topic unsubscribe | Leaves them out of anything sent to that topic's subscribers |
Tips
- Use campaigns for newsletters and promotions. Campaigns respect unsubscribes. One-off emails don't.
- Use messaging topics to give people finer choices than "everything or nothing". People who can pick topics are less likely to unsubscribe from everything.
- Keep email addresses up to date. A bounced address stays suppressed until support removes it.