When it comes to email marketing and subscription services, one of the most important considerations is how subscribers will confirm they want to be reached. It usually comes in two forms, single opt-in (SOI) and double opt-in (DOI). The two methodologies are widely considered to be right and wrong, leading to an ongoing controversy among industry experts. In this post, we’ll take a deep dive into each one, explore their pros and cons, and give you a clear-cut verdict as to which one will work best for your company.
Understanding Single Opt-In
Single Opt-In (SOI) is the simple way for a user to sign up by simply entering their email address and pressing a confirm button on a form. When the user submits, he is automatically added to the mailing list and begins receiving emails immediately without verification.
Benefits of Single Opt-In
Ease of Use: It only takes a single step for users to get it done. This increases the conversion rate because the user will be less likely to give up on the signup process.
Fastness: With no other verification process, subscribers can begin receiving messages within seconds, which is beneficial for fast-moving campaigns.
Lower Abandonment Rates: When you take fewer steps, there are less chances of sign-up abandonment and thus, more initial subscribers.
Drawbacks of Single Opt-In
Lists are not of high quality: SOI might create more invalid emails as people type the wrong email address or leave phantom emails.
Spam Risks: If the list is not further verified, it might get filled by spam bots or vacuous members, which may lead to a low conversion rate over time.
Consent Issues: Depending on where you live (for example in the EU for GDPR), SOI may fall short of consent requirements, which might make businesses legally exposed.
Understanding Double Opt-In
Double Opt-In (DOI) demands that subscribers go through a 2-step verification process. Once they have entered their email address in a sign-up page, they will receive an email with a link that they need to click to confirm they want to subscribe. They’ll start receiving messages only after this is completed.
Benefits of Double Opt-In
Increased Engagement Rates: Users who confirm their subscription intention are generally more interested in the piece and therefore open and click through rates are increased.
List Quality: Doi ensures that the email addresses in your list are valid and belong to engaged users, which will reduce the likelihood of spam reports and bounces.
Compliance with Law: Generally, privacy laws (like GDPR or CAN-SPAM) favor the double opt-in model due to the stronger consent verification that it provides.
Drawbacks of Double Opt-In
Extra friction: The extra step can push some interested subscribers away, reducing conversion rates.
Slow Response: The extra confirmation email delays when the new subscriber opens the actual content, leading to slower reaction time.
Loss of Leads: Users may forget to confirm their subscription within a packed inbox, which leaves businesses without communication opportunities.
The Bottom Line: Which Works Best?
The single opt-in vs. double opt-in debate isn’t a binary one, it depends a lot on your business objectives, who you’re reaching, and what your message will be.
Single Opt-In: Choose this if:
Growing Lists Rapidly Is Crucial: If you’re interested in growing your email list as quickly as possible, then sign-up with SOI will be very painless. The less steps a user needs to take, the more likely he is to execute that move. This can be especially helpful in marketing campaigns that require a fast turnaround time, like sales promotions or specials that have a time limit.
Casual Audience Connection: SOI targets the demographic who’s more at ease and maybe doesn’t really need that little bit more confidence that they hear from you. This, in turn, will yield big near-term results if your businesses operate in an industry where efficiency and convenience are critical factors like event marketing or hot product launches.
Ability to Preserve List Quality: Regardless of how fast the list is growing, SOI users must be willing to deal with issues that might arise in sustaining the quality of the list. You’ll inherit more subscribers but perhaps only at the expense of lower engagement and higher unsubscribe or bounce rates.
Choose Double Opt-In if:
Real Subscribers Are Vital: The DOI will come in handy for those companies that don’t compromise on quality. It could be important to incorporate a verification feature to make sure that users are authentic fans of your content and provide a legitimate email address. Then, that fact will get you more response, less bounces, and in the end, such an email campaign will work much better.
Privacy Legislation: In today’s increasingly hot data privacy circles, DOI ensures you are compliant with regulations like GDPR. You’ll be demonstrating that you’re careful with users’ data, and that you’re propping up the idea of their consent.
Long-term relationship building: If your brand focuses on relationship marketing or loyalty over the long haul, DOI is often the smarter option. Perhaps interacting with lists of subscribers that actually want to hear from you leads to better conversations and retention.
THE VERDICT
It’s important to note that single opt-in vs. double opt-in are not mutually exclusive solutions. Each technique has its own specific ups and downs based on what you want to accomplish.
Single opt-in is probably your better option if you’re looking to grow your list quickly and reach a somewhat less formal audience, though you’ll have to work hard to make sense of its list-quality downsides. Conversely, if you want to ensure a very loyal audience and lasting relationships while complying with privacy laws, double opt-in is the way to go.
Conclusion:
Finally, neither approach is necessarily better; it’s all about matching your opt-in strategy to your marketing strategy. Many of the successful brands use a combination of both methods, SOI in some campaigns, and DOI for specific messaging. Taking the time to carefully evaluate both sides of the equation will help you decide the right one for your email marketing efforts and the benefit of your subscribers in the years to come.
