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I use "Confirmed" Opt-In...Good or Bad?

by Evan H
23 replies
I use "Confirmed" Opt-in for my fitness niche and am thinking about switching to single-opt-in...I have read some threads here on this forum and many people seem to think single opt-in is the way to go...

I have used confirmed opt-in for a little while but have so many "confirmation pending" statuses that it has driven me to reach out to you guys....

Would you recommend single opt-in or confirmed?

I am worried about my messages going to spam if I switch to single!

Thanks for the help,

Evan
#bad #confirmed #optin…good
  • Profile picture of the author jamescanz
    I've used both, especially in the fitness niche, too.

    I would personally recommend going with single...

    For the simple fact that you will be losing out on quite a few subs...

    And if you are sending paid traffic... then definitely use single
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    • Profile picture of the author Evan H
      Originally Posted by jamescanz View Post

      I've used both, especially in the fitness niche, too.

      I would personally recommend going with single...

      For the simple fact that you will be losing out on quite a few subs...

      And if you are sending paid traffic... then definitely use single
      Thanks James,

      I am in fact using paid traffic, with the combination of YouTube traffic....Do you notice any difference in the % of emails that go into spam using single-opt-in in comparison to confirmed opt-in?
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      • Profile picture of the author taffie
        It depends how you are getting the leads as well some would say, if it's paid then I would turn off "Confirmed" Opt-in as it will cost you money because you will have the problem of no confirmations, just capture them, they can always unsubscribe, and if you are getting them from free traffic and they are coming in abundance, which is usually very rare, then use "Confirmed" Opt-in is good is this ensures you are getting the exact right people who are after what you have got, because they will go through the effort of looking out for the email for them to confirm and clicking on the actual link, well targeted lead, unlike those who might have just acted on impulse and opted in because it was a single opt in, they will just end up sitting on your list, ending up costing money with your email system.
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  • Profile picture of the author Karleen
    Personally, I just use the single opt in. I think it depends on the email server and the settings as far as what emails go into their spam folder. So even if you have it set up for the confirmed method, that confirmation email may even go into their spam folder, which could be why you're getting some that aren't confirming.

    You'll get more subscribers by not using the confirmation and you can just tell them within the email that they are welcome to unsubscribe at any time if they feel they are getting too many emails or aren't benefiting from your emails. That will encourage them not to mark your emails as spam but rather to just unsubscribe. I know there's an unsubscribe button at the bottom of the emails, but I like to state it sometimes within the email itself.

    If you start getting reports of spam, then just change back to the confirmed method.
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    • Profile picture of the author taffie
      Originally Posted by Karleen View Post

      Personally, I just use the single opt in. I think it depends on the email server and the settings as far as what emails go into their spam folder. So even if you have it set up for the confirmed method, that confirmation email may even go into their spam folder, which could be why you're getting some that aren't confirming.

      You'll get more subscribers by not using the confirmation and you can just tell them within the email that they are welcome to unsubscribe at any time if they feel they are getting too many emails or aren't benefiting from your emails. That will encourage them not to mark your emails as spam but rather to just unsubscribe. I know there's an unsubscribe button at the bottom of the emails, but I like to state it sometimes within the email itself.

      If you start getting reports of spam, then just change back to the confirmed method.
      This is something interesting, important to thin about as well to remember that it they may well be going to the spam folder right? because you can think subscribers are simply not confirming? Interesting.

      Yeah they can always unsubscribe, I think its a good idea as well to reinforce it upon them that they can unsubscribe at anytime as it seems 1 o2 may not have the time to notice the notice to say they can unsubscribe at anytime as you will find they complain?
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  • Profile picture of the author malcsimm
    I flip-flop on this old question!

    Currently I'm firmly in double opt in land.

    The reasons I like double opt in are:

    - no joke or misspelled emails in my database
    - higher delivery rate - because ISPs are checking your quality all the time
    - higher open rate because the ISPs upgrade you, individually, if you have more opens. So then you get even more opens!

    For these reasons I go for quality and select double opt in.

    I agree there's an argument the other side, but I err on the side of quality.

    Malc
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Much of what I do is confirmed opt-in, but it has nothing to do with spam; I don't even mention it.

      I use it as both a filter and a device to deepen commitment.

      When someone makes the first opt-in, they see a message (on either a new page or in the same space via Ajax) that says something like:

      "Thanks for signing up for _______. I just have one more small favor to ask you. To make sure I can deliver on my promise, my server sends a short test message to the email you entered. All you have to do is click the link in the message to let the server know the email got through okay. Thanks, I appreciate you..."

      Now they've made two small commitments, and done me a favor. Which, if you've read Cialdini, you know makes them ever so slightly more likely to do me additional favors, like opening emails, clicking links, making purchases through some of those links, etc.
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    • Profile picture of the author Hopeless Bromantic
      Originally Posted by malcsimm View Post

      I flip-flop on this old question!

      Currently I'm firmly in double opt in land.

      The reasons I like double opt in are:

      - no joke or misspelled emails in my database
      - higher delivery rate - because ISPs are checking your quality all the time
      - higher open rate because the ISPs upgrade you, individually, if you have more opens. So then you get even more opens!

      For these reasons I go for quality and select double opt in.

      I agree there's an argument the other side, but I err on the side of quality.

      Malc
      This is the camp I'm in, as well.

      Another potential issue with single opt-in is that people often maliciously enter someone else's email address.

      Regardless of which way you go, the most important thing is to provide enough incentive for your leads to keep wanting to read your emails.
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  • Profile picture of the author Trey Morgan
    In the fitness niche I would use single optin. Some people are lazy and won't confirm a double optin or maybe they might forget to do it or whatever. Just because they don't confirm the subscription doesn't mean they are not interested in hearing from you.

    I look at double optin as a way of saying "are you sure you want to get emails about something you're interested in?" To me that question does not need to be asked unless you plan on spamming them.

    If you're going to be sending them value in your emails then I don't see any reason to have double optin.

    Based on interest, you have the "yes" people, the "no people, and the "maybe" people. Double optin filters out the "maybe" people who could possibly turn into "yes" people in the future.

    I believe double optin leaves money on the table.
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  • Profile picture of the author sree94
    To me, it's just another hoop a user has to go through in order to see your offer

    I personally use single
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

      I know this is one of those things where people will argue endlessly over...
      And four years on, people still argue about it. LOL.

      Here were my thoughts on it, which are still valid four years later: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...irmed-opt.html
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      • Profile picture of the author scubasteve-cr
        I use single optin. I've yet to get a spam complaint. I pay for traffic, and originally I was using confirmed optin, until a few people complained about having to "jump through my hoops" in order to do business with me. I turned off confirmed optin and never looked back. Sales actually improved quite a bit, since I was able to market to more people.
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      • Profile picture of the author Evan H
        Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

        And four years on, people still argue about it. LOL.

        Here were my thoughts on it, which are still valid four years later: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...irmed-opt.html
        I keep going back and forth but my gut tells me to use confirmed opt-in and your thread brings up some very valid points...Thanks for that
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  • Profile picture of the author zimzalabim
    The single/double opt-in debate is always fun....all down to personal preference in the end I suppose.

    Personally, double opt-in every time.

    Audit trail in case of "complaint", I have a subscriber who wants to be on the list by confirming, on the confirmation page as well as a reminder to check their email there's a monetisation opportunity by including other stuff on there, generally feel it's the safer option.
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  • Profile picture of the author Charmed Life
    I prefer double opt in personally. I currently only use 2 ways for people to get on my list. One is to sign up for a free ebook and the other is to sign up for my newsletter. The way I look at it is that if people don't want to confirm to get something for free, then they probably wont be that responsive when I am selling them something.

    I would rather have a small number of responsive people on my list, than a large number of people who rarely bother to even open my emails, let alone actually click through on any links I put in them. This is just my view and I'm aware that others may not agree, but it works for me :-)
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    • Profile picture of the author Chriswrighto
      In my opinion...

      It's about quality versus quantity.

      The confirmation is a great way to get people on your list that are receptive to what you're offering (content and offers).

      They want to hear what you have to say and they will listen to what you want to sell.

      If people are too lazy to open one email and click the confirm button (which is easy to find), can you expect them to read your email and follow a link to a sales page?

      Chris
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  • Profile picture of the author julianaS
    I use single opt-in and the open rate is still the same. Double opt-in will has less (about 30%)
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  • Profile picture of the author EPoltrack77
    There are a couple of ways to look at this! Obviously, with the confirm off your going to get a lot more subscribers on your list but the other side of the coin is that are they as targeted as when it is on?

    What I have learned is its all about testing. You might find your list responding better with it off while my list does better with it on. Either way, hopefully you are sending them to a custom thank you page with a one time offer to help give you some front end cash flow.

    Test it. Now run the same traffic and turn it off and montitor your results. If you run your business properly you won't get that many complaints. Hardly any
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    • Profile picture of the author Evan H
      Originally Posted by EPoltrack77 View Post

      There are a couple of ways to look at this! Obviously, with the confirm off your going to get a lot more subscribers on your list but the other side of the coin is that are they as targeted as when it is on?

      What I have learned is its all about testing. You might find your list responding better with it off while my list does better with it on. Either way, hopefully you are sending them to a custom thank you page with a one time offer to help give you some front end cash flow.

      Test it. Now run the same traffic and turn it off and montitor your results. If you run your business properly you won't get that many complaints. Hardly any
      I actually put my "one-time-offer" in the success page after they confirm their email address, as it has helped my converisons in terms of the % of people that opt-in to my list...I originally had my one-time offer in my thank you page but my opt-in conversion rate dropped...so I changed it
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  • Profile picture of the author gcbmark20
    Hi,

    I personally always prefer to make sure 100% that someone always joins
    my list first and foremost.

    So for me it has to be "Single Opt-In".

    Especially if you have an offer placed behind your opt-in page.

    All the best
    Gavin
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  • Profile picture of the author eklipz316
    I use single opt-in and don't really have any problems with it. I will get an occasional unsubscribe or complaint, but nothing too crazy. And that's with getting new subscribes on a daily basis.

    I started off using double opt-in but had the same problem with having a bunch of confirmations pending. Since I've switched, I haven't' looked back.
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