[epub] Re: Ezine Subscriptions

["Dr.Mani Sivasubramanian" <drmani@xxxxxxxx>]

Thanks Mark, that was certainly a detailed explanation.

>BTW, but the anecdotal figures I've heard from around the Web are that
>around 30% of "subscribers" fail to confirm. Your numbers will vary ;-)

Seems to match my observations too.  One out of every 3 or 4 subscribe
requests go unconfirmed.

>because they can't be bothered. Some people do send up follow-up
>confirmation request messages, if the first goes unanswered (another
>issue!).

Seems rather complicated to keep track of this.  I thrive on automating
most ezine processes, it might be quite complex to do this.

>You could, for example, switch to double opt-in for a period, and split your
>mailings into two, filtered by date to sort single opt-in from double
>opt-in. Then compare the results in terms of clickthroughs (or whatever

I'm intrigued.  Will try this for the next few issues and let you know
how things go.  I'll simply run the same ezine off two different
list servers, one for the single opt ins and the other for double opt ins.

>other metric you use to measure "success"). You'd have some bias though,
>through the "length of time subscribed" effect.

And to keep this confounding factor out, I'll do this going forward,
so all new subscribers will have signed up at around the same time.

Hey, Mark, do you think our medical background is causing us to
take this whole issue too *scientifically*, trying to conduct a
randomized, double-blinded, prospective trial :)

>then you can fall back on intuition. Or simply consider the marginal (i.e.
>extra) cost of sending mail to an additional subscriber. If you're using a
>free or fixed-rate service, the extra mail doesn't cost you anything, so you
>have "nothing to lose".

My entire point is that there is a considerable lot to lose by going single
opt in.  First, credibility is at stake when subscribers might cry
*spammer*.  Next, you spend time unsubscribing non-serious
readers, and waste time and effort doing this.  Finally, you dilute
the *value* of your list by combining non-serious with the
serious readers.   For more, get my article on double opt-in from
mailto:double-opt-in@ezinemarketingcenter.com

>motivated to join that they negotiated the double opt-in process. "Horses
>for courses", as they say in Australia and elsewhere.

I'm back home now, so will soon not understand Aussie-speak !

>Ultimately though, I think it's down to the ezine publisher to *create*
>interest and responsiveness, rather than rely on the basic level of
>pre-existing interest in the subscriber base. After all, double opt-in won't
>help if you don't meet expectations.

Nothing will.  Content is what makes an ezine what it is.  Nothing
else can compete with it for relevance or importance.  I agree
totally with you on this, Mark.

Mani
-- 
Dr.Mani Sivasubramanian

The Ezine Marketing Center -- Helps You Harness the
Incredible Power of  Ezine Marketing -- Responsibly
http://www.EzineMarketingCenter.com

Subscribe FREE to Ezine Launch Monthly
mailto: freezine@ezinemarketingcenter.com

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