What is a preference center and why are more and more businesses implementing this email feature?
Preferences allow your customers to self-select the email they do or do not want to receive from you.
There are two key benefits to preferences.
• Preferences provide an alternative to opting out. Contacts may consider unsubscribing, but choose instead to receive only some of your email messages. This feature improves list retention.
• Data collected in a preferences center allows you to carry on a more relevant, targeted conversation with your contacts. When you know what messages they are open to receiving you can tailor your delivery strategy. This improves your relationship with prospects or customers.
There are different ways to set up your preferences center. Which method you use should be driven by your email strategy. The most common formats are:
• Frequency – For example, opt to receive monthly, weekly, or daily updates.
• Sub-lists – You might have different types of newsletters and provide an opportunity to choose.
• Product Interests – Offer to set up your preferences based on a breakdown that matches your product selection, such as male/female apparel, regional events, or sale notices versus new products.
When should you move to a preferences center?
When you have worked through not only what data you will collect, but how you will execute your email strategy to reflect the contact data.
The email deployment calendar and segmentation plan must correlate to the options you offer. Businesses who don't plan carefully, inadvertently send subject matter to customers who have asked not to receive it, hurting their reputation with email providers. Designing a comprehensive strategy of how you will store the contact's preferences and honor them will set you up for success and put you on the path to more targeted mailings.