How can I reduce unsubscribe rates in email campaigns?

Email & Newsletters

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A practical guide for reducing unsubscribes by improving relevance, consent options, and engagement.

Who is this for?

Marketing teams, email program managers, and content teams aiming to improve subscriber retention.

Before you start

Access to baseline email performance metrics, audience segments, and a defined consent workflow.

General Process (How it works)

Calculate current unsubscribe rate and identify drivers such as relevance, frequency, and list quality.
Group subscribers by engagement level, interests, and lifecycle stage to tailor messages.
Ensure a clear preference center and easy opt-down options to respect subscriber choices.
Assess subject lines, previews, content relevance, and value delivery.
Adjust sending frequency and send times based on data and subscriber signals.
Run A/B tests on subject lines, content blocks, and CTAs; implement winning variants.
Use re-engagement campaigns or clean up inactive segments to protect deliverability.
Track unsubscribe rate, engagement, deliverability, and reputation metrics for continuous improvement.

Jump to tool:

GetResponse

Kit

🏆 Recommended for this task

🏆 Recommended

GetResponse

Best for: Marketing teams, ecommerce businesses, and brands seeking scalable email marketing, automation, and AI-driven experiences to grow engagement and revenue. The platform consolidates email, landing pages, forms, and AI recommendations to streamline campaigns.

Paid Required$19 / month

How to in GetResponse

Create New Automation Workflow: In GetResponse, go to Automation > Workflows > Create New Workflow. Name it 'Reduce Unsubscribes Campaign' and select the drip/automation template to start.
Set Trigger: Add a trigger: 'When subscriber joins list' or 'On signup'. Ensure the trigger fires as soon as someone subscribes.
Add Email 1 (Welcome/Value): Create the first message with a compelling welcome and explain expected value. Set Delivery: Immediately (0 days) after trigger.
Insert Delay: Add a delay between Email 1 and Email 2, such as 1 day. Use the built-in 'Wait' step to space messages.
Add Email 2: Craft Email 2 with practical guidance or a useful resource. Schedule delivery for 1 day after Email 1.
Branch by Engagement: Add a conditional branch: if Email 1 or Email 2 is opened, proceed along the engaged path; if not opened, proceed along a re-engagement path.
Personalize Content: Use personalization tokens (e.g., first name) and tailor content to subscriber interests captured in your list fields.
Add Re-engagement Email: Create a re-engagement message for inactive subscribers. Offer value and a soft prompt to stay subscribed.
Unsubscribe-Friendly Options: Include a clear unsubscribe link and a quick feedback question to understand why they might leave.
A/B Test Subject: Set up an A/B test on the first subject line to compare open rates and unsubscribes between variants.
Set Frequency Cap: Limit total emails per subscriber within the workflow (e.g., max 6 messages) and add a pause after the last engaged step.
Activate and Monitor: Turn on the workflow. Monitor unsubscribe rate, open rate, and click-through rate from the Automation dashboard daily for the first week.

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🏆 Recommended

Kit

Best for: Creators, authors, and marketers who want to grow their email lists, engage subscribers, and monetize newsletters.

Free Plan Available$33 / month

How to in Kit

Audit and Benchmark Unsubscribes: In ConvertKit go to Grow > Broadcasts. Review unsubscribe rate for each campaign in the Performance section and export the report to CSV for offline analysis.
Define Engagement Segments: Create segments under Grow > Segments for Engaged, At Risk, and Infrequent Openers. Use rules like last opened days and total opens to classify subscribers.
Create a Preferences Form: Go to Grow > Forms. Create a Preferences Form to let subscribers choose topics and how often they want to hear from you. Embed the form link in welcome and footer areas.
Tag by Interest and Cadence: Create Tags for topics and frequency. Apply tags based on preferences so content can be personalized by segment.
Personalize Content by Segment: Use conditional content blocks in emails. Show different sections to Engaged vs At Risk subscribers using tags or segments.
Perform Subject Line A/B Tests: In the Broadcast editor, enable subject line split testing. Create Subject A and Subject B, run until you reach statistical significance, and use the winner for future sends.
Leverage Personalization Tokens: Insert subscriber tokens like first name and topic preferences to increase relevance and reduce unsubscribes.
Optimize Sending Frequency: Set automation rules to respect cadence. For At Risk or Infrequent segments, insert waits and reduce sending frequency to avoid fatigue.
Build a Re engagement Sequence: Create an automation that sends a short re engagement series to Dormant subscribers. If no opens after 2–3 messages, re evaluate or remove from inactive segments.
Add an Unsubscribe Feedback Step: Include a lightweight feedback step during unsubscribe or in a dedicated survey to collect reasons and improve future emails.
Hygiene and List Maintenance: Periodically remove or suppress subscribers who have not opened in 90–120 days using a segment and automation cleanup.
Monitor Results and Iterate: After each campaign, review unsubscribes by segment, adjust content and cadence, and repeat the optimization cycle.

Try Kit Tool details

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Quick Comparison

Tool	Free Plan?	Min Price
GetResponse	No	$19 / month
Kit	Yes	$33 / month

Which tool should you choose?

GetResponse

GetResponse’s Automation/Drip workflow lets you tailor message timing, personalization, and engagement tracking in one place. Its visual builder speeds setup, supports conditional branches, and handles follow-ups automatically, making it ideal for optimizing frequency and relevance to reduce unsubscribes.

Kit

ConvertKit shines for this task with built in audience segmentation, Forms and Automations, enabling precise targeting, preference collection, and cadence control. Its visual workflow designer speeds iteration, reduces manual cleanup, and helps you tailor experiences per segment — delivering relevant content that keeps readers engaged and unsubscribes low.