What is an old list?
Things move fast in the email world. That list you built over the last few years or those addresses you collected from that seminar 6 months ago are both already really old lists!
Should I just send to my list to see who opens my mail? That way I can see what addresses are valid right?
No! You shouldn't just send mail to your old list and here is why:
1. Sending a campaign through any ESP should not be treated as a vetting proces for your whole contact lists or a list cleaning service.
2. If you use your Elastic Email account to send mail to an old list you are risking damaging your sender reputation. Old addresses could be new spam traps and hitting them will cause new or good email addresses to potentially bounce because of this.
3. Sending to an old list without preparation through your account means you also potentially damage the reputation of your sending IPs.
4. Your account can become suspended.
You will later depend on a good sender reputation and healthy IPs for your delivery, so take care of them!
What steps should I take in order to send to my old list?
Here are some steps to take to send to that list safely:
1. You can use our Email Verification Service to help clean up your list before sending.
2. Once your list is verified you can start sending your email while keeping a few things in mind:
- start by sending a small campaign, make sure you can get some real feedback on how your mail is being received
- consider content that re-introduces your company or product reminding subscribers why they are receiving mail from you.
By following these few steps you can help make that old list useful again in a safe and effective way!