Email marketing platform MailChimp has presented some compelling evidence against going out and buying an email list. While you might get the numbers, the engagement levels drop considerably, and essentially, you end up sending thousands of emails to the sounds of crickets.
MailChimp utilized historical data from its anti-abuse mail monitoring system Omnivore, which returned these results:
In a nutshell, if people didn’t physically choose to be on a mailing list, they’ll complain more about getting your emails, stop opening them, and eventually unsubscribe.
When marketers purchase email lists, they’re not always from the best sources, and the people on the lists didn’t necessarily volunteer their information to be used that way. So when you blast them with cold email, it’s likely to remain that way. Cold.
MailChimp confirms what should be common knowledge, but it’s still worth reiterating. If you want people to read and respond to your emails, make sure it’s their choice, and not yours.
