Darren Straight's Blog

Microsoft has recently made a small adjustment to its Windows Live Hotmail unsubscribe function that should mean good things for marketers.

Microsoft last August answered e-mail marketers’ calls to include an unsubscribe button in its interface so consumers will be less likely to mistakenly report permission-based commercial e-mail as spam.

The unsubscribe link appears in place of the report-and-delete button on some e-mails in Windows Live Hotmail, the free e-mail service replacing classic Hotmail.

To get the unsubscribe button to appear, the marketer must add a piece of code to the headers of outbound e-mail. Instructions on how to do this can be found at www.list-unsubscribe.com. The sender must also be on the receiver’s safe list, or Sender Score Certified by deliverability firm Return Path.

In the latest version of it free e-mail account service, a consumer who hits the unsubscribe button is taken to a Web page created by the marketer where they can indicate specifically what they want to opt out of.

Previously, a Hotmail user hitting the unsubscribe button would trigger an opt-out e-mail to the marketer who would then have no choice but to suppress the user’s address from all mailings even though the subscriber may have been opting out of only one particular newsletter or e-mail list.

With the new design, a marketer can set up a Web page that allows subscribers to manage their preferences, and, say, lower the frequency of mailings or opt of the one program from which they no longer want to hear without being lost to the marketer altogether.

Via: Tamara Gielen |  Directmag.com

1. » Windows Live Hotmal Has Great Unsubscribe Feature »  InsideMicrosoft - part of the Blog News Channel says:

   April 30, 2007 at 3:00 pm

   [...] designed to seperate the good stuff you aren’t interested from the crap you never asked for. They’ve even improved the feature, sending the user to a page on the email marketers website where you can unsubscribe from specific [...]
2. shahine.com/omar/ - Unsubscribe says:

   May 2, 2007 at 11:08 pm

   [...] [Source: Darren Straight] [...]
3. Ronald L Beighley says:

   June 27, 2007 at 2:19 pm

   Remove Me Immediately from all your “weekly Specials”
   Or anything your emailing this address.
   Remove Immediately
   After repeated attempts at deleting,I’m still getting those message
   Cease and Deceast.Immediately All
   Thank You.
4. Fran Selby says:

   September 30, 2007 at 11:05 pm

   Please unsubscrbe me from all Amazon & affiliates
   fks6@cox.net
5. Heather Dorsett says:

   October 30, 2007 at 12:21 am

   Why is it so hard to unsubscribe. I have been trying to work it out for ages. I wish to unsubscribe my hotmail account. Please help.
6. a tight show says:

   February 29, 2008 at 3:24 pm

   I wish to unsubcribe from hotmail monetarily.
   Atasho Maloney
7. Barb Voyles says:

   March 10, 2008 at 9:59 pm

   Unsubscribe me from hotmail account immediately. Close it all!!
8. stacey thomas says:

   March 27, 2008 at 11:15 am

   unsubscribe please as i cannot log on anymore
9. stacey thomas says:

   March 27, 2008 at 11:27 am

   why is it so hard to unsubscribe. cant even get the log on page to appear not more please help.
10. kyle says:

    May 13, 2008 at 4:55 am

    please unscribe ne from my live acct. if windows doesn’t read this; can anyone tell me how to unsubscribe?
11. Mark Sherwood says:

    August 13, 2008 at 10:38 pm

    Please unsuscribe immediately. I never subscribed to this service.
12. IFAC Accountants says:

    August 25, 2008 at 12:59 pm

    Please please please UNSUBSCRIBE us!!!!
13. khabeb says:

    May 10, 2009 at 8:21 am

    merci