Spam, Begone! Google Adds Unsubscribe

google_unsubscribe
Sometimes the story is bigger than the story itself.

Take, for example, the recent news that Google has decided to include an unsubscribe link at the very top of its gmail emails. If you haven’t heard, the big G is taking a giant step toward Internet freedom by being what the email marketers can’t seem to be: responsible.

There’s always a risk with things like this that the facts get distorted by way of interpretation, so just to be clear, Google is not changing the world through committee, even though reading some of the frothing at the mouth accounts from marketing-oriented websites, you might be inclined to believe that. The new feature is, as IT World describes it, “a new, clearly marked “unsubscribe” link [that] will appear at the top of the header field in marketers’ emails. Previously only appearing for a small percentage of users, the feature will now be made available for most promotional messages with unsubscribe options, Google said on Thursday. Email recipients do not need to take action for the links to appear.”

Effectively, all Google’s doing is acting upon what the rest of us think. The fine print and the hiding of unsubscribe links is tantamount to the bureaucracy and BS that makes this world spin its wheels. If you’re going to play by the rules and provide unsubscribe links in your messages, then don’t hide them! In fact, be up front and open about it. You might be surprised how much the average consumer appreciates being respected.

[That tirade, of course, was the result of built-up hostility, and directed squarely at email marketers]

“The change simply makes it easier to find the “unsubscribe” link,” writes IT World. “With the new setup, the link appears prominently at the top of the message, alongside the name and email address of the person or company sending it. So what used to be like searching for a needle in a haystack will, for some, become more like an open invitation to say good-bye. By clicking the link, users can opt out of a company’s emails without leaving Gmail.”

It doesn’t really solve the problem of spam. Spammers will continue to do what they do, and the worst-behaved ones certainly won’t be providing unsubscribe options for their targets. In fact, Google recognizes that there’s a line of division between what some people consider to be spam. “One of the biggest problems with the Gmail spam filter is identifying unwanted mail or soft spam,” Google’s Vijay Eranti, head of anti-abuse efforts at Gmail told IT World. “The issue, he said, is that sometimes customers opt into a company’s send-to list but later decide they don’t want the emails. And if they can’t find the unsubscribe button, sometimes they mark the message as spam.”

Remember, now, that Google subsists off advertising. It wouldn’t exactly be cool, not for their bottom line anyway, to go alienating those who put food on their table. But hats off to Google for not becoming The Man. In fact, they make so much money, they could be a room full of The Men, but they also recognize that, without users, they wouldn’t even be The Boy.

It’s a move that changes the playing field for ‘legitimate’ spammers. If Google’s going to force their hand and make them more transparent to end users, which companies will get out in front of it and make their unsubscribe process even easier for consumers?

IT World points out that, “the tool might seem useful to consumers, [but] it could be a business killer for companies looking to grow their customers online. But Google is actually releasing it to help businesses become more transparent and to prevent their promotional emails from being marked as spam.”

And that’s where the aforementioned frothing at the mouth comes in. Google’s move, which has garnered plenty of press, has got the marketers running for their keyboards. Some organizations are actually finding the good in this, pointing out that it’s an opportunity for marketers to rethink their online strategy and become more relevant.  VentureBeat points out that “by reviewing best practices — like including transparent company branding, making the purpose of messages evident with an obvious “ask,” and finding the sweet spot for frequency — brands can head off a mass exodus.” And Marketingland.com explains why marketers should want to make it easy for their subscribers to leave.

Others, of course, will try to circumvent and deceive, but how’s that any different than yesterday, when you didn’t know about Google’s bold new move?

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