List hygiene
List hygiene
Email Marketing
List hygiene is regularly removing bounced, inactive and risky contacts so your list stays engaged and your emails keep reaching inboxes.
What is List hygiene?
A list decays every year as people change jobs and abandon inboxes. Hygiene keeps the list honest.
The routine: suppress hard bounces and complainers right away, watch repeat soft bounces, run a sunset flow for people who haven't opened or clicked in months, and fix typos at signup.
In SmartyTap, bounces, complaints and unsubscribes are suppressed automatically, and you can build engagement segments to sunset inactive contacts. Smaller, engaged lists also cost less on contact-based pricing.
Example
Every quarter, a store sends a "still want to hear from us?" email to people with no opens or clicks in 180 days, then suppresses everyone who doesn't click.
Why List hygiene Matters
A clean list lifts deliverability, makes your numbers honest and stops you paying for contacts who never read.
List hygiene FAQ
How often should I clean my email list?
Suppress bounces and complaints continuously, and review inactive contacts every three to six months.
Won't removing contacts lower my revenue?
Rarely. People who haven't opened in months seldom buy from email, and they drag down delivery to those who do.
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