Emailing customers that have unsubscribed

[RRivas6]

I am wondering if there is a way (and if it's legal) to email customers who have unsubscribed from our email marketing. 

[Jnix284 · Accepted solution]

Hi @RRivas6, if a contact has unsubscribed from your email, HubSpot will not allow an email to go through to that contact after that point - even if you attempt to email them.

If they didn't unsubscribe from 1:1 communication, you could still contact direclty via the contact record which has a different subscription status.

As for whether it's legal - I recommend reviewing CAN SPAM laws to better understand.

Even if you used a different platform to email them, because they explicitly told you they don't want emails from you it could hurt your email sending score and your ability to send emails in the long run.

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @RRivas6,

If you're referring to marketing emails, then no. HubSpot will automatically prevent contacts from receiving marketing emails if they have either unsubscribed from all emails or from that specific subscription type. It is technically not possible to bypass this. Not even deleting contacts and reimporting them would help.

If you want them to receive marketing emails again, you can look into these steps: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/email/resubscribe-contacts-to-your-marketing-emails

If you are not referring to marketing emails but to commerce receipts, account updates, terms of service changes, and other essential business transactions, HubSpot has a specific add-on: transactional emails. These can be sent despite a full unsubscribe: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/email/how-to-use-transactional-email-in-hubspot

To evaluate whether an email is considered marketing or transactional, always consult with your legal team.

Best regards!

[trevordjones · Accepted solution]

Just a +1 for what @karstenkoehler and @Jnix284 have already said here.  Jennifer's point about 1:1 emails is important to note.  It may still be possible for the sales team to send 1:1 emails depending upon the whether the contact unsubscribed from marketing emails or all communication.

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @RRivas6,

If you're referring to marketing emails, then no. HubSpot will automatically prevent contacts from receiving marketing emails if they have either unsubscribed from all emails or from that specific subscription type. It is technically not possible to bypass this. Not even deleting contacts and reimporting them would help.

If you want them to receive marketing emails again, you can look into these steps: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/email/resubscribe-contacts-to-your-marketing-emails

If you are not referring to marketing emails but to commerce receipts, account updates, terms of service changes, and other essential business transactions, HubSpot has a specific add-on: transactional emails. These can be sent despite a full unsubscribe: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/email/how-to-use-transactional-email-in-hubspot

To evaluate whether an email is considered marketing or transactional, always consult with your legal team.

Best regards!

[Jnix284 · Accepted solution]

Hi @RRivas6, if a contact has unsubscribed from your email, HubSpot will not allow an email to go through to that contact after that point - even if you attempt to email them.

If they didn't unsubscribe from 1:1 communication, you could still contact direclty via the contact record which has a different subscription status.

As for whether it's legal - I recommend reviewing CAN SPAM laws to better understand.

Even if you used a different platform to email them, because they explicitly told you they don't want emails from you it could hurt your email sending score and your ability to send emails in the long run.