Editorial
The Gist
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Trust signals matter. BIMI logos and inbox unsubscribe links help users know when it's safe to click.
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Spam button is strategy. Marking emails as spam is often the best response to shady or unsolicited senders.
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Outlook leaves you hanging. Lack of modern unsubscribe support makes email control harder for Outlook users.
Clicking the Unsubscribe link in marketing emails has been maligned for decades, and not entirely for bad reasons. When you no longer want to get emails you signed up for, clicking the Unsubscribe link can lead to a confusing multi-click process. This sometimes includes double-negative question-and-option selections. In the worst cases, you have to log in just to access the unsubscribe page.
We’ve often been told that clicking the Unsubscribe link when trying to stop unsolicited emails only confirms your address is active, leading to more spam. That warning rings true, especially given how often lists are bought and sold.
Making matters worse, The Wall Street Journal reported that 1 in 644 unsubscribe clicks leads to potentially malicious websites, according to DNSFilter. While that doesn’t sound like much of a risk, no one wants to end up on a malicious site that compromises their device or personal information.
Of course, an alternative to the sender-provided Unsubscribe link is the Spam button (unless you’re using Microsoft Outlook). Clicking the Spam button is safe, takes just one click and always works.
However, it’s been such an easy and frequently used alternative to unsubscribing that Gmail and Yahoo Mail launched new requirements and made changes to their interfaces to try to get clearer signals on whether their users are clicking the Spam button out of convenience or because a sender’s emails are actually spam. They’ve done this by requiring senders to include list-unsubscribe headers in their emails, which support native Unsubscribe links that appear next to the sender’s name in the inbox.
Here’s my advice on when to use each of these three opt-out mechanisms, and what it means for marketers.
Best Opt-Out Method by Sender Type
A quick guide to choosing the safest and most effective unsubscribe method based on sender legitimacy and inbox provider.
| Sender Type | Best Opt-Out Method | Why It’s Effective |
|---|---|---|
| Recognized Brand (with BIMI) | In-email Unsubscribe Link | Safe and may offer preference center options |
| Recognized Brand (no BIMI) | Inbox-native Unsubscribe | Relies on email authentication; reduces risk |
| Unknown Sender / Unsolicited Email | Spam Button | Fast, safe and sends strong signal to provider |
| Outlook User | Sweep Rule or Manual Deletion | Limited native tools; use inbox rules instead |
Table of Contents
- A Trusted Brand You No Longer Want to Hear from
- A Sender of Unsolicited Emails
- The Odd Duck: Microsoft Outlook
- What Marketers Should Fix About Email Opt-Outs
- Making Email Opt-Outs Work Better
- Core Questions About Email Unsubscribes
A Trusted Brand You No Longer Want to Hear from
This is not only a brand you know but one that you opted in to receive marketing emails from. However, now you’d like to stop getting their emails for one reason or another.
What’s the Best Way to Opt Out?
According to Litmus, 50% of consumers have marked an email as spam because they couldn’t easily figure out how to unsubscribe.
If they have Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) implemented, you should try the sender-provided Unsubscribe link. In nearly all instances, you’ll know a brand has implemented BIMI when their logo appears next to their sender name or, in the case of Gmail, a blue checkmark appears after their sender name. In order to implement BIMI, a brand has to have fully authenticated their email, which means that you can trust that the email is actually from the brand.
A major benefit of using the sender-provided Unsubscribe link is that it may present you with preference center options that address the pain points that are driving you to want to unsubscribe. For example, you may be able to select alternative topic preferences or opt down to receive emails less frequently. And if you do unsubscribe, you may be directed to other channels you might like more, such as SMS, social or direct mail.
If you aren’t seeing a BIMI-powered logo from a brand you’re used to seeing emails from, then it’s probably still safe to use their Unsubscribe link. But if you have any doubts, then use your inbox’s native Unsubscribe link that’s powered by list-unsubscribe. You may be able to access list-unsubscribe functionality elsewhere in your inbox, such as in Yahoo Mail’s Subscription Hub.
If you don’t see a native Unsubscribe link after their sender name, then that’s suspicious and you should report the email as spam. In the age of spoofing, phishing and malware, why risk clicking possibly harmful Unsubscribe links?
Related Article: Things I’ve Read About Email Marketing That Are Simply Wrong
A Sender of Unsolicited Emails
It doesn’t matter if you’ve ever heard of the sender or done business with them. Any unexpected promotional email is spam.
What’s the Best Way to Opt Out?
You should banish spam with extreme prejudice and click the Spam button. Of course, if you see a native Unsubscribe link after their sender name and you’re feeling generous, feel free to opt out that way. There’s no risk in doing so. But hitting the Spam button is just as fast and sends a stronger signal to the brand that you don’t appreciate them sending you promotional email you didn’t sign up for.
Related Article: Is the Anti-Spam Law CAN-SPAM Now Meaningless?
The Odd Duck: Microsoft Outlook
Unfortunately, if you’re using Microsoft Outlook, you probably don’t have as many options for opting out. Unlike Google and Yahoo, when Microsoft recently announced their newest email deliverability rules, list-unsubscribe wasn’t among those requirements. That announcement also didn’t include support for BIMI, which is now supported by all the other major inbox providers in the U.S. (i.e., Google, Yahoo and Apple).
Moreover, if you’re using Outlook at work, you likely don’t have the ability to report spam, even though that’s a core email functionality that was introduced more than two decades ago. If you don’t trust the sender or the email looks suspicious, use the Sweep feature. You can set up a rule to automatically route future emails from that sender straight into your deleted items folder.
Related Article: What XMail’s Launch Could Mean for Email Marketers
What Marketers Should Fix About Email Opt-Outs
In a world where consumers use those opt-out methods as I described, brands have a number of opportunities.
Audit Your Opt-in Practices
First, if your spam complaint rate is more than 0.1% or your unsubscribe rate is more than 0.5%, then you likely have overly lax opt-in practices, which might include automatically opting in customers for promotional emails or other instances of using implied permission rather than securing explicit permission.
Second, track down all the different subscriber acquisition sources that feed your list. You likely have more sources than you realize, and some may have fallen off your radar or fallen out of compliance with your brand’s standards. Typically, just one or two of these subscriber acquisition sources are responsible for the majority of complaints and unsubscribes.
Audit Your Unsubscribe Process
The rule that I include in my book, “Email Marketing Rules,” is the Two-Click Rule. It states that unsubscribing should take no more than two clicks, one in the email and one on the unsubscribe page or in the preference center. If your process is more complex than that, consider streamlining it. Otherwise, you risk frustrating subscribers, who might resort to hitting the Spam button.
Set up a Preference Center
If you haven’t already, preference centers are a great way to retain subscribers, as they typically replace your unsubscribe page and give visitors options besides unsubscribing. Common options include changing topic preferences, changing email frequency, snoozing a subscription and changing the subscribed email address. Often, providing any kind of alternative besides unsubscribing can significantly reduce opt-outs and list churn.
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Implement BIMI
That requires fully authenticating your email with SPF, DKIM and DMARC. It also means navigating the different BIMI requirements at Google, Yahoo and Apple. But with Apple now supporting the standard, the average sender can have more than 90% of their emails appear with BIMI-powered logos. That’s a huge opportunity to increase trust.
Make Sure Your Emails Have List-Unsubscribe Headers
Honestly, your email service provider should have already taken care of this for you, but it doesn’t hurt to double-check that you’re set up.
Making Email Opt-Outs Work Better
In summary, of course, increasing the relevance of your promotional emails through personalization, automation, segmentation and suppression can also help avoid opt-outs. But nothing lasts forever, so creating trustworthy, low-friction unsubscribe options is important for avoiding spam complaints and angering customers.
Core Questions About Email Unsubscribes
Editor's note: Key questions for marketers navigating unsubscribe behaviors, inbox requirements and trust-building tactics in today’s email landscape.
How can marketers make their unsubscribe process safer and more user-friendly?
Follow the “Two-Click Rule”: unsubscribing should take no more than one click in the email and one on the landing page or preference center. Overly complex flows frustrate users and drive them to hit the Spam button instead — hurting sender reputation.
What signals inbox providers use to judge email trustworthiness?
Inbox providers like Gmail and Yahoo prioritize emails with proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), list-unsubscribe headers and BIMI implementation. These trust signals improve inbox placement and display features like native unsubscribe links and brand logos — making it more likely your emails get opened and handled safely.
Why are unsubscribe links still risky for unknown brands?
Unsubscribe links in unsolicited or spoofed emails can be phishing traps. If your brand isn’t well-known or properly authenticated, recipients may avoid your link and hit Spam instead. This is why visible trust signals — like BIMI and native unsubscribe — are crucial to build credibility.
What can marketers learn from spam and unsubscribe rates?
If your spam rate exceeds 0.1% or your unsubscribe rate tops 0.5%, it’s a red flag that your list acquisition methods may be too aggressive or poorly managed. Review opt-in sources, confirm consent standards, and assess whether you're meeting subscriber expectations.
What alternatives can help reduce unsubscribes?
Implement a preference center that offers subscribers options such as reduced frequency, alternate content categories, or a temporary “snooze.” These soft opt-outs give users control without cutting off engagement entirely — reducing churn while respecting inbox fatigue.
How should marketers adapt for Outlook users?
Since Outlook doesn’t support BIMI or list-unsubscribe headers, marketers can’t rely on inbox-native controls there. This makes it even more important to offer a clean, trustworthy in-email unsubscribe path that works seamlessly and quickly — or risk being routed to Deleted Items via inbox rules.
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