Mailing Lists: Why Bigger Isn't Necessarily Better

Many businesses consistently make the common mistaken assumption of "the bigger the email list, the better and stronger it is". I understand their logic in theory, but in reality, that’s not always the case.

It really all depends on your business and what your goals are. If one of your focus points for the year is to grow your list, you need to be prepared for the consequences such as declining returns via email and a decrease in delivery performance.

If you do plan on your growing your list for the year, I must suggest that you try to keep your lists’ hygiene as a top priority as well. If you’re cast net fishing with an extremely wide net, of course you’ll catch some fish, but you’ll also catch some sharks, electric eels, jellyfish and other menacing sea life… same goes for email lists. If you’re purchasing lists or taking new addresses in without scrubbing them, you’re bound to get a lot of invalid addresses, which certainly does not make for a strong mailing list.

Side note:

In 2008, use email as a means to provide your customers with relevant content, not just merely trying to be there “at the right place at the right time”. Take three to four weeks to come up with a strategy that complements your business model all the while leaving some “breathing room” in between sends to adjust your send schedule as the year progresses.