What happens during an audit of my contact list?

The good news is we are here to help you resolve issues with poor contact lists or spam violations. Our goal is to get your account back up and running.

We will start with an audit of your contact list practices. Together we will work to determine what triggered the issue and take steps to ensure that it does not occur again in the future. 

We will ask how you are populating your lists. You should be prepared to answer these questions:

1. When was the last time this list was used?
2. How clear is the sign-up process for contacts to receive emails from you?
3. Are these people expecting to receive these emails?
4. What is the URL used to sign-up to receive emails from you?
5. How have you been handling bounces, unsubscribe requests, and complaints?
6. Do you have a direct relationship with every recipient on this list?
7. Please inform us of the method(s) of opt-in being used:
• Double opt-in
• A subscriber either manually inputs their email or checks a box confirming they want to opt-in to the list.
• A welcome email is sent.
• A confirmation email is sent to their email address.
• The subscriber must take action in order to confirm that the address is valid and they want to receive communications.
• Notified Single opt-in
• A subscriber either manually inputs their email or checks a box confirming they want to opt-in to the list.
• A welcome email is sent.
• Single opt-in - A potential subscriber provides their email or checks a subscription box.
• Implied opt-in (opt-out) - Email address are added despite the fact that the contact took no specific action to be added to the list, such as pre-checked box when submitting their data on a form, as part of a checkout process or during account creation.
• Trade shows.
• Affiliate.
• Rented.
• Purchased.
• Harvested.
• Other (explanation required).

You may need to prove opt-in for each contact on your list. Opt-in data varies but it should include: Date/Time/IP stamp when the recipient opted in.

This is an example of information recorded for each recipient on the list. Everything here is not required but certainly, more is better:

• Name: John Smith.
• Email: [e-mail].
• Address: 301 Front Street West.
• City: Durham.
• Prov/State: NC.
• Country: United States.
• Zip: M5V 2T6.
• Day Phone: [phone].
• Evening Phone: [phone].
• Site: http://www.signupdomain.com.
• OrderDateTime: 2012-04-21 21:16:58.090 EST.
• IP: 67.123.234.123.
• Host: mx3.signupnow.com.