About this video

This video is general information, not legal advice.

Video transcript

1. 00:00The six parts

   An email program runs on six connected parts. Here's what they are, how to choose a platform, how to build a list, and which rules apply. Email is the channel you own. Nobody rents you access to your audience, and an algorithm change can't throttle your reach. Your subscriber list is yours. Before you send anything, know the parts. Your sending platform. Authentication. Your list. Content and design. Automation. And analytics. They lean on each other. List quality sets your engagement. Engagement affects deliverability. And deliverability decides whether anyone sees your content. Inbox providers read three kinds of signal. Reputation, engagement and content. So work in that order. Fix authentication first. Clean your list second. Improve content third. Keep your data simple too. Use one master list. Tags store facts about a person. Segments decide who gets a send. And don't panic about the Promotions tab. It isn't spam. Gmail is filing you as a commercial sender, and that's where legitimate marketing belongs.

2. 01:05Choosing a platform

   Five factors should drive your platform choice, in this order. Deliverability. Automation. Segmentation depth. Integrations. And the pricing model. Deliverability leads the list, because a feature can't help an email nobody sees. Ask each platform for its data, and ask to speak with customers in your industry. Then read the pricing closely. Most platforms bill by subscriber count, so unengaged contacts cost you money. Billing by email volume rewards a clean list. Shortlist three. Run real campaigns through a trial or demo. Then decide. Spending months comparing is its own mistake, because you can always migrate later.

3. 01:42Building the list

   A list grows when the signup offers something useful. A one-page checklist or template beats a sixty-page PDF. It's ready right away, and it solves one specific problem. Double opt-in adds one step. Someone signs up, gets a confirmation email, and clicks to confirm. Typos and fake entries drop out there. You'll lose some signups at that step. A common middle ground is single opt-in for buyers, and double opt-in for popups and lead magnets. Good lists still go bad. They decay by about 22.5% a year, because people change jobs and companies restructure. Unengaged subscribers also pull down placement for everyone else. So run a sunset flow. Send them less. Ask if they still want to hear from you. If they don't respond, stop mailing them and keep the data. Then check addresses at two points. Validate at signup, and clean the full list every three to six months. BillionVerify does both, and no email is sent.

4. 02:42The rules

   Compliance follows your subscribers, not your office. With subscribers in the EU, GDPR applies wherever you're based. Consent must be freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous. A pre-checked box doesn't count. In the US, CAN-SPAM wants honest headers and subject lines, a physical mailing address, and opt-outs honored within ten business days. Canada and Australia want consent first. In Canada, implied consent from a purchase expires after two years. From an inquiry, it's six months. Australia gives you five business days to honor an unsubscribe. Bulk senders to Gmail and Yahoo also need one-click unsubscribe, honored within two days. Most platforms add it for you. Send yourself a test, and check. The working rule is short. Tag every subscriber with their country. Apply their rules, not yours. When in doubt, use the stricter standard. And record when and how each person consented. Get the parts connected, keep the list clean, and earn the right to be in the inbox.

5. 03:43Get started free

   20 free credits every day you use your account, up to 600 a month. No credit card required. Start at billionverify.com.

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