One certain thing you will get in your e-mail box is SPAM.  We all know how annoying that is.  So, I have to ask you, are you doing the same thing to your own church members?  Maybe it is or maybe not. But do you really want to take that chance?  Many churches simply have a guest card that people fill out and it asks for an e-mail address along with other information common to contact forms.  The question is, if a person puts his or her e-mail address on that card does that mean they want every e-mail you send out?  Probably it does not. I’m sure a visitor from Alabama does not care about the spaghetti dinner next Saturday in Oklahoma. So how do you fix this?

How can you know exactly what readers want to read?  This is defined by the reader and not by you. It is important to let the reader select what they want to receive. If a reader doesn’t find your content to be of interest, they’re going to stop opening your emails.

In fact, a recent survey found that 85% of consumers prefer that churches and businesses ask about their e-mail preferences at sign up. So instead of just taking an e-mail, try putting some preferences on the form as well.

For example,

Please select what type of e-mail you are interested in receiving.

1___ I would like to receive all communication from your church.

2___ I would like to only receive monthly newsletters.

3___ I would like to only receive the announcements.

4___ I prefer only to receive e-mails as direct communication.