Topics and unsubscribes

A topic is a kind of email, such as a newsletter or product updates. Every campaign belongs to one topic. Someone who unsubscribes can leave just that topic or everything, so you don’t lose them over one kind of email.

The default topic

Every project starts with one topic, named after the project. New campaigns start in it. With only one topic, unsubscribing works the way it does anywhere else, and you never have to think about topics.

Add a topic

Open Project settings → Topics and click New topic. Give it a name and, if you like, a description. Recipients see both when they unsubscribe, so write them for your readers: “Product updates”, “New features, about once a month”.

If people have already unsubscribed from the default topic, the dialog offers to unsubscribe them from the new one too. Leave it ticked unless you’re sure they’d want this kind of email, so people who opted out before topics existed don’t start hearing from you again.

Pick a campaign’s topic in the editor’s Topic field.

What recipients see

When the companion runs on a server or Rowsend Cloud, each email has an unsubscribe link:

• The unsubscribe link opens a page offering to unsubscribe from this topic or from everything.
• One-click unsubscribe, the button Gmail and other mail apps show, unsubscribes from this topic only.
• The preferences page lets someone tick the topics they want, unsubscribe from everything, or undo their own unsubscribe. Rowsend adds a link to it in the footer when the project has more than one topic, or you can place it yourself with a footer tag.

Bounces and spam complaints always cover every topic, and recipients can’t undo them.

With the companion on your computer, recipients reply to unsubscribe instead, and you mark them yourself. See This computer.

Unsubscribe someone yourself

Click a contact on the Contacts page. Unsubscribe stops all your campaigns to them. With more than one topic, a switch per topic stops just that kind. Their preferences page then shows your choice locked, so they can see it but not undo it.

Archive a topic

Topics are archived rather than deleted, so past campaigns and unsubscribes keep their meaning. Archive hides a topic from new campaigns and from the preferences page. Unarchive brings it back. The default topic can’t be archived.