Gmail 1-click Unsubscribe Sender Requirement to be Enforced in February 2024

[pmurray]

Gmail has issued a series of new sender requirements for senders who send 5,000 or more messages, with enforcement beginning in February 2024. Gmail's documentation states "If you send more than 5,000 message per day, your marketing and subscribed messages must support one-click unsubscribe." 

Our current approach is to include an "unsubscribe or manage your preferences" link at the footer of every email that directs users to our subscription preference center, where they can subscribe or unsubscribe to our different email types or unsubscribe to all emails. We also have an operational program set up to support when users use the "unsubscribe" feature in Gmail.

Is our subscription preference center approach in compliance with Gmail's new 1-click unsubscribe requirement or would we need to build a true unsubscribe link? 

[SanfordWhiteman · Accepted solution]

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We also have an operational program set up to support when users use the "unsubscribe" feature in Gmail.

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What is this operational program doing? You don’t need to deliberately process X-List-Unsubscribe requests (clicks on the Unsubscribe button presented in the webmail UI). Marketo honors such requests automatically.

The only way you would not be compatible with the new reqts is if you have something running that reverses those requests, against the user’s express wishes.

[cookiemonstersa]

Is that true? 

I am finding different answers depending on where I look: https://www.reddit.com/r/Emailmarketing/comments/17leqec/google_oneclick_requirement_was_poorly_expl...

We currently have the marketo unsubscribe link at the bottom of emails that takes people to a preference center where they can unsubscribe. To me that currently does not fall into the category of one-click unsubscribe.

To me, one-click unsubscribe looks like this...

with the follow up page being an unsubscribe confirmation. 

My fear is if we implement this, lots of link checkers will falsely unsubscribe people. 

Am I thinking about this wrong? How would you recommend the average marketo admin tackle this? 

Thanks! 

[SanfordWhiteman]

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We currently have the marketo unsubscribe link at the bottom of emails that takes people to a preference center where they can unsubscribe. To me that currently does not fall into the category of one-click unsubscribe.

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Correct!

The “one-click” in the (very confusing) trade expression “one-click unsubscribe” does not refer to links in the body of the email.

It refers to the button or link presented in the email client’s UI based on the presence of one or more SMTP headers added by your MAP/ESP/email server.

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To me, one-click unsubscribe looks like this...

with the follow up page being an unsubscribe confirmation. 

My fear is if we implement this, lots of link checkers will falsely unsubscribe people. 

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Your don’t have to worry about link checkers clicking the unsubscribe button or link in the UI.

They will scan and synthetically click links in the body.

[cookiemonstersa]

Amazing, thank you for the clarity! 

[Toan_Truong]

How do we implement that in our marketo emails? 

[SanfordWhiteman]

The List-Unsubscribe header is automatically added to Marketo emails.

[julesmc426]

Sanford, can you confirm if this activity will still show as "lead unsubscribed from list unsubscribe." in the activity details? -- https://nation.marketo.com/t5/support-blogs/marketo-helps-manage-your-data-with-the-list-unsubscribe... 

[SanfordWhiteman]

Yes.

[SuzyV_Boston]

Are there any cases that you can think of where the Marketo option to Unsubscribe won't show up.   We can see it in most of our tests, yet in a couple of cases it doesn't show up and we don't know why.