The case for and against double opt-in

Way back in 2016, there were a series of blog posts that laid out the reasons both for and against double opt-in. Positioned as "single opt-in versus double opt-in," it was a good point/counterpoint on the topic. Sadly, a couple of the articles have succumbed to internet bit rot, so I've collected links for all four articles that lead to Internet Archive copies.

Single Opt-in vs. Double Opt-in:

• The case for SOI: https://xnnd.com/tzoz
• The case for DOI: https://xnnd.com/7f88
• The Court of Public Opinion: https://xnnd.com/9gvd
• The Verdict on Email Permission: https://xnnd.com/qpc1

Thanks to John Bonini and Chad S. White for authoring these and thanks to Litmus for originally publishing them. (And thanks to Andrew Barrett for reminding us of their existence today.) I hope nobody minds me sharing links here; I found them valuable and not only does it give me an easy place to find them later, I think other folks might find them valuable, too.

I don't necessarily agree with every single point made in all four articles; but overall, I find it all to be pretty balanced.

And now, it's time for my own mini-rant: What I think people really forget when it comes to answering the question of "Do I need to implement double opt-in, or is single opt-in good enough?" is that while many people have very strong opinions about it, and some of them even have data, they may have had different experiences than you have had, or than I have had. IMHO? Beware those who tell you that you never need to implement COI/DOI. The spam police may not have come after them, and the spam police doesn't come after everyone. But there are scenarios where it'll save your bacon, and it has definitely done so for me and various clients at various times in the past.

Back in 1998, I suggested it because I thought it was "the one true good path to handle signups" while wearing my shiny and new anti-spam advocate's hat. In 2024, I continue to suggest it, but I'm coming at it quite differently; now from a long history filled with various experiences I've had, even recent ones, where I've watched people getting spanked unfairly for not implementing COI/DOI. I don't think I'm trying to force you to buy a fire extinguisher, but I am pointing out how handy it was for me to be able to put out those occasional fires. So I'm going to continue to be a fan of fire extinguishers, personally.

And specifically, one of the primary reasons I put together "The Small Publisher's Guide to Deliverability Success" webinar back in 2023 was specifically in response to watching a number of newsletter and local/hyperlocal news senders run into deliverability trouble that would have been prevented had they utilized double opt-in.