New Gmail Unsubscribe Implementation

By: Chris Reibold
Senior Email Analyst

Google has started displaying unsubscribe links at the top of messages in its popular web client for Gmail:

Essentially, Gmail looks for the List-Unsubscribe header and pulls the information, displaying the above hyperlink next to the sender address. As a measure of security, DKIM/Domainkeys is verified before the link is displayed in a message.

This is actually a rather good move on Google’s part in helping email marketers and newsletter senders like yourself. By emphasizing the unsubscribe link at the top, the recipient of the message is more likely to simply click that instead of the “spam” button that is above it.

Please keep in mind that this change has come at a time when Gmail’s FBL (Feedback Loop) is being implemented for companies like JangoMail to use. FBLs send a message that goes to the sender whenever a subscriber hits the spam button. Eventually Gmail’s use of the unsubscribe link will be gathered, along with the FBL data, to tell us how well your engagement is with Gmail-using recipients.

There is an obvious shift in the way Google wants Gmail to operate; they have added tabs, turned on images by default, made the unsubscribe link more prominent, and now they are implementing an FBL.

It appears that Google really wants to cleanup the inbox and minimize the amount of spam their users are receiving. This is a double edged sword.  On one hand it can make your message emphasized over others, but on the other it will also make it harder for you to land in the inbox.

Only time can tell how well this new feature works, but Gmail putting an emphasis on unsubscribe over spam is a good thing indeed.

Gmail Now Displays Images by Default

By: Chris Reibold
Senior Email Analyst

You may have heard this week that Google made some changes to the way Gmail displays images in their emails. Previously, Gmail would make a request for an image every time an email was opened, but now they temporarily store those images, including the one we use for open tracking.

What does this mean for our users?

To facilitate open tracking in emails, we embed a transparent image (1x1 pixel) in each email, hosted on our servers. When you open the email, JangoMail knows that unique image has been accessed, and can then tell the sender their email has been opened. While using cached images is great idea for Gmail, it does create a problem for any Email Service Provider (ESP). Mainly that, with this new image caching system in place, location tracking won't be available for Gmail addresses.

However, there are always two sides to the coin – we have done some tests here at the office and actually are happy to see that open tracking appears to be more accurate with Gmail addresses now. Additionally, this should not affect POP or IMAP mail clients in anyway. For forwarded messages or multiple opens, Google will need to load the image at least that first time before they can cache it. When a customer comes back and re-opens the email, or forwards it to additional address, that’s where you’ll possibly miss some of the tracking, but that doesn't affect that first/unique open.

Image Source: Official Gmail Blog

When Gmail users open up their web interface, they are now presented with an alert regarding this new change. They now have the option to turn images on or off by default. Leaving images on enables image caching, but still lowers our ability to track repeat opens. Turning images off, however, allows users to open messages without downloading our tracking pixel.

Remember, this doesn't affect the number of subscribers actually reading your email, it simply makes the unique opens more accurate.

If you have any questions regarding the change contact us at: 1-855-709-4099, or submit a ticket at jangomail.com/support.