When it comes to unsubscribing, most marketers are like Pharaoh.

In the book of Exodus in the Bible, Moses asked Pharaoh to let his people (the Israelites) go free. 

Pharaoh hesitated, then relented, and then unsuccessfully tried to chase the very people he had let go. 

He struggled to let people go in 1250 B.C. as do most marketers today in 2021 A.D.

In the image below, the brilliant marketoonist Tom Fishburne shows how hard it is to unsubscribe from a newsletter these days.

Instead of fighting to frustrate and keep someone from unsubscribing, leverage the same warring spirit to destroy the inadequacy that makes people want to leave.

The world isn’t desperate for one more email from one more newsletter. 

We need better emails from better newsletters that are worth our time, add specific value to our context, and are distinct from the rest. 

If unsubscribing gets ugly, they won’t just leave for good, they’ll also take more of your people with them.