The Email Unsubscribe Recipe

Do you get a lot of junk email? I'm not talking about the typical spam that most internet providers manage to sift out. Yes, gone are the days when I had to wade through hundreds of emails offering me various different devices that would cause various kinds of enlargements ... if you get my drift. What I'm talking about are email subscriptions you inadvertently sign up for.

I like to go to networking and trade events, and I like to hand out my business card. And why shouldn't I, it's a really cool and eye catching business card, even if I do say so myself. But a few weeks later, after I have totally forgotten who I've handed out my cards to, and what competitions I've entered, I start to notice a definite increase in a number of emails I'm receiving. Holidays, promotions, sales, tips, seminar invitations ... you name it, they'll be there in my mail box.

But I'm not just having a whinge about my email situation, because I know I'm most certainly not alone there. What I am sharing is what I like to do about it.

Ingredients:
1x coffee or tea made to your own personal liking
1x quiet office without distractions (I personally like early morning before I start actually working)
1x phone on silent
1x ounce of ruthlessness
2x ounces of patience
1x very nimble mouse clicking finger

Method:

1. Place yourself into a comfortable position in front of your computer. (While it is possible to do this on the phone and tablet, it is much easier and more rewarding completing the task on a computer.)
2. Gather all the other ingredients together in the one location within easy reach.
3. Open your email program and do a generous dump all the emails into the bowl ... I mean inbox.
4. Slowly scroll through your emails looking for any suspiciously "subscription-like".
5. As you find an email that fits the criteria, scroll straight to the bottom of that email. DO NOT start reading it and DO NOT click on any interesting deals they might have to offer.
6. Look for the "Unsubscribe" link. Sometimes it might be a little tricky to find, but be patient, with practice it will get easier.
7. Click on the link once you find it.
8. Sometimes you might get asked if you want to unsubscribe from just this list or all their mailing lists ... All is the correct answer.
9. Repeat this process from step 4 until you've either been interrupted by paying work, kids screaming or you've just run out of emails to unsubscribe from.

This is a great recipe to use over and over again. Feel free to add your own spices to the mix, and share out to your family and friends.

AndyK