Dear Former Newsletter Subscriber:
Thank you for unsubscribing from my newsletter. I hope the process was clear and simple.
Don’t take this wrong, but I’m glad you left. Here’s why:
Your honest appraisal is important to me. Whether you signed up on a whim and have changed your mind, or whether I’ve gone a different path that’s not your cup o’ tea, you no longer need the information I’m sharing. Understood completely. I unsubscribe from a newsletter almost every week for similar reasons.
What a waste it would be for you to keep deleting my newsletter, unread. Waste of your time, not mine. That’s important to me, because I’ll gladly spend my own time, but abhor wasting others’ time. And resources—internet bandwidth is not unlimited, and I’m one of those people who gets cranky when things are slow. Thanks for doing even one little thing to make it better.
Ever have that feeling at a party that the person you’re talking to is listening just to be polite? It doesn’t feel polite, does it? I’m glad you’re not, um, “sparing my feelings” by accepting my newsletter just to be fake-polite. When someone is not interested, it’s so much more honest and human to politely tell the truth.
A funny thing I’ve noticed: when I keep getting newsletters from someone after they stop being relevant, I start getting annoyed at the sender. Wait a minute: I subscribed, and I can unsubscribe any time I want. Whose fault is it I’m getting annoyed? Well, we don’t usually see life so clearly, eh?
So thanks for being forthright with me about not needing this information any more. It helps me focus on those most moved by my message, and allows you and I to connect again in the future in some better way.
Happy trails!