Contact Removal Options

Overview

Mapp Engage provides several ways to stop contacting users. Each option affects group membership, user data, and reporting differently. This page explains the available methods and when to use them.

Options at a glance

Unsubscribing from a Group

When a contact unsubscribes from a group, they stop receiving messages from that group, and their group-specific data is deleted. The action is recorded in the group’s unsubscribe statistics, and you can choose to send a confirmation message. Other group memberships are not affected.

Methods

• Unsubscribe link: Add a system variable or CMS template paragraph to every email. See Add an Unsubscribe Link to an Email.

• List-Unsubscribe header: Add an unsubscribe option to supported email clients in group sendout options. See List-Unsubscribe Headers.

• Keyword filters: Automatically unsubscribe contacts when they reply with terms like “unsubscribe” or “do not contact.” See Unsubscribe  Contact Based on Keywords in Reply.

• Event-based Whiteboard: Use the job Add to / Remove from Group in the Whiteboard automation to unsubscribe a contact from a group.

• Unsubscribe landing page: Provide a custom page connected to one or more groups or the entire system. The landing page can be connected to one or more groups or used to manage unsubscribes for the whole system. Contact your account manager if you would like to develop a landing page for unsubscribes.

• API: Use the user domain with the unsubscribe method. See the API Documentation.

When to use:

Unsubscribing is best when a contact no longer wishes to receive messages from a particular group, but you still want to keep their profile and other memberships.

Removing from a Group

When a contact is removed from a group, their membership and related data are deleted, but the action is not recorded as an unsubscribe. The contact does not receive a confirmation, and any other group memberships remain unchanged.

Methods

• File import: Import a file with Remove mode to delete group-specific information (for example, member attributes). See Remove Group Members with File Import.

• Event-based Whiteboard: Use the job Add to / Remove from Group in the Whiteboard automation to remove a contact from a group.

• Manual removal: Remove contacts in the Group Members window. See Group Members: Overview.

• API: Use the membership domain with the delete method to remove group membership. See the API Documentation.

When to use:

Removing is more appropriate when you are cleaning up membership lists without generating unsubscribe statistics.

Deleting from the System

When a contact is deleted from the system, all of their address data, profile data, and message history are permanently erased. The action cannot be reversed. Historical statistics remain available, but no new data is collected for the deleted contact.

Methods

• Event-based Whiteboard: Example: event Email Response Received in combination with the job Delete Contact.

• Manual deletion: Delete contacts in the All Contacts window. See Creating and Managing Contact Profiles in Mapp Engage.

• API: Use the user domain with the delete method. See the API Documentation.

When to use:

Deleting should be reserved for situations where a contact’s data must be completely erased from the system, such as for compliance reasons.