How to Import and Manage Account-Wide Unsubscribes

You can import an unsubscribe file from a previous email marketing provider or upload email addresses you want to suppress across your Mail Blaze account.

When you import an unsubscribe file without a Mail Blaze list UID, the email addresses are marked as unsubscribed across your entire account. This helps ensure that contacts who have previously unsubscribed are not accidentally added to future campaigns.

How Account-Wide Unsubscribes Work

When you import an unsubscribe file, the result depends on whether the file includes a Mail Blaze list UID.

• Without a list UID: The email address is suppressed across your entire account, including any lists the contact already belongs to.
• With a list UID: The email address is unsubscribed from the specified list only. This follows the existing per-list unsubscribe behaviour.

Account-wide unsubscribes remain in place even if the contact is added to another list later.

How to Import an Unsubscribe File

1. Prepare your unsubscribe file in CSV format.
2. Include a column containing the subscriber's email address. The column header can be Email, Email address, or E-mail. Capitalisation does not matter. Files exported from Excel as CSV UTF-8 are also accepted.

3. You can optionally include a reason column and a list uid column.
4. Go to the LIST > UNSUSBCRIBES to view unsubscribe records.

5. Click on ACTIONS > IMPORT and upload your file.

6. Follow the prompts to complete the import.

Important: Leave the list uid column blank or omit it entirely if you want the unsubscribe to apply to the whole account. Include a valid Mail Blaze list UID if you want to unsubscribe an address from a specific list only.

Example CSV File

To suppress email addresses across your entire account:

The reason is optional. If you leave it blank, Mail Blaze will record the reason as Imported unsubscribe.

To unsubscribe an address from a specific list, include the corresponding Mail Blaze list UID in the list uid column.

What Happens After Import?

When an unsubscribe file is imported without a list UID:

• The email address is recorded as an account-wide unsubscribe, even if the contact is not currently on any list.
• If the contact is already confirmed on a list, that subscription is unsubscribed as well. The address is still stored against the account when they are not on any list.
• If the contact is added to another list later, the account-wide unsubscribe remains in effect.
• The contact will not be confirmed through the bulk confirmation process while the account-wide unsubscribe is active.

Invalid email addresses are skipped. If a list UID is supplied but does not belong to your account, the row is rejected.

How to View Account-Wide Unsubscribes

Go to LIST > UNSUSBCRIBES to view unsubscribe records. The screen displays the subscriber's email address, the list they unsubscribed from, and the REASON for the unsubscribe.

For account-wide unsubscribes, the list name appears as All lists when the contact does not have a corresponding per-list unsubscribe record.

Once the contact exists on a list, the screen may display the relevant per-list unsubscribe record. The account-wide suppression remains active in the background to prevent the contact from being subscribed again accidentally.

Can an Unsubscribed Contact Subscribe Again?

Yes. A contact can be subscribed again if they explicitly opt in through an eligible subscription action.

The account-wide suppression is removed when the contact successfully subscribes through:

• The public subscribe form, after the form has validated the submission and saved the subscription successfully.
• The single Subscribe action on the list screen.

If the public subscribe form fails to save the subscription, the account-wide suppression is restored.

The following actions do not remove an account-wide unsubscribe:

• Importing subscribers from a CSV file.
• Creating a subscriber through the API.
• Using bulk confirmation.
• Clicking an old confirmation link.

This ensures that an unsubscribe cannot be overridden by routine imports or automated processes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will an account-wide unsubscribe apply to contacts I add in the future?

Yes. The contact remains unsubscribed if you add the same email address to another list while the account-wide suppression is active.

What if the contact is not currently on any list?

The unsubscribe is still imported and stored against your account. The address does not need to exist on a list for the suppression to take effect.

Can I unsubscribe someone from just one list?

Yes. Include the relevant Mail Blaze list UID in your import file. The unsubscribe will apply to that list only.

Do I need to provide a reason for each unsubscribe?

No. The reason is optional. If it is blank, Mail Blaze uses the default reason, Imported unsubscribe.

Will importing an unsubscribe file create a new subscriber?

No. Account-wide unsubscribe records are stored separately and do not create subscriber records simply to hold the suppression.

How can I remove an account-wide unsubscribe?

The contact must explicitly opt in through the public subscribe form or the single Subscribe action on the list screen. Importing the address again or confirming it in bulk will not remove the suppression.

Best Practice

When moving to Mail Blaze from another email marketing provider, import your previous unsubscribe records before sending your first campaign. Leave the list UID blank for contacts who must remain unsubscribed across your entire account.

Always respect a contact's unsubscribe preference. Only remove a suppression when the contact has explicitly opted in again.