Updated · 8 min read
Sunset sequences: how to say goodbye without burning the list
The users who stopped opening six months ago are dragging down your deliverability every time you send. The hygiene policy says to suppress them — but not before giving them one explicit chance to stay. The sunset sequence is that chance: three messages, escalating clarity, with a clean exit for users who don't want to be there. Here's how to run one that recovers users without poisoning the reputation.
Justin Williames
Founder, Orbit · 10+ years in lifecycle marketing
When to trigger a sunset
Trigger: user has shown zero engagement (opens, clicks, product activity) for your program's dormancy threshold. Usually 180 days for most consumer programs, 90 for high-frequency products, 365+ for low-frequency ones.
The list hygiene policy covers picking the right threshold. The sunset sequence is what runs after that threshold trips, before permanent suppression.
The sunset is not about winning users back. That's the win-back sequence, which runs earlier. Sunset is about giving users who are already gone a clean way to say so — or a final, explicit nudge if they want to stay.
Message 1 — The honest nudge
Timing: day 0 of the sunset window (i.e., the day the dormancy threshold is crossed).
Subject: "Still want to hear from us?" or "Should we keep sending?"
Content: honest acknowledgment that they haven't been engaging, a clear yes/no. Two buttons: "Yes, keep me on the list" and "No, unsubscribe me". Optionally a frequency-reduction option ("Monthly only") as a middle path.
The honesty is the differentiator. Don't dress it up as a promotion or a "we miss you" guilt trip. "You haven't opened an email from us in 6 months. We're going to stop sending unless you tell us to keep going" is more effective than any cleverness.
Message 2 — The reminder
Timing: day 14, only if the user didn't respond to message 1.
Subject: "Last chance to stay on the list" or "One more try".
Content: shorter than message 1, same two-button structure. Explicit deadline ("We'll stop sending on [date] unless we hear from you"). The specificity makes the consequence concrete.
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Message 3 — The confirmation
Timing: day 21, at the end of the sunset window.
Subject: "This is our last email to you" or "Removing you from the list today".
Content: clear statement that this is the last marketing email they'll receive. One final "actually, keep me" button as a parachute. Link to preference centre for users who want to customise rather than fully leave.
Counterintuitively, this message often has the highest response rate in the sequence. The finality flips the frame — users who ignored the first two messages realise they're about to lose the option, and a small percentage reactivate. Typical response: 3–5% of message-3 recipients will click "keep me".
What happens after the sequence
Users who responded with "keep me" move back to the active list with an engagement reset — their dormancy clock starts over. Treat them gently for the next 30 days (reduced frequency, high-quality sends only) to give them a real second chance.
Users who didn't respond move to permanent marketing suppression. They stay in your database (for transactional use, for analytics, for potential future re-subscription via a different consented channel) but they stop receiving marketing email. Don't re-add them later without an explicit re-subscription moment.
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The strategic role of the sunset
Sunsetting is unpopular with stakeholders because the list shrinks, which looks like a loss. It isn't. An engaged list of 50,000 delivers more revenue than an unengaged list of 500,000, with better deliverability and lower send cost.
The retention economics guide has the math on why. Short version: users who haven't engaged in 6 months have a ~95% likelihood of never engaging again. Keeping them on the list is paying to send mail to phantom addresses while damaging your sender reputation for the real ones.
The Deliverability Management skill treats the sunset sequence as a standing quarterly run, not a one-time cleanup. Automate the trigger, run the sequence, let the suppression happen. Quarterly audit confirms the mechanism is still firing.
Frequently asked questions
- How long should the sunset sequence run?
- Three messages over 21 days: day 0, day 14, day 21. Longer windows (30+ days) don't convert meaningfully more users and extend the reputation damage of sending to unengaged addresses. Shorter windows (under 14 days) don't give users enough time to notice and respond.
- Should I offer a discount to keep unengaged users?
- Usually no. Discounts teach users that disengagement gets them a reward, which you don't want. The honest ask ('still want to hear from us?') outperforms the bribe ('here's 20% off to stay') on long-term engagement quality. A discount can work in the final message as a last-ditch nudge, but keep it modest.
- What if I unsubscribe someone by mistake?
- You won't, if the sequence is based on a clear dormancy rule (180 days zero engagement). Users who engage during the sequence (open any of the three messages, click the 'keep me' button) are automatically retained. Users who don't engage at all across three messages have given you a clear signal by non-response.
- Can sunset users ever be re-engaged later?
- Via explicit re-subscription only. If they return to your site, create an account, or sign up again through a form, they can re-enter marketing. You cannot just add them back to the list 6 months later because your marketing team wants to run a campaign — that's the exact complaint-driving behaviour the sunset was designed to prevent.
- What response rate should I expect?
- 10–20% of sunset-eligible users will engage with at least one message (click keep-me or unsubscribe). Of those, roughly 30–50% choose to stay. So net retention from a sunset is usually 5–10% of the eligible audience. The remaining 90–95% suppress quietly — which is the point.
- Do I need a sunset sequence if I already have a winback flow?
- Yes — they play different roles. Winback runs earlier (60–90 days of disengagement) and tries to re-activate still-interested users. Sunset runs later (180+ days) and gives a clean exit. Think of winback as the sales pitch and sunset as the final hygiene step. A program with both, in sequence, handles dormancy better than one with only one of them.
This guide is backed by an Orbit skill
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