Why Non-Marketable Contacts Cannot Receive Your Email Campaigns

When contacts are added to your CRM through a plugin or integration, they may be assigned a Non-Marketable email status. The Non-Marketable status is applied when a contact is imported or added manually without a confirmed indication that you have permission to send marketing emails to that address. Contacts with a Non-Marketable email status can receive individual one-to-one emails, but they cannot receive broadcast emails or automated follow-up sequence messages. This means any contact imported with a Non-Marketable status is excluded from your campaigns until the status is updated.

The most common reason contacts arrive with a Non-Marketable status is that a setting on the plugin or integration side was not configured correctly before the import. If you have confirmed that you have permission to send marketing emails to these contacts, you can use the bulk opt-in feature to update their email status to marketable in one step.

Important: The bulk opt-in feature only works for contacts with a Non-Marketable email status. Contacts with other email statuses — such as Unsubscribed or Hard Bounce — cannot be updated using this feature and are not covered in this article.

How to Bulk Opt-In Non-Marketable Contacts

The steps below walk you through finding all Non-Marketable contacts using the Email Engagement Tracker report and updating their opt-in status in bulk. Before you begin, confirm that you have explicit permission to send marketing emails to the contacts you are updating. Sending marketing emails without permission can damage your sender reputation and violate email compliance regulations.

1. Click Reports in the main navigation to open the Reports section.

   

   The main navigation menu displays several options. The Reports option is listed in the navigation and opens the Reports section when clicked.

2. Click Email Engagement Tracker in the Reports section to open the email status search tool.

   

   The Reports section displays a list of available report types. The Email Engagement Tracker is listed among the report options. Clicking it opens the email status search interface.

3. If a New Search button is visible on the Email Engagement Tracker page, click New Search to clear any previous search filters before continuing. If the button is not present, proceed to the next step.

   

   The Email Engagement Tracker page displays the New Search button above the search filter fields. The button appears only when a previous search has already been run. Clicking New Search resets all filter fields to their default state.

4. In the email status filter, select Non-Marketable to filter the search results to show only contacts with a Non-Marketable email status.

   

   The email status filter drop-down displays multiple status options including Non-Marketable, Unconfirmed, Confirmed, and others. Select Non-Marketable to limit the search to only contacts with that specific status.

5. Click Search to run the search and display all contacts with a Non-Marketable email status.

6. At the top of the search results list, click the Select All checkbox to select every contact in the results.

   

   The search results page displays a list of Non-Marketable contacts with a Select All checkbox at the top left of the list. When the Select All checkbox is checked, every contact in the results list shows a checkmark indicating they are selected.

7. Click the Actions drop-down above the results list to open the list of available bulk actions.

8. In the Actions drop-down, search for and select Update Opt-In/Out Status.

   

   The Actions drop-down displays a list of bulk action options. The Update Opt-In/Out Status option is listed in the menu. Select it to open the opt-in status update dialog.

9. In the opt-in status update dialog, select the email fields you want to update. Then select Opt-In as the status to apply to the selected contacts.

   

   The Update Opt-In/Out Status dialog displays a list of email field checkboxes — such as Email 1, Email 2 — and two radio buttons labeled Opt-In and Opt-Out. Check the email fields you want to update and make sure the Opt-In radio button is selected before proceeding.

10. Click Process Action to apply the Opt-In status to all selected contacts. The email status for the selected contacts will be updated from Non-Marketable to marketable, and those contacts will now be eligible to receive broadcast emails and automated follow-up sequence messages.

    

    The Process Action button appears at the bottom of the Update Opt-In/Out Status dialog. Clicking Process Action applies the Opt-In status update to all selected contacts and closes the dialog.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use the bulk opt-in feature for contacts with an Unsubscribed status?

No. The bulk opt-in feature only works for contacts with a Non-Marketable email status. Contacts with an Unsubscribed, Hard Bounce, or other email status cannot be updated using this feature. To learn how to manage other email statuses, see the article on managing email status for individual contacts.

Why did my contacts get imported as Non-Marketable?

Contacts are assigned a Non-Marketable status when they are imported or added to your CRM without a confirmed opt-in permission setting. This most commonly happens when a plugin or integration is not configured to pass permission data correctly at the time of import. Check the permission settings in your plugin or integration to prevent future contacts from being imported as Non-Marketable.

What is the difference between Non-Marketable and Opted-In?

A contact with a Non-Marketable email status can receive individual one-to-one emails but cannot receive broadcast emails or automated follow-up sequence messages. A contact with an Opted-In status can receive all types of emails, including broadcast campaigns and automated sequences. Using the bulk opt-in feature changes the status from Non-Marketable to Opted-In.