List Building
Cleaning a legacy list before sending again
Audit an old email list for permission, source history, unsubscribes and import status before preparing a bounded marketing send.
Before sending to an old list, establish where each address came from, what permission was given and whether that permission covers the planned email. Reconcile unsubscribes and other exclusions first. A tidy spreadsheet or a platform's “subscribed” label does not prove that every contact can receive marketing.
Run a pre-send legacy-list audit in three passes: provenance, permission and suppression. Approve an address only when its source and consent evidence support the planned message and no exclusion applies; leave records with missing or conflicting evidence out.
Pre-Send Legacy List Audit: Three-Phase Process
- Provenance CheckVerify the original source of each email address, including collection method, date, and signup action. Ensure evidence links the address to a valid consent event.
- Permission ReviewConfirm that consent covers the planned marketing message. Reject records where permission is missing, outdated, or mismatched in topic or sender.
- Suppression ReconciliationMerge all known unsubscribes, complaints with opt-out requests, invalid addresses, and other do-not-send records. Retain suppression data for future imports.
Preserve the source and collect its history
Keep the original export and note which systems and collection periods contributed to it. Gather signup records, form wording, import notes, unsubscribe records and requests to stop. Work from a copy so each decision can be traced back to the source.
For each address, ask who supplied it, for what purpose, when and through which action. A purchase, enquiry, business card or third-party file alone does not establish permission for the proposed marketing.
Create an address-level audit record showing the source, collection date, signup action, wording shown, permission finding, suppression check and decision. Look for evidence that connects the address to the signup action and the wording; if it is missing, mark the gap and keep the address out.
In Australia, the Spam Act 2003 is relevant to commercial email: it prohibits unsolicited commercial electronic messages promoting goods, services or land, and that prohibition does not apply where the receiver consented to those types of messages. Check ACMA's “Avoid sending spam” and “Telemarketing and e-marketing: common issues and mistakes” guidance when reviewing the planned send.
If the file contains personal information, check whether the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and Australian Privacy Principles apply to your organisation. Coverage depends on whether the organisation is an APP entity, and exceptions can bring smaller businesses within scope.
Reconcile exclusions first
Combine known unsubscribes, complaints that include an opt-out request, invalid addresses and other do-not-send decisions from relevant systems. Keep suppression records for future imports; deleting an opted-out address from a working file without retaining its exclusion can let it return through another route.
Check how the destination platform handles suppression records before import. Confirm whether exclusions must be applied separately for each list or audience, and how records that are already subscribed will be treated. Test the process with a small sample so an exclusion is not lost during import.
If you use Mailchimp, review its instructions for importing contacts and suppression lists into an Audience before choosing the import process. Mailchimp requires an unsubscribe link on all email campaigns sent through its platform.
Decide which records are eligible
| Evidence found | Decision for the planned marketing email |
|---|---|
| Permission covers the message, with no later opt-out | Keep as a candidate for further pre-send checks. |
| Opt-out or other do-not-send status | Suppress on every relevant marketing route. |
| Permission exists but the sender or topic differs materially | Hold while the scope is assessed. |
| Source or permission cannot be established | Hold out of marketing and seek a lawful fresh signup route. |
For each contact, match the permission decision to the evidence in the audit record, including the signup action and wording shown. If that evidence cannot be found or does not support the planned message, exclude the address rather than infer consent.
These are review categories, not legal findings about individual contacts. Past sends do not turn missing permission evidence into consent.
Eligibility Decision Matrix for Legacy Contacts
- Permission covers message, no opt-out
- Keep as candidate for send
- Opt-out or do-not-send status
- Suppress on all marketing routes
- Permission exists but sender/topic differs
- Hold for scope assessment
- Source or permission unverified
- Exclude; seek fresh consent
Assess the long gap separately
Documented permission and address staleness are different questions. Review how long sending has stopped, whether the content promise has changed and whether the address is known to be invalid. Staleness does not establish permission to email a particular contact.
If permission is uncertain, do not use a re-engagement message to resolve it. If permission is established, decide how to resume within the original promise and the platform's requirements.
Mailchimp's “About Inactive and Stale Addresses” guidance covers inactive and stale addresses. Do not use the age of an address alone as evidence that permission remains in place.
Prepare a bounded send file
Include only contacts whose records support the intended campaign. Record the inclusion rule, exclusions, source date and review decision. Before import, check how the destination handles existing unsubscribed and bounced contacts.
After import, compare the resulting statuses and a sample of records with the approved file. Stop the send if the mapping is wrong.
For the test, check that sampled exclusions remain excluded and sampled eligible contacts have the intended status. Treat any mismatch as a failed check: correct the import or mapping, then check again before sending.
![What You’ll Get When You Subscribe: Receive monthly equipment-care advice from [Sender]; Emails sent roughly once a month, no more than weekly; Confirmed subscription requires inbox verification. Explaining what subscribers will receive at signup](/covers/explaining-what-subscribers-will-receive-at-signup-640.webp?v=bf124388)
![Check if subscribers still want emails: Under the Spam Act 2003 (Cth), consent and a working unsubscribe link are mandatory.; Use Mailchimp’s inactive segment only as a starting point—verify permission and signup context.; If no response by [date], pause the newsletter, not unsubscribe, per policy. Asking subscribers whether they still want emails](/covers/asking-subscribers-whether-they-still-want-emails-640.webp?v=5d185c05)
