Handle unsubscribes and suppression

Every email OmniLead sends lets the recipient opt out in one click, and the opt-out takes effect the moment it arrives. Opted-out addresses land on a suppression list that every sequence, mailbox and teammate respects. You don't need to set anything up for this to work.

How one-click unsubscribe works

OmniLead adds two things to every outreach email.

Unsubscribe headers (RFC 8058). Each message carries these headers:

List-Unsubscribe: <https://omni.cloudgens.net/api/unsubscribe?t=…>, <mailto:unsubscribe@omni.cloudgens.net?subject=…>
List-Unsubscribe-Post: List-Unsubscribe=One-Click

Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo and Apple Mail read them and show an Unsubscribe button next to the sender's name. When the recipient clicks it, their mail provider sends a single request to OmniLead. No page opens and no confirmation is needed. Gmail and Yahoo require this header from bulk senders, so it also protects your deliverability.

A footer link. The same unsubscribe link appears in the email footer, on the line below your postal address. It opens a short page that confirms the person has been removed. The pre-launch checklist won't let a sequence launch if an email step is missing this link.

The token in each link is unique to the recipient and the message. It can't be guessed, and it only unsubscribes that one address.

What happens when someone unsubscribes

Within the same second:

1. The address is added to your workspace suppression list with the reason Unsubscribe.
2. Every active enrollment for that lead stops, in every sequence, and any queued email is cancelled.
3. The lead's timeline records the unsubscribe, with the method (header, link or reply) and the email it came from.
4. The unsubscribe.created webhook fires if you use webhooks.

The law gives you up to 10 business days in the US and Canada, and five in Australia. OmniLead does it immediately, so a follow-up that was due an hour later never goes out.

When someone replies asking to be removed

Some people reply "please remove me" instead of clicking the link. OmniLead's reply detection stops the sequence as soon as any reply arrives, but it doesn't guess intent. To record the opt-out:

1. 1

   Open the conversation

   Go to Inbox and open the reply.

2. 2

   Unsubscribe the lead

   In the lead panel on the right, click Unsubscribe lead.

3. 3

   Confirm

   Click Unsubscribe. The address is suppressed with the method Reply.

Workspace and global suppression

OmniLead keeps two lists. Before any email leaves a mailbox, the address is checked against both.

An unsubscribe is scoped to your workspace, because the person opted out of hearing from you. A global opt-out means the person asked OmniLead to stop processing their data altogether, so their contact details are removed from search results and from every workspace's leads.

Suppress an address or domain

Add people who asked you not to contact them through another channel, current customers, or competitors.

1. 1

   Open suppression settings

   Go to Settings → Compliance and scroll to Suppression.

2. 2

   Add an entry

   Click Add suppression.

3. 3

   Enter the address or domain

   Type an email address, or a domain such as acme.example to block every address at that company.

4. 4

   Save

   Click Add to suppression. It takes effect immediately, including for emails already queued.

To add many at once, click Import CSV and upload a file with one address or domain per row. The first column is used; a header row is optional.

Remove an entry

You can remove entries you added by hand: select the row and click Remove. Unsubscribes, bounces, complaints and global opt-outs can't be removed from the app, because emailing someone who opted out is exactly what the law forbids. If a person later asks to hear from you, ask them to write to you from that address, then contact support with the message so we can lift the entry with a record of their request.

Suppression and the API

The same lists are available through the API: GET /suppressions lists entries and POST /suppressions adds one. Enrollments through POST /sequences/{id}/enrollments skip suppressed leads and return the reason suppressed. See the API reference.