Send tracked email only to people who agree to it

Each broadcaster's Track email opens and clicks setting applies to everyone who gets email from it. If your organization wants tracking only for supporters who have agreed to it, you can set that up with two broadcasters and a consent tag.

📌 Note: Whether you need consent for email tracking, and what counts as valid consent, depends on the rules that apply to your organization. As you know, those decisions sit with your organization and its legal counsel. This article shows how to set up the workflow in NationBuilder; it isn't legal advice.

How it works

Broadcaster 1, tracking on: sends to supporters who have agreed to tracking.
Broadcaster 2, tracking off: sends to everyone else.
A tag (for example email-tracking-ok) records who has agreed. Supporters add it by saying yes, and remove it by changing their preferences.
Each email goes out twice: once from each broadcaster, to opposite halves of your list.

Step 1: Set up two broadcasters

1. Create a second broadcaster so you have one for tracked email and one for untracked email. Give them the same name and email address so supporters see the same sender. Only one broadcaster per address can receive replies, so check Receive incoming email for this address on just one of them.

2. Create a new blast in the untracked broadcaster with the same content, and send it to the same list filtered to people without the consent tag. You can't copy a blast between broadcasters with different tracking settings, so build it again or paste the content in.

See Track your email engagement for what changes when tracking is off.

Step 2: Ask supporters for consent

1. Create a signup page to act as your consent page. Under Signup settings > Checkboxes, add an option such as "Yes, you can see when I open and click your emails" that adds your consent tag. Explain in plain language what tracking means for them.

2. Send a consent email from your untracked broadcaster, so you aren't tracking people before they've agreed. Link to your consent page and explain why you're asking. See Understanding email opt-ins and unsubscribe links for tips on running a reconfirmation or opt-in campaign.

3. Add the same consent checkbox to the signup pages new supporters use, so you keep collecting consent going forward.

📌 Tip: People who don't respond haven't agreed. They stay on the untracked broadcaster.

Step 3: Let supporters change their mind

Make it as easy to withdraw as it was to agree.

1. Go to Settings > Defaults > Unsubscribe > Unsubscribe options and add an option for your consent tag, for example "Let you see when I open and click your emails." When a supporter unchecks it, the tag is removed from their profile. See How to use the unsubscribe page.

2. Every email blast already includes an unsubscribe link, so supporters can reach this option from any email you send.

📌 Note: Under Unsubscribe > Settings, the "Only display options from which people can unsubscribe" checkbox controls whether supporters can only remove tags they already have, or also add them. Choose what fits your setup.

Step 4: Send each email twice

For every email blast:

1. Create the blast on the tracked broadcaster and send it to your list filtered to people with the consent tag.

Use exactly opposite filters so nobody gets both emails.

Automation emails work the same way: set up the tracked version for people with the tag and the untracked version for people without it.

Things to know

It's more work. Every email is built and sent twice, and your stats are split across two broadcasters.
A/B testing only works on the tracked broadcaster.
Emails can't be copied, moved or merged between the two broadcasters with different privacy settings, so each version is built separately.
Withdrawal applies to future email. If a supporter removes their consent, future emails come from the untracked broadcaster. Emails they already received from the tracked broadcaster may still record an open if they reopen them.
Keep your own consent records. NationBuilder stores the tag on each profile. If you need a record of when and how someone agreed, keep it in your own process.
Your open rates will only reflect the tracked group, which is likely your most engaged supporters.