Forward-to-a-Friend (FTAF) emails are those forwarded from a subscriber on your list to a contact not on your list. As a certified sender, FTAF messages must follow the same rules as regular email messages. However, there are additional rules because the email is sent without the recipient's consent.
Requirements
For FTAF messages, make sure you comply with the acceptable forms of consent (as listed in the Certification Standards and Requirements) as well as these opt-in rules:
- The sign-up form includes CAPTCHA or reCAPTCHA to verify the legitimacy of the friend
initiating the email. CAPTCHA and reCAPTCHA helps prevent bots or exploitative users. - You only send one Forward to a Friend commercial or promotional email to the submitted
address. - If a Forward to a Friend email recipient does not respond, you can send only one follow-up
email. - The Return-Path domains are your own domains listed in the email header.
- The Friendly From name and address must clearly identify the Certified sender.
- You provide recipients with a way to unsubscribe from all future email, which is commonly referred to as a global unsubscribe.
- Emails do not contain links or URLs to external web addresses.
- Emails can include personalized comments up to 140 characters.
- An individual user can only use this feature to send a maximum of 100 messages over a 24-hour period.
- In order to send recipients of a Forward to a Friend email additional commercial or promotional email, they must opt into your email program by using an acceptable opt-in method as listed above.