Why are my email notifications being turned off?
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This is not the first time I have complained about this problem. I subscribe to my own blog to ensure that notifications of new posts are going to my subscribers.
I usually post on Sunday morning, so on March 8, 2015 I checked to see if my subscription had been turned off because I had not received a notification the previous week. Guess what? It was turned OFF. So, before my article posted on the 8th, I set my notification to INSTANTLY, and I received my notification as expected. This week, on the 14th I failed to check the setting. And guess what? I didn’t get a notification that my article posted on the 15th. I checked the settings just awhile ago, and guess what? It was turned off again.
Since I am not the one turning notifications off, I can only assume that WordPress is doing it. I don’t know if someone is doing it on purpose or if “updates” to the website are reverting to “default” settings, but it is really annoying, and I would like it to either stop, or that you would notify me (and others) when you are making changes that can effect our personal settings.
I don’t have millions of subscribers, but it makes me think that if this is happening to me, it is happening to them also so that they are not receiving notifications when I post a new article, and that really bothers me.
If you keep records of complaints, you should go back through my history and see that this is probably the only thing I have ever complained about. It’s has been going on for a long time, and it continues to go on, so I would like it resolved. I shouldn’t have to keep constant vigilance of my personal setting. I should be able to set them and forget them until I decide to change them.
By the way, if this matters, I do pay for this service.
Thanks.
The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)
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Hi Ernesto,
Sorry you’re having this repeated problem with your notifications.
Can you please tell me what you do with the email when you receive your notifications? Are they stored, do you delete them, do you click on any of the links?
For the purpose of thorough testing, I’m going to subscribe to your blog now, with 3 separate email addresses.
I don’t know if someone is doing it on purpose or if “updates” to the website are reverting to “default” settings, but it is really annoying, and I would like it to either stop, or that you would notify me (and others) when you are making changes that can effect our personal settings.
Our job is to keep you happy, so there’s nobody on our staff with the mission to change settings to make you miserable! Also, the default is to have your notifications turned on.
Out of curiosity, have you ever subscribed to your site with an email address that is not affiliated with your account? If you have such an email address, I do suggest testing that.
It’ll take a bit of time to test this issue, as I’ll need you to post in order to follow up. I’ll keep an eye out on Sunday.
Also, could you fully unsubscribe from your site? And, then re-follow it? Do this before your next post, if you’re able. Make sure that your settings are correct after you re-subscribe.
Let’s be in touch after you do this, and post again. I’ll let you know what I see, and you let me know if the notification is sent to you.
I look forward to hearing from you soon. Many thanks.
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Hi Robyn,
Thank you for taking this on.
I subscribe to my blog using my account email address: (email visible only to moderators and staff).
When I receive the email notification that a new article has been posted on my blog, I share that email with a mailing list of people, friends, I know and who are not necessarily subscribed to my blog. That is about the extent of it.
Sporadically, I will not receive the notification. When that happens, I go to my account settings and will find that the notifications have been turned off. That makes me suspect that my subscribers may not be getting the notification either, but, of course, they control what notifications they receive, so unless they are paying attention, they may not even notice.
Now, you gave me some instructions on things to try. What would you like for me to try first?
Thanks,
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Hi Ernesto!
Thanks so much for your follow-up note.
My first suggestion is to unsubscribe from your site. Then, re-follow it. For the purpose of this initial test, re-subscribe using your verizon address again.
When I receive the email notification that a new article has been posted on my blog, I share that email with a mailing list of people, friends, I know and who are not necessarily subscribed to my blog.
Do you do that by forwarding the email notification to your mailing list?
Finally, I’m curious whether or not you schedule your posts, or if you publish them automatically?
SO many questions! :)
I have followed your sites, as I said I would. I’m going to keep an eye that all three of my email addresses (one affiliated with my WordPress.com account, 2 others are not) receive your notification without trouble.
Looking forward to working with you on this! Thanks so much.
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Hi Robyn,
I followed your recommendation to unsubscribe and then resubscribe. I checked the status and it shows that I should receive a notification when a new article is posted.
Now to your questions: yes, I forward the notification I receive to those on my mailing list. Those on my mailing list get the same notification I receive along with any additional comments that I add. And yes, I usually schedule my blogs to post on Sunday mornings at 10:30 AM CST. That is my normal routine, however, on occasion I will publish immediately.
Thank you so much for working on this. As I stated initially, this happens from time to time for no apparent reason. I do know that I am not the one turning off the notifications because I really do want to get them. I hope we are able to find and resolve this issue.
Thanks. Oh, and by the way, you can call me Ernie.
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Hey Ernie! :)
I followed your recommendation to unsubscribe and then resubscribe. I checked the status and it shows that I should receive a notification when a new article is posted.
Fabulous. So, we know that your settings are correct now…and we’ll see what happens to them after your next post.
Thank you so much for working on this. As I stated initially, this happens from time to time for no apparent reason.
I have a theory…but we’ll have to test it after your next notification goes out. I want you to forward me your email as well. I’m going to send you a private email…you’ll see my direct email address in that email. Please forward your notification there.
Thanks again! Talk to you soon.
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Ernie,
One last question for you: do you subscribe to any other WordPress.com sites? If so, do you ever have trouble with those notification settings changing?
Let me know! Cheers :)
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Thanks for the help. I will be happy to include you in my email list.
I do subscribe to other blogs, and I have noticed that some of them have been turned off, so it’s not just happening to my blog in particular.
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Thanks Ernie!
Let’s touch base on Monday, once that email goes out.
When you first receive your notification, before you forward it, take a look at your settings and let me know what they say.
Then, forward that email to your list (including me!), and keep an eye on your settings after that.
I look forward to hearing all these results! Have a lovely week until then. Best to you :)
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I didn’t hear from you, so I assume to received the notification of my post on Sunday as well as my email.
I just scheduled this week’s article to post on Sunday, March 29 at 10:30 AM CST. As soon as I scheduled my post I went to check on my notification status for my blog. I found it turned off again.
I wanted to send a snapshot of it, but It seems I can’t post a picture here. I’ll try to send you an email with the picture.
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Well, my article posted as scheduled, Sunday, 10:30 AM CST, but I did not get a notification of a new post. Did you?
Since I didn’t get the notification, I went back to check on my settings and I found that Instant Notifications are turned on for my blog. So, I have no explanation for not having received the notification.
Did you get my email?
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Hello there!
I got your notification of the new post this morning, yes! I received it at hotmail and gmail. I also received last week’s.
Did you forward any emails to your mailing list since we last spoke? I think the trouble may stem from this. Is it possible for these folks to sign up to follow your blog just like I did?
Do you happen to have any old notification emails you forwarded to other people (since you didn’t receive the last 2)? If so, can you forward it to the personal email I sent to you? Please don’t send it as an image. I need you to forward me the actual email.
Thanks much!
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Hi Robyn,
I just forwarded an old notification to the email address you provided.
I’m trying to figure out what you are thinking here. If people are NOT subscribed to my blog, can they gain access to my “Blogs I Follow” list, and, thinking that’s how they unsubscribe, turn off my notifications?
If that’s the case, why should the forwarded notification be treated any differently than me just providing the link to the article in an email?
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Hey Ernesto,
I believe I’ve discovered the issue. I’m going to bring the problem to the team, and as soon as we have a solution, I’ll let you know that everything is resolved.
In the meantime, I appreciate your patience, and if I can help with anything else while this is being worked on, please let me know.
Many thanks!
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Great! Thanks so much for sticking with it. Let me know when you come up with a final solution. :)
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Ernie,
By the way, you will want to stop forwarding those emails, in the meantime. It is other folks, clicking unsubscribe on those forwarded emails, that is turning off your own settings. We need to fix this on our end, but in the meantime, you should encourage anyone who wants to receive your posts to sign up to follow your site.
Thanks again!
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Just curious, does this happen only with the notifications that I forward, or does it also happen with emails I compose that include the link to the article?
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Ernie,
It is only the notification email. It’s the “official” email that includes your personal link to unsubscribe. That’s why, when one of your recipients clicks on it, your subscription is impacted.
You can definitely send out a personal email, with a link to the post, and there won’t be an unsubscribe link for your recipients to click on.
I hope that is helpful! Thanks again.
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