Email marketing for a small business, from list to first send.
Email marketing is sending useful messages to people who asked to hear from you. For a small business it is one of the few channels you own, because the list is yours. This guide covers building a list with consent, what to send, how often, how to measure it and what to avoid.
- Email works because people choose to be on the list, and the list belongs to you.
- Collect addresses with clear consent, send something useful on a steady rhythm, and make leaving easy.
- Measure replies, clicks and enquiries, not only opens.
7 min readPublished By Domeq Solutions
Why does email still matter?
Social platforms change how many people see your posts. Search results change with every update. An email list does not depend on either. If someone has asked to hear from you, a message goes into their inbox, and you decide what to send and when.
That ownership is the main reason small businesses use email. It turns a one-time visitor or buyer into someone you can speak to again, at little cost per message. It works for businesses that sell to other businesses and to consumers alike.
A list is one of the few audiences you own.
How do you build a list with consent?
Only add people who have chosen to be there. Buying a list, scraping addresses or adding everyone who ever emailed you for a quote is a fast route to spam complaints, blocked messages and legal trouble. The rules on consent differ from country to country, so take advice on the ones that apply to you.
The best lists grow from a clear promise: what people will get and how often. A simple sign-up form with that promise beats a pop-up that asks for an address and offers nothing.
Five honest ways to grow a list.
Ask at the point of interest
Place a short sign-up form beside useful content, such as a guide or a checklist, with a plain promise of what follows.
Offer something worth having
A template, a checklist or a short guide gives people a reason to join. See the website brief template for an example of the kind of thing that helps.
Ask at checkout or enquiry
Add an unticked box that lets customers choose to hear from you. Never tick it for them.
Invite existing contacts properly
Where you have a real relationship, send one clear invitation to join and let them choose.
Say how to leave
Make unsubscribing one click. People who can leave easily are more willing to join.
What should you send?
Send what you promised, and make each message worth opening. A small business rarely needs more than a few kinds of email, and the mix matters more than the volume.
Four kinds of email that work for small businesses.
Useful tips and answers
Share what you know. It builds trust and reminds people why they joined.
News and updates
New services, projects and changes that matter to your customers.
Offers and launches
Used sparingly, and clearly labelled, so they feel like help rather than pressure.
A welcome message
The first email a new subscriber gets. It says thank you, sets expectations and points to your best content.
How do you write an email people read?
Write to one person. Use a subject line that says plainly what is inside, keep the message short enough to read on a phone and give it one main action. A clear subject and a single next step beat clever wording and a crowded layout.
Send from a real name and a reply address that someone monitors. People answer emails that come from a person, and a reply is the strongest sign to mailbox providers that your messages are wanted.
Seven checks before you send.
- The subject line says what the email contains, in plain words
- The first line gives the reader a reason to continue
- The email has one main action, and the link works
- It reads well on a phone, with short paragraphs
- Images have alt text, and the message still makes sense without them
- It comes from a real name, and replies reach a person
- There is a clear unsubscribe link and your business details
How do you measure email marketing?
Open rates have become less reliable, because mail apps can load images automatically. Look at what people do: clicks, replies and enquiries. Tag the links in your emails with the UTM link builder, so that Google Analytics can show which message brought a visit and which visits became enquiries.
Look at trends over several sends, not a single result. If people unsubscribe or mark messages as spam, the message or the audience is wrong, and it is better to learn that early.
Email terms, explained.
- Open rate
- The share of recipients who opened a message. It is an estimate, and often overstated.
- Click-through rate
- The share of recipients who clicked a link in the message.
- Unsubscribe
- A recipient's choice to leave the list. Every marketing email should make it easy.
- Deliverability
- Whether your messages reach the inbox instead of the spam folder.
- Double opt-in
- A sign-up method where a new subscriber confirms their address from a first email.
- Segment
- A smaller group within the list, such as past customers, who get a more relevant message.
- Newsletter
- A regular email to subscribers, usually mixing news, tips and offers.
Looking for another term? Browse the full glossary.
Which mistakes should you avoid?
Most email problems come from a handful of habits.
Six email mistakes.
Buying a list
People who did not ask to hear from you mark you as spam, and that harms delivery to everyone.
Only selling
A list that gets nothing but offers soon stops reading. Give value between the offers.
Sending rarely, then a lot
People forget who you are. A steady rhythm that you can keep beats bursts.
Hiding the unsubscribe link
It annoys readers and breaks the rules in many countries.
Ignoring replies
A reply is a conversation and often an enquiry. Answer promptly.
No link back to the website
Every email should lead somewhere useful, such as a page built for that message.
How do you start small?
Begin with one sign-up form, one welcome email and one message a month. That is enough to learn what your audience reads. Add more only when the habit is secure.
Email works best as one part of a connected plan alongside your website, search and social media. Domeq's Digital Marketing work connects the channels, and the Social Media Marketing service covers the posts that bring people to the list. Talk to the team through the contact page if you want help planning it.
A subscriber's path, from first visit to enquiry.
Visits the site
Finds something useful.
Signs up
Chooses to hear from you.
Gets a welcome
Learns what to expect.
Reads regularly
Receives useful messages on a steady rhythm.
Enquires
Replies or clicks when the time is right.
Questions, answered.
Is email marketing still worth it for a small business?
Yes, for most. You own the list, each message costs little to send, and people who joined have already shown interest. It works best with a useful message and a steady rhythm.
How often should a small business send marketing emails?
As often as you can send something worth reading, and no oftener. Once a month is a sound start. A rhythm you can keep beats frequent bursts that stop.
Can I email everyone who has contacted me before?
Not automatically. Having someone's address because they asked for a quote does not always mean they agreed to marketing. Rules differ by country, so ask for permission clearly and take advice on the laws that apply to you.
What should I write in a welcome email?
Thank the person, say what they will receive and how often, and point to two or three of your most useful pages. Keep it short and personal.
What is a good email open rate?
There is no single number, because open rates vary by industry and are unreliable now that mail apps can load images automatically. Watch clicks, replies and enquiries, and compare your own results over time.
Do I need a special tool to send marketing emails?
Yes, in practice. Sending marketing email from an ordinary inbox is slow and risks your messages being blocked. An email service handles sign-ups, unsubscribes, delivery and reporting.
Why do my marketing emails go to spam?
Common causes are a purchased or old list, misleading subject lines, no unsubscribe link, sudden large sends and a sending address that is not set up properly. Send to people who asked, and keep the content honest.
Keep reading.
More guides on the same topic, and on the ones around it.
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