Email marketing is a method for businesses to communicate with customers, leads and encourage repeat purchases. Well-thought out email marketing campaigns enable organizations to build direct relationships with customers who have elected to engage with their messages.
However, email marketing is more involved than just sending a promotional message. Email marketers need to have a basic understanding of audience members, create relevant and valuable content, build and maintain an active subscriber list, and examine campaign results to see if goals and objectives are being met.
What Is Email Marketing?
Email marketing is a form of digital marketing that allows businesses to communicate with customers and subscribers via email, to share valuable information, promote products and services, generate leads, and build long-term customer relationships.
Email marketing allows businesses to send newsletters, announce new products or services, share special promotions, send educational materials, and communicate with customers to provide support and recommendations based on their interests.
Service-based businesses may use email marketing to provide information about a particular service and nurture leads. A service-based business may send industry related information and offer a consultation.
Email marketing is not about sending a high volume of messages. Relevant messages should be sent to help the audience take the next appropriate step.
How Does Email Marketing Work?
Email marketing works by bringing in a new audience and engaging them in order to take a desired action.
I. Build a Subscriber List
Use website forms, checkout pages, lead magnets, etc. to invite interested visitors and customers to subscribe and build your list.
II. Learn About Your Audience
Determine the interests and preferences of your subscribers and the nature of their interaction and transactions with your business.
III. Develop Useful Emails
Craft messages that appeal to your audience, including the subject line, content, and images, and include a clear call to action.
IV. Send or Automate Campaigns
Using an email marketing platform, send newsletters, promotional messages, and other campaigns to your subscribers. You may also set up automation rules for your messages.
V. Analyze and Improve Your Campaigns
Look at delivery, open and click rates, conversions, and unsubscribes. Compare the results of your campaigns to revenue earned. Adjust your campaigns to better suit the needs of your subscribers.
Example: A web design agency offers visitors a chance to subscribe to receive a website planning checklist. The agency then sends subscribers the checklist and gives website improvement recommendations. The agency sends educational emails and resources to potential customers to remain relevant while the customers make their purchasing decision. The agency later shares information about its design services to subscribers who are potential customers.
Thus, the agency has created an automated pathway for potential customers to reach out to the agency to discuss the potential design of the customers’ websites.
Why Is Email Marketing Important for Businesses?
As explained in the description above, there are many ways to use email marketing to engage your customers at various stages of your sales funnel.
What are the main types of email marketing?
Different formats of email marketing serve different purposes. Knowing the right format for your objective is very important, especially based on your target audience and your business model.
1. Welcome Emails
As the name states, these are the first emails sent to subscribers. These emails welcome subscribers and provide an overview of your business.
You can also include a downloadable resource, or provide links to helpful resources.
2. Email Newsletters
Email newsletters provide recent updates to subscribers. These can be education articles, or resources in your field. The goal of these emails should be to provide subscribers with relevant information as opposed to an outright sales pitch.
3. Promotional Emails
These emails provide subscribers with information regarding special offers, sales, and events. Promotional emails can also notify subscribers with information regarding new products and services.
A promotional email should clearly describe an offer and include the important conditions. It should also have a clear call to action.
4. Lead Nurturing Emails
Lead nurturing emails are part of an email sequence. Each email should accomplish a specific step towards the final goal. The final goal should be to get the prospect to contact the business for more information or a demonstration.
5. Abandoned Cart Emails
Privacy laws and regulations have a significant impact on abandoned cart emails. Different jurisdictions have different limitations.
Ecommerce businesses should send these emails to remind shoppers about the items left in their cart. Some common questions shoppers have about making a purchase should also be answered. For example, these emails should also provide the delivery options and details about the item being purchased.
6. Transactional Emails
Transactional emails should communicate order and account activity related information. These include order confirmations and receipts, shipping notifications, and change of password emails.
Legal considerations impact the information provided and how it is communicated.
7. Re-Engagement Emails
Recipients who do not interact with the business for an extended period of time are part of a re-engagement campaign. The objective of the campaign is to understand the interests of the recipient and why they are no longer actively participating in the business.
Effective email marketing strategies begin with clearly defining the end goal of the email marketing campaign.
Step 2: Define your email marketing audience
It is important to segment your audience so the emails can be personalized.
Promote a new service.
Increase registrations for a webinar.
Encourage customers to use a product more.
Choose a main goal for each campaign. This helps select a call to action and measure results.
2. Build an email list responsibly
You need to build your list using good practices.
There are plenty of legitimate ways for people to sign up to get your messages, like filling out a website contact form, downloading an asset, registering for an event, adjusting their account settings or signing up to get your newsletter.
Make it clear what people will get and how often you will communicate with them.
It is unlawful, risky, and unethical to purchase email lists, or to collect email addresses unlawfully.
3. Segment your audience
Segmentation involves dividing your audience into groups according to their interests or behavior.
Examples of interests could be the topics, products or services a person prefers.
Examples of behavior could be whether the person is a new subscriber, prospect, existing customer or former customer.
Examples of behavior could be recent purchases, or what product categories a person explored.
Examples of engagement could be recent email clicks, or meaningful interaction with recent messages.
Examples of business needs could be the industry or company size a person works for, or the services a person prefers.
4. Create useful and relevant content
When sending an email, think about what will be in it for the reader.
Your message may help respond to a question, illustrate a product benefit, remedy a problem, provide a resource, or make an offer aligned to the recipient’s interests.
Maintain a narrow scope on the principal message. Use of short paragraphs, descriptive headings, and readable formatting is permissible when appropriate. Feel free to use a dominant primary call to action when helpful.
Step 5: Write a clear subject line
The subject line should precisely represent the email and foster interest to read the email.
Descriptive subject lines may include:
- “A Practical Checklist for Improving Your Website”
- “October Product Updates”
- “3 Ways to Simplify Monthly Reporting”
- “Website Planning Guide”
Avoid misrepresentative subject lines that create a sense of importance or urgency if the email does not warrant it. The email should also not make deceptive claims or promises. Using a name and email address the recipient recognizes, as well as using useful preview text can all help the recipient decipher the email’s content before opening it.
Step 6: Design for mobile devices
The majority of email recipients will view messages on mobile devices. Therefore, design messages with mobile viewing in mind.
Some suggestions include:
- Use sufficient space and large enough text to foster readability.
- Use flexible layouts.
- Use large, easy to tap, buttons.
- Include meaningful, alternative, text for images.
- Increase text and background color contrast.
Messages should still be easy to read and understand with images blocked.
Test to be certain all forms and links function as intended. Always provide a text based means of getting to an important message or offer rather than solely using images.
Step 7: Determine an appropriate sending frequency
No one best day and time for sending email exists for all audiences.
Adjust the frequency and timing of email delivery based on known customer preferences, time zones, and the purpose of the email. Always test and carefully consider the results of your email campaigns to gauge customer satisfaction and message performance.
An increase in email delivery frequency does not necessarily improve performance. Increasing the number of emails sent without relevant, valuable content may actually harm your email list health by causing recipients to unsubscribe or mark the messages as spam.
Step 8: Automate appropriate messages
Email automation is message delivery based on a user’s action or a predetermined time or date.
Some of the most common automations include welcome messages, lead nurturing, order follow-up messages, customer onboarding messages, and reminder messages to renew or lapse customers.
To initiate an automation, first decide what clear customer need will be met by the automation. Then test the automation to ensure the message is timed appropriately, relevant links are provided, and suppression rules are appropriately set.
Step 9: Test and improve campaigns
Develop a hypotheses for improvement and measure the impact of changes based on campaign performance metrics.
Do not make too many changes at once. Always evaluate sample sizes, and the reliability of the data you are using to make campaign changes.
Personalize emails when doing so will help the customer or add value to the message. Use customer data to customize messages in ways that are relevant and appropriate.
Email Marketing Best Practices for 2026
Most importantly, marketers should focus on the quality of their content, audience relevance, the security of their data practices, and the health of their email systems.
Increase deliverability
Deliverability is the measure of your ability to deliver messages to recipients. Just being accepted by a mail server does not mean the message gets placed in the recipient’s inbox.
Ensure your business sending domain has the required authentication mechanisms for your sending configuration and maintain accurate sender information. Monitor bounce and complaint rates as well as your sending reputation.
To improve deliverability to Gmail, Google requires senders to implement SPF or DKIM. Sending domains that reach Google’s bulk sender threshold also must implement DMARC and provide a one-click unsubscribe for marketing messages. Requirements should be validated against Google’s most up to date information before sending.
Official Reference: https://support.google.com/mail/answer/81126
Easy unsubscribe
Provide a clear, working unsubscribe option for marketing emails, and promptly honor all opt-out requests. Do not send marketing emails to individuals that have withdrawn their consent (if consent is required).
An easy unsubscribe option also helps to lessen the number of spam complaints.
Legal Requirements
Legal requirements and message type vary by jurisdiction.
In the US, for example, the CAN-SPAM Act mandates commercial emails include an accurate from address, subject line that is not misleading, a valid physical postal address, and provide the ability for the recipient to opt-out of receiving emails. International and other local requirements may impose different, and in some cases more onerous obligations, on transparency, and consent.
Official US Resources: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/can-spam-act-compliance-guide-business
Determine which obligations apply to your business, and prior to sending any campaigns.
Use AI as a writing partner
Artificial intelligence can provide subject line suggestions, summarize campaign results, and write alternate copy. It can also help identify audience segments.
Rewrite this content based on the input transated below.
Protect email deliverability
Deliverability is defined as the ability to get messages delivered where recipients can find them. Being delivered to the mail server does not mean messages are delivered to recipients’ mailboxes.
Make sure your business sending domain implements the required authentication mechanisms for your sending configuration, and maintains accurate sender information. Also, monitor bounce and complaint rates and your sending reputation.
Google suggests that to improve deliverability to Gmail, senders should implement SPF and/or DKIM. Sending domains that reach Google’s bulk sender threshold also need to implement DMARC and provide a one-click unsubscribe for marketing emails. Requirements should be validated against Google’s most current requirements before sending.
Official Resource: https://support.google.com/mail/answer/81126
Make unsubscribing easy
Provide easy unsubscribe options for marketing emails and promptly unsubscribe marketing email recipients. Do not send marketing emails to unsubscribe recipients (if consent is required).
Easy unsubscribe options also help decrease the number of spam complaints.
Follow the law
Laws and requirements vary by message type and jurisdiction.
The requirements for commercial emails, for example, may differ in each jurisdiction. In the U.S., the requirements for commercial emails are defined in the CAN-SPAM Act. The Act provides that commercial emails should contain accurate sender information, and a valid physical postal address. The Act also provides that recipients must have the opportunity to unsubscribe from receiving emails. Other jurisdictions may have more stringent requirements for the consent, transparency, and data protection.
Official U.S. Resources: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/can-spam-act-compliance-guide-business
Determine which obligations apply to you, and prior to sending any campaigns.
Use AI as a writing partner
AI can generate different subject lines, provide a summary of the results of a campaign, and suggest alternate copy. AI can also help identify the best audience segment.
Human review remains important to check factual claims, brand tone, personalization, privacy, and the relevance of each recommendation. Just because AI is confident about a response, doesn’t mean it is accurate.
Focus on the results that truly matter
Open rates can be misleading, especially if privacy features are on or images are loaded automatically. Consider them directionally only.
Focus on the end goal of the campaign and the metrics that demonstrate it, such as qualified leads, purchases, click-through and conversion rates, and revenue. Unsubscribes and complaints should also be tracked and addressed.
Keep your list as clean as possible
Invalid addresses should be removed or suppressed, and unsubscribes should be processed. Consider addressing unusual bounce or complaint rates.
Do not contact unengaged recipients endlessly. Suppress addresses that do not respond to re-engagement efforts.
The metrics that should be tracked depend on the goals of the campaign.
| Metric | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Delivery rate | Rate at which messages are accepted for delivery, according to your platform |
| Bounce rate | Messages not delivered |
| Click-through rate | Rate at which messages are delivered and at least one click is recorded, using standard definitions |
| Conversion rate | Rate at which a defined goal is achieved, i.e. recipient becomes customer |
| Unsubscribe rate | Recipient removes themselves from mailing list |
| Spam complaint rate | Recipient reports message as spam |
| Revenue per campaign | Campaign attributable revenue |
| Return on investment | Relative financial return, based on cost |
Use consistent definitions to compare campaigns. Click may not mean sale and attributed revenue does not mean lost sale.
For a lead generation campaign, qualified inquiries may be more relevant than total clicks. For an e-commerce campaign, sales and contribution margin may be more relevant.
What Email Marketing Tools Should You Consider?
Email marketing tools allow businesses to manage subscribers, create and send emails, automate workflows, and analyze email campaign performance.
The best tool for you depends on your budget, needs, audience, integrations and compliance requirements.
When considering a tool, evaluate:
- Segmentation and contact management.
- Email and automation workflows.
- Deliverability and reporting.
- Analytics, integrations and conversion tracking.
- Pricing and unsubscribe management.
- Consents records.
- handnesing data, access controls, and export options.
Compare your current plans and features with vendors. A simple newsletter tool may suffice for a small business, whereas a larger organization may require plans with advanced features like automation and CRM integrations and reporting.
An Example of Practical Email Marketing
Let’s say a digital marketing agency wants to promote its website design service.
Its campaign objective is to encourage interested business owners to request a consultation for website design.
Its target audience is the agency’s email subscribers who have opted in to receive website and digital marketing tips.
An email series could look like this:
- A welcome email is sent to deliver the resource that the subscriber signed up to receive. The email introduces the agency.
- An educational email gives examples of website usability issues and ways to identify them.
- A practical email provides a website usability checklist and some examples of things to fix.
- A service email gives the agency’s process and next steps, and what they will provide if the prospect retains the agency to design their website.
- A consultation email is sent to invite the prospect to request a consultation.
The agency will want to keep track of the qualified leads, website consultation requests, unsubscribes and ultimately sales. The agency must also honor unsubscribe requests and stop sending marketing emails.
This example illustrates how helpful content can be linked to a business’s objective with email marketing without every email turning into a sales email.
Some Common Email Marketing Mistakes
Someemail marketing campaigns can flop despite the efforts put into designing the emails.
Purchasing email lists: Email lists can quickly become outdated and irrelevant. Build an audience by honest and transparent means.
Sending the same email to your entire list: You may not be meeting the needs of all of your subscribers. Audience segmentation is important when information is available to do so.
Focusing only on opens: Measurement should focus on clicks, conversions, and business outcomes. Engagement is implied when a person does something. For example, clicks on a specific link. Open rates show interest, but not enough to demonstrate true engagement.
Ignoring mobile users: Unfortunate formatting can lead to frustrating experiences, including illegible text or unworkable buttons. Always check your email across multiple clients and devices.
Overusing promotional language: Balance your promotions and offers with educational and helpful content. Providing too much promotional content can repel interest.
Neglecting technical authentication: Making sure your domain is correctly configured and keeping your authentication up-to-date can help prevent accidental filters and help validate your sending reputation.
Automating without testing: Incorrect or malfunctioning triggers can give a bad experience. Test your automations and review them frequently to make sure they are still useful.
Making unsubscribe difficult: People can change their mind about your service at any time, and creating unnecessary barriers, like a convoluted opt-out process, can and will cause unnecessarily high complaint rates.
Email Marketing FAQs
What is email marketing?
Email marketing is a way to reach leads, customers, and prospects to educate, sell, promote, and share company information and news.
Is email marketing helpful to small businesses?
Yes. Small businesses, with interested audiences and a clear communication plan, can use email marketing to aide their business. Email marketing can start simply with a newsletter, or a series of messages sent to a list based on the user’s interaction with the business (i.e. signing up or making a purchase).
What is the result of a successful email marketing campaign?
The result of an email marketing campaign depends on the audience quality, relevance of the message, deliverability, the offer, and effectiveness of the conversion process.
What is the first step in email marketing?
Have a goal, select an email marketing platform, and create a subscription form. Next, create a permission-based email list, and write the first email. Prepare to send, and measure the email’s performance. Finally, send the email to the intended audience.
What is email marketing automation?
With marketing automation, emails are sent based on a specific business rule. Some rules include sending a welcome email to a new subscriber, or an email to a customer with their purchase order.
What is the difference between marketing automation and email marketing?
Email marketing is solely focused on communicating with customers through email. Marketing automation can encompass various channels and methods to communicate with customers.
How often should a business send marketing emails?
The best frequency varies by business, but you can usually expect better results if you establish expectations, let subscribers manage preferences, track engagement and complaints, and constantly test and optimize your program.
Is email marketing suitable for B2B businesses?
Yes. For example, email can be used to share thoughts about the industry, educate prospects and customers, explain and promote a company’s services, and build relationships with prospects and customers. Messages to customers, prospects, and employees must be appropriate and relevant, and should comply with all marketing and privacy requirements.
What can businesses do to improve email deliverability?
Improving email deliverability requires an combination of strategies and best practices, including using accurate “From” and “To” names and email addresses, properly configuring the email authentication required for your sending environment, sending only messages that are relevant and meaningful to the recipients, unsubscribing and purging inactive and hard bounce email addresses, minimizing the number of spam and abuse complaints, accurately using suppression lists, segmenting audiences, personalizing messages, and using good email design practices, all while respecting the marketing and privacy requirements that apply to the recipients.
Conclusion
Email marketing is most effective when businesses treat it as an ongoing relationship rather than a series of promotions.
Knowing your objectives, growing and managing your email marketing list, and creating valuable and relevant content for your audience will position you well to develop an email marketing program that fosters lead generation and customer retention.
Most importantly, meaningfully change the way you evaluate email marketing campaigns, and don’t rely on a single metric. This gives you the opportunity to continuously improve the email marketing program and experience you provide your customers.
