Your best marketing tool is sitting in your inbox
I recently had the privilege of leading an in-person email marketing workshop at MVCC’s Thincubator for local businesses, entrepreneurs and nonprofits. This was more than a marketing talk though — it was a space to connect, learn and empower business owners to build their confidence with email marketing, one of the most valuable tools in your digital marketing toolkit.
After the workshop, I left feeling energized, inspired and reminded of something I tell my clients often — you don’t have to do it all on your own. Businesses aren’t built in a vacuum; they are built in community.
Why email marketing still matters
You may be wondering, is email even relevant still? I want you to think about the first thing you do in the morning. Before coffee, before breakfast and before even getting out of bed. Most of us pick up our phones and do one of three things, if not all.
Check our text messages.
Check our emails.
Check our social media notifications.
In a world of algorithms and fleeting social media trends, your email list is one of the very few marketing channels you truly own. It’s direct, personal and most importantly it’s permission based. These are people who want to hear more from you.
Unlike social platforms where visibility can change overnight, email gives you a reliable way to tell your story, share updates and nurture relationships over time. When done strategically, it can be one of the most powerful ways to boost sales, increase return on investment (ROI) and build brand trust.
Email marketing foundations
In this workshop, we focused on the foundations of email marketing. Covering topics like setting up your audience, the difference between tags, segments and groups, how to build your email marketing strategy and how to create your first email. We also discussed the importance of clean data and how to organize it to save time.
When you organize your audience well, you communicate more effectively and avoid sending irrelevant messages to them. Keeping your data clean ensures accurate reporting, better deliverability, stronger engagement and prevents additional charges when using an email marketing platform.
Storytelling through strategy
A successful email marketing strategy doesn’t happen by chance — it’s intentional and woven with stories that answer the who, what, when, where and why of your business.
In the workshop, we walked through six simple steps every business can use to set their first campaign up for success.
Define the goal for your campaign.
Build your list the right way (only send emails to those who have opted-in).
Create a series of 3–5 emails to start.
Stay consistent with your frequency.
Include a clear call to action (CTA) every time.
Track and adjust your campaign as needed.
One of the biggest takeaways is that email isn’t just about promotion — it’s about connection. Your emails are an opportunity to share your story, values and the very human element of your business — YOU.
How to build effective designs
A beautiful, well-written email doesn’t need to be complicated. It needs to be clear, concise, on-brand and easy to read. Use these takeaways to help build effective designs:
Keep it clean and focused (using one topic per email as the general rule of thumb).
Use your brand colors, fonts and logo for consistency.
Write short, engaging paragraphs with plenty of white space.
Design with hierarchy in mind, leading with the information that matters most.
Avoid image-only emails.
When it comes to subject lines, clarity wins over cleverness. Tell readers exactly what’s inside and keep it short enough to read on a phone.
Finally, limit each email to one strong CTA and use benefit-driven verbs like “read more”, “see the guide” or “grab your spot.”
Mobile first, always
Like other digital marketing tools, over half of all emails are read on mobile devices. That means, if your email isn’t optimized, you’re losing readers fast. We covered a few tips to keep in mind to help you optimize your emails for mobile devices, including.
Use responsive templates.
Keep text short and readable (size 14 font or larger).
Make buttons big enough to tap easily.
Always, always, always send yourself a test and check it on your phone too before hitting send.
Unlock automation to build relationships at scale
Email automation saves time while keeping your audience engaged. Once set up, it runs on autopilot — building relationships behind the scenes. That’s not to say you shouldn’t check on it regularly to make sure things are running smoothly. Some common automations can include:
Welcome emails.
Follow-ups after a purchase or event.
Birthday or anniversary messages.
Post-purchase thank-you messages.
These workflows keep your brand top of mind and help you deliver a consistent experience, even when you’re busy running your business.
The metrics that matter: Measuring for success
Email analytics can feel intimidating at first, but once you realize that the data tells you a story, you realize how you can use it to make better decisions.
We talked about open rates, click-through rates, and industry benchmarks and how to use these numbers to improve future campaigns.
For example, one of my clients recently achieved:
45.5% open rate.
Over 2% click-through rate on their first-ever email campaign.
40% open rate and 2.5% click rate on their first automation series.
Those results are performing well or above industry averages and they came from thoughtful strategy, clean data, and consistent storytelling.
Let’s build something together
If you’ve been curious about email marketing, but are not sure where to start, now’s the time. I offer two ways to help business owners like you:
Project-based campaign support: Let’s design and launch your next email campaign together, from strategy, design and content creation to launch.
Monthly email marketing support: A dedicated right-hand for your ongoing email marketing initiatives.
Special offer
From now until the end of the year, book a 2-hour email marketing coaching session with me for just $100. During this session, I’ll help you choose and/or organize your email marketing platform, clean your data, build templates and launch your first campaign with confidence.
Couldn’t make it to the workshop? You can still get the next best thing — my email marketing workshop workbook is a 25-page guided resource packed with the same step-by-step strategies, pro tips and examples I shared live. Inside you’ll find:
Clear explanations of the most useful features.
Common pitfalls and pro tips for building and designing emails.
How to build automations and workflows.
Campaign analytics and reporting.
There are only 23 copies left — once they’re gone, they’re gone.
$24.99 per copy (also includes digital download access and local delivery) Order your workbook here.
Ready to get started?
Because your story deserves to be told — beautifully, authentically and right to the inboxes of the people who want to hear it most.
Contact me to schedule your session or learn more about ongoing email marketing support.
