DO YOU EVEN NEED IT?
Let's be honest. Email marketing for small business isn't always necessary.
If you're a local tradie who gets all your work from word of mouth and Google, you probably don't need an email newsletter. Your time is better spent doing good work and asking for reviews.
But if you're retail, hospitality, professional services, or you sell anything people buy more than once — email marketing makes sense. It keeps you in front of people without paying for ads every time.
SIMPLE SETUP
You don't need anything fancy. The Mailchimp free tier is fine for most small businesses. It handles up to 500 contacts and 1,000 sends per month.
That's plenty to start with. Once you're actually using it and getting value, then you can think about upgrading.
Set up a basic signup form on your website. "Join our email list" with a name and email field. That's it. Don't ask for their birthday, their dog's name, and their favourite colour. Just name and email.
Stick it in your footer, on your contact page, maybe at checkout if you have an online store. Make it easy but not pushy.
WHAT TO ACTUALLY SEND
This is where most people screw it up. They either send nothing, or they spam people every second day with "SALE! SALE! SALE!"
Here's what works. Send something useful occasionally. Once a month is fine. Once a fortnight if you've got good stuff to say.
Ideas that actually work: New products or services. Seasonal tips related to your business. Behind the scenes stuff. Customer stories. Local news if it's relevant. An actual sale or special offer — but not every time.
The key is this. Every email should give them something. Information, entertainment, or a genuine deal. Not just "hey, we still exist, buy stuff."
KEEPING IT SIMPLE
You don't need fancy templates. Mailchimp has basic ones that work fine. Pick one, stick with it. Consistent branding matters more than fancy design.
Write like you talk. Short sentences. No corporate speak. If you wouldn't say it to someone's face, don't put it in an email.
And for the love of god, test it before you send it. Click the links. Check it on your phone. Most people read emails on mobile, so if it looks like rubbish on a small screen, it's not going to work.
THE NUMBERS THAT MATTER
Mailchimp will show you a bunch of stats. Most of them don't matter.
Open rate — Good if it's above 20%. Anything above 30% is great for a small business email newsletter.
Click rate — This is the one that matters. If people are clicking through to your website or offer, your email worked. 2-3% is decent. Above 5% is good.
Unsubscribes — Don't stress about them. If someone doesn't want your emails, you don't want them on your list. A few unsubscribes per send is normal.
WHEN IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE
If you're struggling to think of what to send, you probably don't need email marketing. That's fine. Not every business does.
If you have no way to collect emails naturally — like you don't have a website, you don't have a till where people check out, you don't have repeat customers — it's going to be a hard slog.
And if you're already flat out and don't have time to send an email once a month, don't start. A dead email list is worse than no email list. People will forget they signed up and mark you as spam when you finally send something six months later.
Focus on what's working. If social media is bringing you customers, do more of that. Don't add email just because someone told you that you should.
NEED HELP SETTING IT UP?
I can set up a basic email marketing system for your small business. Mailchimp account, signup forms on your site, a simple template, and show you how to actually use it.
Or if you've already got it set up but you're not sure if you're doing it right, I can have a look and tell you what's working and what's not.