Email marketing for small business: a simple way to start

2 min read · Updated

The short answer

Email marketing for small business works best kept simple: a list of customers who agreed to hear from you, one useful email on a steady schedule, and a clear way to unsubscribe. Seasonal reminders, a finished job or a real offer beat a newsletter nobody asked for. Never buy a list.

Build the list

  • Ask at checkout or at the end of a job, and note the yes.
  • Add a short sign-up form to your website.
  • Keep receipts and contact-form emails separate unless people agreed to marketing.

What to send

  • Seasonal reminders: furnace tune-ups in fall, gutter cleaning in spring.
  • Something finished and worth showing, with photos.
  • A real offer, with dates.
  • Useful answers: one question customers ask often.

The rules

In the US, CAN-SPAM requires an unsubscribe link that works, your business's physical address, and subject lines that aren't misleading. Other countries are stricter about consent. Email platforms build most of this in.

Questions

How often should a small business email?

Monthly is a steady start. Only more often if you have something worth sending.

Can I email people who contacted me once?

Replies to their inquiry, yes. Marketing is safer with their agreement.

Can AI write my emails?

It can draft them. Check facts, dates and offers before sending.

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