When talking about marketing nowadays, you think of Instagram, LinkedIn or TikTok first. E-mail, in contrast, seems old-fashioned. Too direct. Somehow out of date.

And yet: When did you last ignore an email containing a discount code? Or subscribe to a newsletter because you wanted to know what comes next?

E-mail is not out. It's just rarely used the right way.

What the numbers say

Before talking about strategy, let's take a quick look at what the data shows. Because it will surprise quite a few.

Roughly 376 billion emails are sent worldwide every single day. And rising. At the same time, almost 99% of all email users check their inbox daily, many of them even more than ten times.

Especially relevant for anyone who uses email as a marketing channel or is considering it: Those who invest one Euro in email marketing get an average of 36 to 42 Euros back. No other digital channel comes anywhere near this figure. And half of all consumers have bought something directly from a marketing email over the last year.

This is not yesterday's channel. This is one of the most effective channels available.

Why email can do more than most think

Social media is noisy. A lot goes on, a lot is missed. The algorithm decides who gets to see something. Not you.

An email lands directly in the inbox. No algorithm in between. No scrolling past other people's content. Just you and the recipient.

That is a difference that counts. Especially if you have something to say that you really want people to read.

On top of that, people who sign up for a newsletter have made a conscious choice. They want mail from you. This is a completely different starting point to a random post on their feed.

The most common mistakes businesses make

The potential is there. But in practice it often looks like this:

Too rarely or too irregularly. Emails are sent when there is time. Not because there is a good reason. Recipients get used to senders who arrive reliably. Those who make sporadic appearances are forgotten.

Too generic. "Dear Sir or Madam, we would like to inform you..." Nobody reads that to the end. Writing for everyone means reaching nobody. Personalized emails achieve around 29% higher open rates, and segmented campaigns can boost revenue many times over compared to generic mailshots.

Treated as a one-way street. Send a message and you are done. But the point is not to send as much as possible, but to say the right thing at the right time. A newsletter that appears regularly and delivers genuine value builds something social media struggle to: trust over time.

Underestimating the subject line. Close to 64% of recipients decide whether to open an email based on the subject line alone. If you stop thinking about things here, you are throwing away your greatest leverage.

What makes a good newsletter

Not every newsletter has to be a magazine. Often the best ones are the shortest.

What matters is:

Consistency. Not daily, but reliably. People who know when to expect mail are more likely to open it.
A clear topic. A single subject, an idea, an inspiration. No grab bag.
A authentic voice. People like to read content written by people, not by companies who sound like press releases.
A reason to stick around. Whether insight, tip or perspective: it needs to be worth their while.
A clear subject line. Not clickbaity, but sparking curiosity. First impressions count.

What other businesses do with this

Many of the most famous brands consciously rely on email as their most direct channel to the customer. Not because it is cheap, but because it works.

An online store sending an automated reminder mail after an abandoned shopping cart converts three times better than with other automated mails. A B2B firm sending a monthly newsletter packed with genuine insights builds trust long before a first meeting ever takes place. An agency regularly providing its customers with relevant ideas stays top of mind, even when there is no active project ongoing.

The channel itself is not the secret. The secret is the consistency.

How we do it at splendid

We spent a long time wondering whether a newsletter suited us. Under the end of the day, we preach exactly what many fail to do: not only starting things, but continuing them consistently.

So we got started.

Our newsletter is published once a month. No long essays, but genuine value. Insights from ongoing projects, thoughts on topics that keep us busy, and practical ideas on learning, knowledge, and the question: how do teams actually work well together?

The first issue is out. The mailing list is still small. Current clients and ourselves. This is no shortcoming. It is a start.

If you want to be part of it, you can sign up now. Once a month. No spam. You can unsubscribe at any time.

👉 Sign up for the newsletter here

Email marketing works not in spite of its simplicity. It works because of it.