Striking a balance between staying top of mind and not being annoying is one of the greatest challenges in email marketing. In fact, it’s one of the most common questions or objections I hear from business owners and professionals about why they are hesitant to invest in email. 

I get it. We’ve all gotten trapped in an endless email loop for a course, a new product, or tickets to an event. Our inboxes fill up with subject lines screaming: “last chance,” “offer ends at midnight,” “low ticket alert.”

And so that’s what people think of as email marketing. They default to the idea that it’s a glut of emails pushing customers to buy, buy, buy. 

Yes, some of our emails will ask people to take some kind of action (buy, book a call, sign up for a class), but that’s not the ONLY focus of email marketing. I would argue it’s not even the primary purpose – especially for B2B companies.  

In my work, I like to focus largely on emails that nurture customer and client relationships. Emails that add value. Emails that build trust. Emails that give more than they take. 

That’s where a lot of businesses are missing out. They are leaving money on the table because they aren’t nurturing those relationships. They aren’t demonstrating value and building trust. They aren’t staying top of mind and positioning themselves as a go-to resource. 

The secret ingredient is the value you provide. That’s how you stand out. And it’s how you avoid being labeled as “sloppy email marketing.”

I read a Fast Company article over the summer about the rollout of Google’s latest “unsubscribe” feature. You’ve probably noticed in your free Gmail or paid Google Workspace account how easy it is to unsubscribe from email promotions. There’s an entire section labeled “manage subscriptions” where you can essentially bulk unsubscribe. 

The temptation for businesses who send emails (and for marketers) might be to panic. Will we see our subscribers counts plummet? 

I appreciated a different perspective offered by a marketing strategy professor quoted in the Fast Company article. Professor Omar Merlo explained that customers are “looking for greater control, more meaningful content, and added value in their interactions with brands.” 

He went on to say, “If email doesn’t meet that standard, people now have a faster and easier way to walk away. This isn’t the end of email marketing. It is perhaps the end of sloppy email marketing.” 

Let that sink in: It’s not the end of email marketing. But could it be the end of sloppy email marketing? 

I thought that comment was gold. I’ve long told businesses not to invest in email marketing for the sake of email marketing. Don’t send people crappy emails just so you can say you’re doing email marketing. 

That, my friends, is the definition of sloppy email marketing. 

How can you avoid sloppy email marketing that cause readers to hit “unsubscribe?”

Deliver value. Give people useful information, curated content, and practical tips. Would you want to read the email you’re sending out? Would you forward it to a contact with a “must read!” note?

Add personal touches. I talked about this in depth in another blog post (read it here). Inserting yourself into your email content is key – especially if you’re a solo shop or personal brand. Share your personality, offer up real-life examples, and give readers a glimpse into your personal life. 

You don’t have to share deep secrets, but you can reference a recent vacation, a new hobby, or a book you read. Those small personal touches land big with customers and clients as you build relationships.

Nurture your list before you ask for a sale. Noted marketer and author Gary Vaynerchuk wrote a book titled “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” on this nurturing idea. Published more than 10 years ago, its message remains true: give people lots of value (jabs) before you ask them to buy (right hook).

If you haven’t been nurturing your audience with regular emails, don’t come out hot with a sales campaign. It’s a shock to the system. 

Think about email marketing as a way to create genuine connection with current and potential clients. Write your emails with that one ideal customer in mind. 

If you send valuable emails and avoid sloppy email marketing, you won’t be stressed about “bothering people.” You’ll be confident you’re solving problems, building relationships, and generating business with people who already know, like, and trust you.

Questions about how to kickstart your email marketing? Book a 30-minute discovery call today.