Email doesn’t feel exciting. Nobody goes viral by newsletter. And when every conversation about marketing seems to be about the latest platform, it’s easy to assume email is something from another decade, still technically alive but well past its best.
The businesses that quietly rely on it would disagree.
Key points
- You own your email list. You don’t own your social media followers.
- Email reaches people directly, without an algorithm deciding who sees it.
- It works best for staying in touch, bringing customers back and sharing useful content.
- Social media and email work well together: social finds new people, email keeps them.
You own your list
This is the big one. On social media, you’re building your audience on someone else’s land. The platform decides how many of your followers see each post, it can change those rules overnight, and if your account is hacked or suspended, those followers can disappear.
Your email list is different. It’s a list of people who asked to hear from you, and it stays with you if you change email tools, if a platform falls out of fashion or if an algorithm stops showing your posts.
Social media is renting a stall at a busy market. Email is having your own shop with a list of regulars.
It reaches people directly
When you send an email, it lands in the inbox of everyone on your list. Not all of them will open it, of course. But nobody in between decides whether it’s shown. For important messages, like a change to your opening hours, a new service or an event, that matters.
Where email really shines
Email isn’t the best tool for everything. It’s not great at finding brand new customers, because people have to join your list first. But it’s very good at:
- Bringing past customers back. A friendly reminder that it’s time for a service, a seasonal offer or a new product they’d like.
- Building trust over time. Regular, useful emails keep you in mind until someone’s ready to buy.
- Sharing your best content. Every new article on your site is something to send.
- Asking for reviews and referrals. Happy customers are often glad to help when asked at the right moment.
Email and social media work together
It isn’t a choice between the two. They do different jobs:
| Social media | ||
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Being discovered by new people | Staying in touch with people who already know you |
| Who sees it | Whoever the platform decides to show | Everyone on your list |
| Who owns the audience | The platform | You |
| Good for | Personality, conversation, reach | Updates, offers, useful content, reminders |
A good rhythm is to use social media to meet new people, and give them a reason to join your list, like a useful guide, a discount or simply the promise of good advice.
Doing it properly
A few things separate email that works from email that annoys people:
- Only email people who asked. In the UK, rules like PECR and UK GDPR set out when you can send marketing emails. In short: get clear permission, and make unsubscribing easy.
- Be useful. Every email should give the reader something, even if it also asks for something.
- Be consistent. Monthly is fine. Weekly is fine. Three emails one month and nothing for half a year is not.
- Look after deliverability. The big email providers now expect senders to set up proper authentication on their domain and include a one-click unsubscribe. Your email tool or web team can help with this.
If you’re starting a list, here’s what to send after someone joins.
Questions people also ask
How many subscribers do I need before email is worth it?
Fewer than you think. A list of a few hundred people who know and like your business can be more valuable than thousands of followers who scroll past.
How often should I email my list?
As often as you have something genuinely useful to say, and at a pace you can keep. For many small businesses, once or twice a month is a good start.
Can I buy an email list to get started?
Please don’t. Bought lists are full of people who never asked to hear from you, which risks breaking the rules, damaging your sender reputation and annoying the very people you want to win over.