10 weeks of emails for any kind of shop
You know you're supposed to use email marketing to grow your shop, but you don't know where to start. You can use this outline and know exactly what to say once a week for the next 10 weeks.
Week 1: Introduction to you
Share your personal experience in a way that your audience can engage with. The best introductions connect to your audience as well – how can you draw a line from your story to theirs?
This email isn't about pitching your products. You can put a link to your shop in your signature, but I wouldn't recommend any other promotions. If you want to include a CTA, ask a question and call for a reply. Bonus points: this gives you much needed info about your audience!
Prompts
What's your story?
How did you come to running your shop?
Why do you create and sell these products?
What's your mission?
What's your vision?
What lessons have you learned?
Week 2: What’s something a customer needs to know before they purchase?
Every shop has an opportunity to teach something as it relates to their products.
If you're selling Instagram templates, your audience may need to understand the importance of social media before they buy, or why a cohesive design matters on Instagram, or even how to use Canva to customize them.
If you're selling handmade polymer earrings, your audience may need to understand your approach to materials, design, or what the handmaking process actually takes.
If you're selling vintage accessories, your audience needs to know how you curate or authenticate, they may need to understand how these items appreciate, or how to take care of them so they last a long time.
It wouldn't be inappropriate to link to one of a few of your products in the body of this email, but minimize promotional language and CTAs. You are just talking about your products and process, not asking for the sale.
You have something you can teach your audience, and this email is a perfect place to start.
Prompts
Why should your audience buy from you, and not someone else?
Why should you audience buy your products at all, and not figure it out on their own or use another method?
What does the creation process look like?
How do you determine quality of the products or materials you're using?
What makes your products unique?
Are there supplies they need to get the most out of your product?
Are there specific care instructions?
Week 3: Flash sale on a product
One of the best incentives to get on an email list is to get subscriber-only deals. Pick a product and offer a promo code for 20-40% off, only valid for a short window of time, no longer than 3 days.
This email is focused around your product, so it's a great opportunity to create a really compelling pitch paired with a strong offer. Think Trader Joe's Flyers and the way they talk about products.
If your sale stretches over a few days, you may want to add an additional email as a "Flash Sale ending" reminder, but it's not necessary.
Week 4: Break
Since we just sent a promotional email, now is a good time to take a week off. You don't want your subscribers to feel fatigued by your emails, you want them to be exciting. So making them a little less predictable can help.
Week 5: Is there a current events topic that relates to your shop?
Find a recent article or video that relates to your products in some way.
Ideas
an influencer posts an outfit relating to a current trend -- you can explain how she wears it, the keys of the trend, and what products in your shop fit this trend too.
an article about tonnes of waste from a big industry can tie in to your process for eco-friendly practices.
a new song comes out that has similar vibes to your products.
A round up of related TikToks from a trending sound
Week 6: Ask questions, call for responses
This is my favorite hack for writing engaging emails quickly: ask questions! Invite opinions and feedback. Explicitly ask for replies. It is great for email deliverability, it is great for collecting information about your audience, and it comes together really quickly.
Ideas
What would you love to see in the shop for Spring?
Is there anything that's kept you from purchasing?
What would make you buy again?
What do you need to know more about?
How often do you like me to contact you?
What are your favorite shops?
What do you think is a good discount?
Do you prefer free shipping and more expensive products or cheaper products with a shippng cost?
How do you find businesses to shop small?
Who are your favorite style icons?
Week 7: Shop-wide subscriber only sale (3 emails)
At this point, it's been about a month since your flash sale. So now, let's do a shop-wide sale, also exclusive to subscribers.
You can get creative with offers here: buy a specific quantity and get a discount, buy this bundle at a greater discount than usual, offer a bonus product/download with every purchase, or a simple across-the-board discount on everything.
(Hint: this is a great call-to-action you can use on social media to build your list. "Subscriber only sale starting soon, get on the list to get the discount!")
The key to this week is that you are going to be sending 3 emails: one to announce the sale, one to remind about the sale, and one last chance email to say the sale is ending.
Week 8: Break
After another sale, especially with multiple emails, it's time to take a break.
Week 9: Behind the scenes
Give your audience a peak behind the curtain of running your shop. This is a great opportunity to showcase your personality, and engage your audience about buying not just from a brand, but from you.
Ideas
What was your week like?
What's your setup or creative space look like?
What products are coming up?
How do you package an order?
Behind the scenes of a photo shoot
Week 10: An example of your product in real life + flash sale
You can think of this email like a case study. Reach out to one of your past customers that left you a review to get a story about how they used your product. Or, use your own story, but specifically demonstrate how your product can work in real life.
This is also a great opportunity to put that product on a quick sale!
If you didn't connect with some of those ideas, here are some more you can swap in:
audience survey
Use built-in tools or survey software to segment your audience into different groups, so you can better personalize the content you send them.
a round up of other small businesses your target customers would like
Find shops that are complimentary to you and your products, and recommend them alongside your own.
best sellers feature + customer testimonials
Highlight your most popular products, and use customer reviews and testimonials to explain why they are so popular.
upsell email (for customers only)
Once someone has purchased, send them an offer for another product at a discount, for a limited time.
impact email
If you do anything that has a measured impact, like reducing plastic or buying carbon offsets or something else, talk about it! Tell your audience how you're doing and what your goals are.
invitation for a chat
Send an invite for a 1:1 call or in-person meetup, just to chat.
