There is no rule that fits every business, but there is a sensible starting point: somewhere between once a week and once a fortnight for most small businesses. From there you adjust based on what your list actually does. Here is how to find your number.

Why frequency matters

Send too often and people get irritated, stop opening, mark you as spam or unsubscribe. Once enough people ignore you, inbox providers start sending you to the promotions tab or the spam folder, which hurts you even with the people who do want to hear from you.

Send too rarely and people forget they signed up. When an email finally lands, it feels like it came from a stranger, and it gets deleted or reported. You also leave money on the table, because email is one of the cheapest ways to bring a past customer back.

What decides your right number

• What you sell. A restaurant with a weekly specials board has more to say more often than a roofer

• How much you genuinely have to say. One good email beats three thin ones

• What you promised at signup. If the form said "monthly tips", sending weekly breaks that

• Your time. A cadence you cannot keep up is worse than a slower one you can

Signs you are sending too often

• Unsubscribes spike after each send

• Spam complaints climb

• Open rates drift down month after month

• You are padding emails to fill a slot rather than because you have something to share

Signs you are not sending enough

• People reply asking who you are

• Opens are low even though these are people who chose to join

• You only email when you want something, so every email is a request

• Past customers are not coming back and you are not reminding them you exist

Consistency beats frequency

A predictable rhythm matters more than the exact number. Every Thursday morning, or the first of the month, trains your readers to expect you and builds a habit. Erratic sending, three in a week then nothing for two months, performs worse than a slower steady beat.

Automated emails do not count

Your welcome sequence, birthday email, abandoned cart series and post purchase follow ups are triggered by what a person does, not sent to the whole list. They do not count toward your regular cadence, and you should not hold back on them.

How to find your number

1. Start at once a week if you have things to say, once a fortnight if you do not

2. Keep it consistent for at least two months

3. Watch unsubscribes, spam complaints and open rate

4. If those hold steady or improve, you have room to keep the pace or go slightly faster

5. If they worsen, ease off and focus on making each email better

The takeaway

Most small businesses do well on weekly to fortnightly, sent on a predictable schedule. Let your unsubscribe rate, spam complaints and open rate tell you whether to speed up or slow down. One email people look forward to beats four they resent.

Koprio plans and writes email marketing for small businesses across East Sussex, including working out the right cadence for your list. Get in touch or see the email marketing service.