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THOUGHTS / BEGINNERS GUIDE 4 Aug 2025 6 MIN READ

What Is an Email Newsletter and Should Your Business Send One?

Social media gives you an audience that the platform controls. One algorithm change, one policy update, and the people who chose to follow you may simply stop seeing your posts. An email list is different. The people on it gave you their address directly, and when you send something to it, it arrives in their inbox without anyone else deciding whether it is worth showing. For small businesses in 2026, that distinction matters more than ever.

An email newsletter is a regular email — weekly, monthly, or whenever you have something worth saying — sent to a list of people who have signed up to hear from you. You collect email addresses through a sign-up form on your website, then use a free tool like Mailchimp or Brevo to write and send emails to everyone on your list at once. Unlike social media, your list belongs to you: no platform can take it away, limit your reach, or change the algorithm overnight. It takes a small amount of setup but costs nothing to get started.

The phrase "email newsletter" covers a wide range — from a monthly update about your business news to a weekly roundup of tips relevant to your customers. What they all have in common is that the people receiving them have actively chosen to. This makes a newsletter audience far more engaged than a social media following, where most people never see your posts regardless of how many followers you have.

In 2026, email marketing has seen a significant resurgence. Many small business owners who relied on Facebook or Instagram to stay in touch with customers have discovered that their reach has dropped dramatically over the years. A newsletter gives you a direct line to your audience that no platform controls.

What Do People Actually Put in a Newsletter?

The content depends entirely on your business and your customers. Common approaches include:

  • Business updates. New services, seasonal offers, staff changes, or anything that affects your customers.
  • Tips and advice. Short, useful content related to what you do — a plumber sharing winter boiler maintenance tips, a florist sharing how to make a bouquet last longer.
  • Behind the scenes. What you are working on, how you approach your craft, or a story about a recent project.
  • Promotions and offers. Exclusive discounts or early access for subscribers — a tangible reason to stay on the list.
  • Curated content. Links to useful things you have read or seen that your customers would find interesting.

You do not need to send every week. A short, useful email once a month is far better than a rushed one every seven days.

How Do You Collect Email Addresses?

The most common method is a sign-up form on your website. This can be as simple as a box that says "Get monthly tips from us — enter your email" placed on your homepage, your footer, or a dedicated newsletter page. Most email platforms generate this form for you automatically — you copy a small piece of code and paste it into your website.

You can also collect addresses at events, in person, or by adding a link to your email signature inviting people to subscribe. However, it is important that people actively opt in — under UK law (and GDPR), you cannot add someone to an email list without their explicit permission. Do not assume that because someone gave you their email address for an enquiry, they want marketing emails.

Which Tools Do You Use to Send a Newsletter?

You do not send a newsletter from your personal email account. You use a dedicated tool that handles the list, the sending, the unsubscribes, and the legal compliance automatically. The most popular options for small businesses in the UK are:

  • Mailchimp — free for up to 500 subscribers and 1,000 emails per month. The most widely used platform, with a straightforward drag-and-drop email builder.
  • Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) — free for up to 300 emails per day with unlimited contacts. A strong alternative to Mailchimp, particularly for businesses that also want SMS marketing.
  • MailerLite — free for up to 1,000 subscribers. Clean interface, easy to use, and includes a basic landing page builder.
  • Substack — free and simple, but primarily designed for longer written content rather than business newsletters. Works well for coaches, consultants, and freelancers sharing expertise.

All of these handle the legal requirements automatically — including unsubscribe links in every email, which UK law requires.

Should Your Business Have a Newsletter?

A newsletter is worth starting if you have repeat customers or clients who would genuinely benefit from hearing from you regularly. Service businesses — accountants, therapists, personal trainers, beauticians, tradespeople — often find newsletters valuable because they keep past customers thinking of them when the need arises again.

It is less useful if your business has a very short or one-off customer relationship (a removal company, for example, where most customers only move house once in many years). In that case, the energy is better spent on reviews and SEO.

The most important rule: only start a newsletter if you are confident you will actually send it. An email list that has not heard from you in six months is harder to restart than one you never began — subscribers forget who you are and unsubscribe or mark you as spam when you reappear. If monthly feels like too much, start with quarterly. Consistency beats frequency.

How Does a Newsletter Link to Your Website?

Most newsletter emails link back to pages on your website — a full article, a services page, a booking form. This drives traffic to your website from people who are already warm to your business, which tends to convert far better than cold traffic from Google. Including a link to your website in every email is standard practice and costs nothing.

Frequently asked

Is email marketing still effective in 2026?
Yes — consistently more so than social media for small businesses. Email open rates for small business newsletters typically sit between 30% and 50%, meaning roughly one in three people who receive your email actually read it. Compare that to the organic reach of a Facebook post (often under 5% of your followers) and email looks remarkably efficient. The key is that your list is made up of people who already know and like your business.
Do I need permission to email my existing customers?
Under UK GDPR, you need explicit consent before adding someone to a marketing email list. Existing customers who have bought from you can sometimes be contacted under the "soft opt-in" rule — but only about similar products or services, and only if they were given a clear opportunity to opt out at the time of purchase. When in doubt, the safest approach is to invite them to subscribe rather than assuming you can email them.
How often should I send a newsletter?
Once a month is a good starting point for most small businesses. It is often enough to stay front of mind without becoming intrusive. Weekly works well if you consistently have something useful to say, but most small business owners find it hard to sustain. Quarterly is the bare minimum to maintain a meaningful relationship with your list. The frequency matters less than showing up reliably — irregular emails confuse subscribers about who you are and what they signed up for.
What should I put in a welcome email?
A welcome email goes out automatically when someone subscribes and is the most-read email you will ever send. Keep it short: thank them for signing up, tell them what they can expect to receive and how often, and include one useful thing immediately — a tip, a discount, or a link to your best content. Most email platforms let you set this up as an automatic message that fires the moment someone confirms their subscription.

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