• The Inbox
  • Posts
  • The Biggest Lie in Email Marketing (That’s Costing You Sales)

The Biggest Lie in Email Marketing (That’s Costing You Sales)

Author

Max Sturtevant
February 07, 2025

The Inbox Newsletter

Hey it’s Max from The Inbox Newsletter.

Most brands overcomplicate email marketing.

They think they need long, detailed newsletters packed with graphics, storytelling, and intricate segmentation strategies.

They believe email marketing is this grand strategy requiring 10 different audience segments, A/B tests for every subject line, and a fully optimized 500-word essay with a perfect CTA.

That’s complete nonsense.

The best email marketers do the opposite, and they make millions because of it.

Here’s what you should be doing instead.

In this quick email I want to change some of your beliefs on “email marketing”

Why Everyone Gets Email Marketing Wrong

Most people assume that a high-performing email must be long, beautifully designed, and highly targeted.

They think success comes from spending hours crafting a masterpiece.

They also think sending too many emails will "annoy" their list, so they hold back.

They send once a week at most.

And when they do send, the email is so cluttered with fluff that it buries the one thing that matters—the CTA (aka the reason someone should actually click and buy).

Here’s the reality:

  • Your customers are not sitting around waiting to read your emails like a novel.

  • They don’t need a dissertation on why your product is great.

  • They are busy, distracted, and making fast decisions in their inbox.

If they open your email and can’t tell what it’s about within 3 seconds, they’re closing it.

So stop writing long emails.

The Email Strategy That Actually Works

Want to know what the best brands do instead?

They send 3-4 times per week (this is the optimized send frequency, every other day, nice and simple).

Want to know what the best brands do instead?

They send 3-4 times per week.

They keep emails under 100 words.

They use text-based or lightly designed emails—because simple emails feel personal, like a message from a friend, not a faceless corporation.

And they focus on broad engaged segmentation—not hyper-segmenting their list into 20 tiny groups that require different messages.

Why This Works (And Makes More Money)

📩 Short emails get read. Long emails get ignored.
📩 More emails = more touchpoints. Frequency builds trust (3-4 times per week)
📩 Simple design removes friction. The goal is to sell, not impress with fancy formatting.
📩 Fewer moving parts = fewer mistakes. The more complex your email strategy, the harder it is to optimize.

Would you rather send one email to 5,000 people, or three emails to 50,000 people? Most people overthink segmentation and leave money on the table by only sending emails to tiny slices of their list.

Instead, send more emails, more often, to a larger audience.

What To Do Next (If You Want More Sales)

1️⃣ Stop overthinking segmentation. Send to your engaged list (90-day openers, for example).

2️⃣ Write emails like a human. Short. Direct. Conversational. No fluff.

3️⃣ Send 3-4x per week. You won’t annoy people as long as your content is clear and valuable.

4️⃣ Keep it under 100 words. If you can’t say it fast, you’re saying too much.

5️⃣ One CTA per email. Make it obvious what action they should take.

The best brands make email simple—and they win because of it.

If your current email marketing isn’t producing 30-40% of your revenue, it’s probably because you’re making it too complicated.

Fix it.

And watch your sales skyrocket.

Email Inspiration Of The Day

Brand:
Sundays

Not doing too much. Splitting copy into different sections. No crazy design needed.

These are the emails that convert.

Bridge Section Template #20

If you want access to a bank of 134 mix and match templates like this equating to over 5,000+ possible email designs, click here » 

Reply to this email if you have any questions or further content you want covered.

Cheers,

Max

PS - If you run an ecommerce brand above $50k/mo and you want to have a free email strategy consultation with me, book a call here »

PPS - I have a few different products you can buy. If you purchase any one of these products you get access to my private community of 850+ members with daily posts from me, access to me for support 24/7, and private calls.

  • Ecommerce Email Mastery: A 60 lesson course breaking down everything you need to know about ecommerce email marketing in the most concise and organized manner. learn more »

  • Mix and Match Email Design Templates: 134 email section templates that can make 5,000+ unique email designs with, learn more »

  • QuickFlow Templates: All core 7 core email marketing flows fully templatized with examples, learn more »