5 smart tips to kickstart your email marketing in 2026

A new year is a good time to review what’s already in place. When it comes to email marketing, it often takes surprisingly (!!) little time to have a clear impact – especially if you focus on the right things.

Whether you send emails to a few hundred or tens of thousands of recipients, it pays to put in a few hours at the beginning of the year. Small adjustments now can yield better results throughout 2026.

Here are five things that are well worth prioritizing in January:

1. Clean up your list

Remove inactive contacts and invalid addresses. A clean list improves engagement, results and deliverability. As a rule of thumb, you can start by identifying recipients who have not opened or clicked on a single email in the last 6-12 months.
To these you can send a separate reactivation email. For example, with an exclusive offer, early access to a sale, free shipping or a simple question if they still want to hear from you.

2. Ensure the deliverability of your mailings

Ensure that your emails can be identified as genuine and trusted by receiving email systems. The right settings ensure that your emails end up in the inbox and not in spam. It is usually a one-time effort that will have an effect on all future mailings.

In most cases, the settings are made in two places:

In your email or marketing tool

With whoever manages your domain (e.g. where your website or email is registered)

3. Segment smarter

Send the right message to the right recipient. Segmentation is about adapting communication to the recipient’s situation, needs and behavior – instead of sending the same content to everyone. For example, not repeating information someone has already read, following up on a completed purchase or registration, or adapting content to what the recipient has shown interest in, such as a certain product category or type of content. This way, the communication will be more relevant, more appreciated and more effective over time.

4. Review content (and tone)

Does the content still feel relevant? Revise your texts, offers and CTAs to align with your 2026 goals. Often, small adjustments to the wording of the templates you have already developed are enough.

5. Set clear goals for the year and measure, measure, measure

This is also the most important step. Take the time to set clear goals and KPIs from the start – we promise it’s time you’ll get back. Because, without goals, it’s hard to know if your mailings are actually working. When you measure from the start, you quickly see what works, what can be improved and which mailings give the best results, which makes it easier to make better decisions.

Want to know more about how you can improve your email or SMS marketing? Get in touch with us. At Rule, we help companies and organizations every day to get started and get more out of their digital communication.