Most of the email marketing advice for small business owners was built on data from massive companies sending to massive lists.

Flodesk analyzed over 3 million campaigns and 14 billion email deliveries sent by small businesses including photographers, coaches, course creators, and shop owners. They reviewed 18 months of data between January 2025 and July 2026.

Here's what actually works.

TLDR

- Design emails including images
- Send on Tuesday for clicks, Friday for opens
- Schedule sends between 5am and 8am
- Skip numbers in subject lines, or pair them with a currency symbol
- Lead with two emojis at the start of the subject line
- Keep subject lines under 12 words (6-9 is best) and 90 characters
- Clean your list regularly and remove unengaged subscribers
- Use a full page or social signup form to grow your list
- Use a simple checkout flow for freebies and offers
- Consider Flodesk as your email marketing platform

1. Don't be afraid of image-rich emailS

There was little difference in both opens and click rates with text-heavy vs. image-heavy emails. This holds true across every major inbox, including Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook. Plus, even image-heavy emails were still 10 times below the spam threshold.

So, if images are a part of your brand, design away!

2. Send at the right time

Send Tuesday for the best click rates.
Send Friday for the best open rates.
Send early between 5am and 8am for best performance.

3. Write subject lines that earn the open

Skip the number in your subject line for up to 14% more opens. If you do use one, pair it with a currency symbol if applicable.
Lead with two emojis at the very start of your subject line for up to an 11% open boost. The most popular options were ✨ sparkles and 🎉 party.
Of the 70+ words assumed to be "spam triggers," only seven actually hurt opens: work from home, make money, limited time, guaranteed, hurry, don't miss out, and act now. The rest are safe to use.
Keep it tight. Subject lines with 12+ words or 90+ characters see 4 to 6% lower open rates. Aim for 6-9 words.

4. Keep your list healthy

Regular cleaning and segmenting lifts click rates up to 41% and cuts unsubscribes up to 31%. Removing unengaged subscribers lifts opens about 11%, clicks about 30%, and drops bounce rates roughly 40%. A clean, well tended list will always outperform a bigger, messier one.

5. Grow your list and your revenue

Full-page and social signup forms convert best, with sign-up rates between 31 and 47%, no website required.
A simple freebie-style checkout converts highest at 15%, while a simple checkout flow drives the most revenue, with a $100 average order value.

The bottom line

This data comes straight from real emails sent by real small businesses, not enterprise senders with a marketing department behind them. Build your strategy around what actually works for a business like yours.

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Ready to put these best practices to work? Flodesk is built specifically for small businesses and creators, with the design flexibility, automation, and forms to make every one of these tactics easy to implement. Consider giving Flodesk a try for your next campaign and save 25% off a new account.

Staci Bishop is a marketing and branding expert. She works with small business owners who want to present their companies in a strategic and polished way.