Hank's Business and Marketing Tips

HMBT #300: The Netflix Effect

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For episode 300, I am joined by email marketing legend Dela Quist for a no-holds-barred conversation about the misconceptions surrounding email frequency, deliverability, and value. Dela, known for challenging conventional wisdom, makes a compelling case for why email is a branding tool, not just a sales mechanism, and how marketers often misunderstand frequency and engagement.

From comparing the inbox to Netflix 🎬 to debunking deliverability myths tied to inactive subscribers, Dela shares decades’ worth of strategic insights with real-world examples and humor. His key message? Sending more email isn’t bad, sending irrelevant or inconsistent email is. This episode is a masterclass for email marketers who want to build stronger email strategies backed by logic, not just best practices.

💡 Key Takeaways:
  • 📬 Frequency is not the enemy: Most brands under-mail their subscribers. The belief that you can “send too many emails” is rarely backed by data—it’s mostly based on fear or outdated thinking.
  • 📈 Engagement doesn’t mean open rate alone: People might ignore an email for months and then search for it when they’re ready to act. Gmail knows this and doesn’t necessarily penalize you for low open rates.
  • 🧠 The inbox is like Netflix: People save, revisit, and search for emails the same way they binge their favorite shows. Don’t assume an unopened email is a failed one.
  • 👻 Inactives are misunderstood: Brands often waste money reacquiring lapsed customers through paid channels when they could simply continue emailing them—at a fraction of the cost.
  • ✅ Every subscriber should get at least one email a week: This provides a baseline for performance metrics and ensures you’re in the inbox when the subscriber is ready to act.
  • 📉 Gmail isn’t stupid: Their algorithms consider behavior across the Google ecosystem (search, maps, store visits) to determine deliverability—not just whether someone opened your last email.
  • 🚫 Never email addresses you didn’t collect directly: This is the fastest path to getting flagged. Confirmed opt-in remains the gold standard.
  • ⚙️ Your ESP’s shared IP reputation matters—big time: For small senders, a solid ESP with a strong deliverability track record can make or break your email success.
  • 🧮 Focus on long-term brand building, not just short-term conversions: Email is a powerful branding channel, but marketers often underutilize it because it’s “too cheap” to be taken seriously.
    • 🙌 Final Thought:

    Dela’s approach is refreshingly pragmatic, ditch the myths, focus on value, and treat email as the most cost-effective branding channel in your arsenal. Whether you’re a startup or an enterprise brand, there’s something in this episode that will challenge the way you think about email marketing.

    🔗 Want more from Dela? Connect with him on LinkedIn or visit delaquist.com.

    Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx1cE2Zcun8

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    Hank's Business and Marketing TipsBy Hank Hoffmeier
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