E-Commerce, Marketing, Online Business, Selling

How To Increase E-Commerce Sales With Email Marketing

April 28, 2026
By itssophiebiggerstaff.com

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Why Email Marketing for E-commerce Is Essential…

If you’re running a Shopify business and you’re still treating email marketing for e-commerce as something you’ll “get to eventually,” I want you to stop everything you’re doing and read this blog post. Because honestly? Email marketing for e-commerce is the single most underused, but highest return on investment marketing channel for e-commerce businesses.

So if you’re not using email marketing for ecommerce sales right now – you are missing some serious revenue opportunity!

I worked in the e-commerce world for nearly 15 years, so I saw this same pattern with my e-commerce coaching clients ALL.THE.TIME.

The majority of the e-commerce business owners I worked with would pour hours into Instagram, hoping their next post would go viral. They would spend so much time reworking their Shopify store every other week to try and improve conversions with the latest spinner competition plugin. Plus, they’d waste a hell of a lot of money dabbling in paid ads, with very little return, but yet, when it came to email marketing for e-commerce – it was avoided at all costs.

Meanwhile, the brands that actually prioritise their email marketing are out there pulling in a huge chunk of their revenue from a list of customer data they actually own, not freaking out at all when the algorithm doesn’t push their post, or their ad doesn’t convert because they know their email list is one marketing tool that can’t be taken from them, and they will continue to make sales through email marketing regardless of what’s going on externally.

Automated emails account for just 2% of the email volume a brand sends, but they drive 37% of all email sales. One in three people who click an automated email go on to buy. That is the kind of ROI paid ads can only dream about.

So if you want a calmer, more predictable way to convert customers, learning how to increase sales in your e-commerce store by building your email marketing ecommerce strategy is where we need to start.

The Mindset Block Killing Your Email Marketing Ecommerce Results

Let me call out the thing I see hold back almost every e-commerce business owner I’ve coached: you think that by sending emails daily, you’re going to annoy people. You’re scared of being “spammy.” You’re scared of unsubscribes. So you send one newsletter a month and call email marketing a job done.

Please hear me on this – you cannot send too many emails as an e-commerce brand.

You don’t have the time anyway. If you commit to one or two emails a week with intention behind them, you are nowhere near overwhelming your subscribers. These are people who have already given up their email address because they wanted into your world. The worst thing you can do is collect emails, stay silent for six months, then suddenly appear in their inbox like a ghost they’ve forgotten signing up for.

And about unsubscribes? They are genuinely one of the best things that can happen to your email marketing list. If someone unsubscribes, they were never going to buy. They were just skewing your open rates and dragging down your email marketing conversion rate. A healthy list is full of people who actually want to be there.

The other challenge I’ve seen for e-commerce business founders is that they’re attempting to use clunky, outdated email marketing tools that are not fit for purpose.

As we continue in this post, I’ll share with you the email marketing tools I’m recommending to my ecommerce founder clients right now that are purposely designed to use with email marketing for ecommerce to help you sell more, more easily!

The Email Marketing Tools For Ecommerce You Need In Your Business To Increase Sales

Not all email marketing tools for small businesses are built equal. Most small ecommerce founders start on whatever’s free, outgrow it in six months, get stuck staring down a painful migration, and put off transferring their list to a more user-friendly email marketing platform for another year. Missing another 12 months of email marketing conversions. Sound familiar?

Here’s what you actually need from your email tool when you’re running an e-commerce store:

Shopify-native integration so your store data and your customer data are talking to each other without workarounds. This is where it gets clunky and adds a barrier to entry for you to set up this marketing channel.
Pre-built ecommerce automations – welcome flows, abandoned cart, browse abandonment, post-purchase, win-back. You shouldn’t have to build any of these from scratch, because a good email marketing tool will have them ready built for you to simply customize.
On-brand templates that you can change to reflect the look and feel of your brand, so your customers recognise your email in their inbox every single time.
Segmentation you’ll actually use – first-time buyers, repeat customers, people who haven’t opened in 60 days, product-level behaviour. This is important because you can target specific people with better messaging, leading to high email marketing conversion rates.
Real human support – not an AI chatbot that sends you to a 200-page help doc. We hate bots when we need help, you want to be speaking with people who know e-commerce and their tool inside out to help you on demand, not in 5-7 working days.

This is exactly why I’d like to introduce you to Omnisend. Among the email marketing tools for e-commerce businesses, it is powerful without being clunky. It’s trusted by 150,000+ ecommerce brands and rated 4.8 stars on Shopify. It has the 24/7 human support I mentioned above, and 160-plus ecommerce integrations.

And if you’re already using another email marketing ecommerce platform and you’ve been dreading the switch, the best part is that Omnisend’s award-winning support team will migrate your entire account (every automated email flow, every list, every template) free of charge for paid plans, in just five days, so there’s quite literally no more excuses not to use email marketing for ecommerce!

Find out more about Omnisend and get my exclusive discount code here.

How to Build a Sales Funnel for E-commerce That Runs While You Sleep

Okay, let’s talk about sales funnels and how email marketing tools can help you automate yours.

If you want to create a sales funnel for e-commerce that works without you needing to create a never-ending stream of Instagram content, it’s time to take email marketing seriously, and the good news is that there are really only a few things you need to get started with email marketing for e-commerce.

A well-timed pop-up. Don’t fire it the second someone lands on your site – give it a 10 to 20 second delay. Offer an incentive: 10% off, free shipping on a first order, a free guide, or a free sample. Something that makes the email feel like a fair trade.
A welcome flow. The most important automation in your entire sales funnel for e-commerce, full stop. Email one delivers the incentive you promised. Emails two through four introduce your brand, your story, your best-sellers, and sprinkle in social proof – reviews, testimonials, press mentions. This is where your highest email marketing conversion rate will come from, so take the time to actually make it good. The welcome sequence is one of three flows Omnisend has found that drives 87% of all automated order revenue.
Multiple signup touchpoints. A pop-up isn’t enough. Add a signup block in your footer, at checkout, and build a dedicated landing page you can link to from Instagram. Most founders have way more Instagram followers than email subscribers, and that is the wrong way round.
Core ecommerce automations. Abandoned cart, browse abandonment, post-purchase, and win-back. These flows speak to the customer based on exactly where they are in their journey – which is why they convert higher than any one-size-fits-all campaign ever will. Cart abandonment and browse abandonment, alongside your welcome flow, are the three areas that Omnisend’s data shows account for the vast majority of automated sales.
A regular campaign rhythm. Once your flows are running, commit to one or two campaign emails a week. Launches, restocks, seasonal moments, behind-the-scenes. These keep your list warm between the automated sequences.

If you’re in the process of launching your e-commerce business right now and you want to make sure your email marketing is set up as part of your launch plan. I will talk you through exactly how to integrate email marketing inside The Freedom Business Foundations. My signature programme to make sure your online business is set up to work for you, not feel like a job you work for.

How to Increase Sales in E-commerce by Actually Reading Your Email Data

One of the biggest mistakes I see is founders treating email marketing as a “set it and forget it” channel. You wouldn’t launch your Shopify store and never update it, so why are you letting your welcome flow run the same email from two years ago?

Learning how to increase sales in e-commerce through email marketing comes down to watching your data and actually doing something with it!

Here’s what to pay attention to:

Open rate – aim for around 25% as an e-commerce baseline. Small lists usually outperform this because they’re more engaged.
Click rate – 3% is a solid e-commerce benchmark. If you’re at 1%, your next goal isn’t 10%, it’s 2%. Incremental wins compound.
Email marketing conversion rate – how many clickers actually buy. This is where you find out if your landing experience is letting your emails down.
Unsubscribe rate – glance at it, don’t obsess.
Revenue per email – the number that tells you if the whole system is working. Omnisend customers earn, on average, $79 for every $1 spent, making it one of the highest returns on investments in marketing.

The best email marketing platforms for small businesses give you industry benchmarks baked straight into the dashboard, so you can see exactly where you sit versus other ecommerce brands your size. You stop guessing and start optimising. Tweak your subject line. Swap the hero image. Rewrite your CTA. Add a new step to your welcome flow. Watch the numbers climb.

And if you’ve been paying a luxury price for features you barely use, this is your sign to switch your email marketing tool over to Omnisend. Their platform is up to 60% cheaper than other top ecommerce ESPs for similar power – they also have the added features of global SMS, advanced segmentation, and incredible automations, which is exactly what you need to keep your email marketing hassle-free.

Click here to check out Omnisend and get 30% off your sign-up.

Your Quick-Answer Guide to Email Marketing for Ecommerce

What are the best email marketing platforms for small business ecommerce brands?

Look for one that’s Shopify-native, has pre-built ecommerce flows, and offers free migration. Omnisend is my current recommendation because it ticks all three and has 24/7 human support. Click here to check Omnisend out.

How do I improve my email marketing conversion rate?

Start with a strong welcome flow, segment your list by behaviour (a feature Omnisend does really well), and test one variable at a time – subject line, send time, CTA, hero image.

What should my sales funnel for e-commerce actually look like?

Pop-up → welcome flow → regular campaigns → core automations (abandoned cart, browse abandonment, post-purchase, win-back). That is it. Don’t over-complicate it.

How often should I email my e-commerce list?

One to two campaigns a week minimum, plus all your automated flows firing in the background, making your ecommerce sales in the background. Don’t be scared that you are emailing too much. You’re not!

How can I increase sales in e-commerce without spending more on ads?

Email wins every single time. You own the data, and you can’t beat email for having the best return on investments in marketing. On average, brands using Omnisend as their chosen email marketing tool earn $79 for every $1 spent.

Ready To Start Taking Email Marketing For E-commerce More Seriously?

If you take one thing from this post, let it be this. Email marketing for e-commerce is the highest-leverage growth channel you have as a small product business.

The right email marketing platforms for small businesses are powerful without being clunky. A solid sales funnel for ecommerce – pop-up, welcome flow, automations, campaigns – turns browsers into buyers while you sleep. And when you pay attention to your email marketing conversion rate, you compound your sales month after month.

If you’re ready to stop treating email marketing for ecommerce as an afterthought and want to learn how to increase sales in ecommerce without adding more content creation on Instagram to your plate, start your email marketing for ecommerce journey with Omnisend. They’ll even migrate your entire account free of charge, plus readers of this post will get an exclusive discount using this link.

Trust me – your future ecommerce founder self will thank you.

Please note this blog post features paid ad content for Omnisend.

meet the writer

I'm Sophie

Online business coach, podcast host, mental health advocate, speaker, founder of TINAH, community builder, full-time digital nomad, and general trailblazing, rule breaker…

I tried to live a “normal” life: I spent 11+ years working my way up in the fashion industry, working for brands like Ralph Lauren and Burberry. I had the apartment in the city, I lived for going out at the weekends, spent money on designer bags and holidays – until I realized this lifestyle DID NOT FULFIL ME – I was waking up with anxiety every day – surviving, but definitely not thriving.

So I quit. I left my 9-to-5 behind to start an online business that supported the lifestyle I actually wanted. Now that looks like slow mornings, daily beach walks, co-working with like-minded entrepreneurs, yoga, meditation, and lots of social connections.

Since 2020, I’ve built multiple online business offers – from online business coaching and consulting to online courses, digital products, and a mental health marketplace – all while travelling the world and living life, and earning money on my own terms.

Now… I’m on a mission to help more people break free from lives that don’t feel good for them and create more freedom through starting and growing an online business.