Is email marketing broken? Why are your subscribers ghosting you? And why do you feel like you’re yelling into a void every time you hit send?

It’s not your fault and no, email isn’t dead. But the game has changed and most people are playing it wrong. If you’ve ever run out of steam, struggled with ideas, or watched your sales slump despite your best email efforts, this is your wake-up call.

The old ways? They’re done. But there’s a new way forward and this guide shows you exactly how to take back control.

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The Timeline Trap: Why Your Sales Are Drying Up

You used to send an email, and bam! People bought. Your launch day felt like Christmas morning. But now? Crickets. That surge of sales on cart open and close just isn’t there anymore.

Here’s why: most of your future customers aren’t ready to buy today. In fact, only 3–5% of new subscribers are ready to buy on day one. The rest? They need time, up to six months. But here’s the kicker: most email marketers stop showing up before those people are ready to say yes. Your leads are warming up but you’ve already quit the game.

Reason #1: You're Doing Too Much at Once

When it’s time to write an email, your brain is trying to do three jobs:

1. Plan the offer
   
2. Be creative and write it
   
3. Figure out the tech to send it
   

That’s like trying to drive, cook dinner, and knit a sweater all at the same time. No wonder you feel stuck. Your brain’s overwhelmed.

The Fix: Plan Just One Month Ahead

Pull up a simple Google Sheet. Plot out what you’ll promote this month. It doesn’t need to be perfect or long-term. Just map your sales, your content days, and your promo-free days. When you do this, you’re turning those “blank” days where no sales happen into “green days” where money can flow in.

Bonus: future-you will be thrilled you made those decisions in advance.

Reason #2: You’re Not Measuring What You Do

Imagine being lost in the desert. You don’t know if you’re getting closer to rescue or just walking in circles. That’s what email feels like when you don’t track your progress.

If you send email after email with no idea what’s working, no wonder you feel like giving up. You need wins you can see.

The Fix: Use a Streak Tracker

Back in your trusty Google Sheet, tick off every email you send. Watch your percentage meter rise. Celebrate your streak. Every day you hit “send” adds a dopamine hit. Miss a day? Your streak resets. It’s simple psychology and it’s why games like Wordle and Duolingo are so addictive.

This tiny change makes email fun again. You’re not “doing marketing.” You’re playing to win.

Reason #3: You're Repeating the Same Formula

Every email starts the same: catchy line, story, lesson, pitch. Sound familiar?

That’s the problem. Your audience sees the pattern. They tune out. And worst of all you get bored too. That makes writing harder and performance drops fast.

The Fix: Use Different Email Styles

TV shows keep us hooked by being unpredictable. So should your emails. Swap formulas. Use at least four different frameworks each month. Shake things up for your reader and for yourself. New styles = new excitement = more sales.

Reason #4: The Blank Screen Is Bullying You

You sit down to write. The screen is white. The cursor blinks. You blink back. Panic sets in.

Writing from scratch every time is exhausting. It’s a one-way ticket to burnout.

The Fix: Get Help from AI

Train a tool like GPT or Claude on your voice and your offers. Use one of your favorite frameworks, drop it in, and let it create your first draft. No more staring at the screen. You’re not cheating you’re speeding up success. Edit the draft, make it yours, and send with confidence.

What You’re Really Doing Here

This isn’t about sending more emails. It’s about showing up for the people who need you when they’re finally ready.

Email isn’t dead. But lazy, unplanned, and unmeasured email is. If you quit too soon, you’re throwing away leads that were about to become customers.

Instead:

• Plan a month ahead
  
• Track your wins
  
• Switch up your email style
  
• Start from a draft, not a blank page
  

These simple moves will keep you energized, get better results, and finally make email marketing fun again.

Final Thought: You’re Closer Than You Think

The downfall of email marketing isn’t that it’s broken. It’s that most people give up just before it works.

Don’t be like most people.

You don’t need more subscribers. You need more consistency. Your future buyers are already on your list. Stay in the game long enough to let them say yes.

And hey, if you want the Google Sheet, the email formulas, and fresh frameworks sent to you every month, check out Email Hero Academy. It’s like having a personal trainer for your inbox. You’ll never write alone again.

The best part? Your subscribers won’t just read your emails—they’ll look forward to them.

Let’s flip the script on email marketing. The downfall ends here.

Related episodes

The Affiliate Marketing Playbook: How to Make Sales Without Annoying Your List

Webinars That Sell: Insider Secrets from Jason Fladlien!

How to Use Storytelling in Your Emails to Get a 22% Higher Open Rate

FREE list of the top 10 books to improve your email marketing

If you want to write better emails, come up with better content, and move your readers to click and buy, here's how. We put together this list of our Top 10 most highly recommended books that will improve all areas of your email marketing (including some underground treasures that we happened upon, which have been game-changing for us). Grab your FREE list here. 

Join our FREE Facebook group

If you want to chat about how you can maximise the value of your email list and make more money from every subscriber, we can help! We know your business is different, so come and hang out in our FREE Facebook group, the Email Marketing Show Community for Course Creators and Coaches. We share a lot of training and resources, and you can talk about what you're up to.

Try ResponseSuite for $1

This week's episode is sponsored by ResponseSuite.com, the survey quiz and application form tool that we created specifically for small businesses like you to integrate with your marketing systems to segment your subscribers and make more sales. Try it out for 14 days for just $1.

Grab The Email Hero Blueprint

Want more? Let's say you're a course creator, membership site owner, coach, author, or expert and want to learn about the ethical psychology-based email marketing that turns 60-80% more of your newsletter subscribers into customers (within 60 days).

If that's you, then The Email Hero Blueprint is for you.

This is hands down the most predictable, plug-and-play way to double your earnings per email subscriber. It allows you to generate a consistent sales flow without launching another product, service, or offer. Best news yet? You won't have to rely on copywriting, slimy persuasion, NLP, or ‘better' subject lines.

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