Mass emails (also known as email blasts) are quick ways to send information to a large group of people. There are numerous ways to a send a mass email, so let’s explore the most common and efficient ways:
Email Marketing Software
Email marketing software is a tool that companies use to send marketing messages and promotional emails to their subscribers. Email marketing software typically provides a range of features and functionalities that allow users to create, send, and track their email campaigns.
You can pick from a wide range of email marketing software that allow you to send emails in bulk. Popular options include:
- Mailchimp
- Constant Contact
- Campaign Monitor
- Sendinblue
In short, email marketing software can help you send mass emails in a more competent and effective way, especially when compared to using a regular email client or service. How you send mass emails with the software will vary, depending on the kind you elect to use, as each one has different user interfaces and features.
Gmail
Gmail is one of the most popular email platforms in the world, with over 1.8 million global users. One of many reasons it’s so popular is thanks to its easy-to-use features and interface. Keep in mind that you can only send 500 emails if you are a regular Gmail user. If you use Google Workspace, however, you can send a limit of 2,000.
If you want to use Gmail to send mass emails, the steps are incredibly straightforward:
Create a Google Sheets spreadsheet
First, you must create a Google Sheets spreadsheet with the list of email addresses you want to send your message to. You can also include other details, such as the recipient’s name, in separate columns. If you have hundreds of recipients that are targeted for this blast email, you can easily import their contact information to your Google Contacts, so you don’t have to input them all there manually. To do this, follow the steps below:
- Open Google Sheets and create a new sheet by clicking on the “Blank” option.
- In the first row of the sheet, add the following column headers: First Name, Last Name, Email Address, Phone Number, and any other information you want to include in your contacts. Then, add the contact information in the appropriate cells for each contact row.
- Click on “File” at the top left.
- Select “Download.”
- Choose “Comma-separated values (.csv, current sheet)” to save the sheet as a CSV file.
- Go to your Google Contacts.
- Click on “Import” in the left-hand menu.
- Select the CSV file you just created.
- Follow the prompts to map the fields with the appropriate contact information, and then complete the import process.
You don’t need to worry about creating a label for your contacts, because labels are automatically created for imported contacts. This saves time and effort, and keeps the process seamless.
Install a Mail Merge add-on
You can install a Mail Merge add-on for Google Sheets, selecting it from the Google Workspace Marketplace. Mail Merge is a feature in Gmail that allows you to send personalized mass emails to a group of people.
With Mail Merge, you can send a single email to multiple recipients, but each recipient sees their own personalized version of the email – with their name, address, or other relevant information inserted in the email. Some popular options include “Yet Another Mail Merge” and “Mail Merge with Attachments.”
Installing a Mail Merge is important, because you should try to personalize your email as much as you can, even if it is sent in bulk. This reduces the chances of your email getting marked as spam and ruining your sender reputation.
Connect your Gmail account
After installing the Mail Merge add-on, you need to connect your Gmail account to the Google Sheets spreadsheet. You will also need to authorize the add-on to access your Gmail account.
Compose your email
Open a new message in Gmail and compose your email. Include variables to personalize your message, such as the recipient’s name or location. In the email body, insert the placeholders that correspond to the columns in your Google Sheets spreadsheet, like {{Name}} and {{Last Name}}. In the recipient field, add the label that was created for your imported contacts.
Start the Mail Merge and send the email
Once you have composed your email and set up your Google Sheets spreadsheet, you can start the Mail Merge and send the email. The add-on will send the email to each recipient on the list, replacing the placeholders with the corresponding values in the spreadsheet.
Outlook
Outlook is another popular email platform, with almost 16% of U.S. email users using Outlook as their preferred platform. To send mass emails using Outlook, follow these steps:
Add Contact Members
To add contacts to your Outlook account in bulk, open Excel and create a new Excel spreadsheet. Enter the contact information for each person in a separate row. Be sure to include columns for the first name, last name, email address, and any other relevant information. Save the Excel spreadsheet in a format that can be imported into Outlook, such as a CSV file. Then, follow these steps:
- In Outlook, go to the “File” tab and select “Open & Export.”
- Choose “Import/Export.”
- Select “Import from another program or file.”
- Select “Comma Separated Values” and browse for the file you saved.
Create a Contact Group
Next, you’ll want to create a Contact Group so you can select a single item to put in the recipient field of your email. This Contact Group will contain all the emails that you imported. Here’s how to create one:
- Open Outlook and sign in.
- Navigate to the “People” section by selecting the icon on the vertical menu to the left.
- Click on the arrow next to “New Contact” at the top left.
- Select “Contact Group.”
- In the Contact Group window, click on the “Add Members” button.
- Select “From Outlook Contacts.”
- Select the contacts you want to add to the group and click “Members” to add them to the group.
Compose the email and send it
Compose your email. In the recipient field, click on the “To” button and select the contact group you just created. This will add all the contacts in the group to the recipient list. When everything is done, simply send the email.
