Your Emails are Ghosting Your Customers (And It’s Costing You Money)
Imagine you’ve spent three hours on a Sunday night putting together a special offer for your past customers. You’re a landscaper in Carindale or a boutique owner in Paddington, and you know that if you could just get this deal in front of people, the phone would start ringing on Monday morning.
You hit 'send' on 2,000 emails. You sit back, wait for the enquiries to roll in, and... nothing. Crickets.
You check your system. It says the emails were 'delivered'. But when you call a loyal customer to ask if they saw it, they say, "Nah mate, didn't get anything from you."
Here is the cold, hard truth: Most small business owners in Brisbane are flushing money down the toilet because their emails are landing in the 'Spam' folder or the 'Promotions' tab where they go to die.
In the industry, people call this "email deliverability auditing." To you, it should just be called "making sure my messages actually show up."
Why Your Emails Are Getting Blocked in 2024
Google and Yahoo recently changed the rules. They got sick of junk mail clogging up people's inboxes, so they tightened the screws. If you haven't updated how your business sends email in the last six months, there is a very high chance you are being treated like a scammer by the big tech companies.
I’ve seen this happen to dozens of Brisbane businesses. We worked with a local electrical firm recently that was sending out thousands of helpful maintenance tips. They thought they were doing everything right, but because their technical setup was outdated, 60% of their emails weren't even reaching the inbox. They weren't just losing sales; they were paying for a service that wasn't working.
The "Digital Postie" Problem
Think of it like this: The internet has a group of 'Digital Posties' (like Gmail and Outlook). Their job is to protect their users. If they don't recognise your 'ID' or if your reputation looks a bit dodgy, they won't put your letter in the letterbox. They’ll chuck it in the bin out the back.If you want to grow, you need to prove to these posties that you are a legitimate local business, not a bot in a dark room overseas.
The Audit: How to Tell if You Have a Problem
You don't need a degree in computer science to know if you're in trouble. Here are the red flags I tell my mates to look out for:
1. The 'Open' Rate is Tanking: If you used to have 30% of people opening your emails and now it’s 10%, you have a delivery problem, not a content problem. 2. Test Emails Go to Spam: Send your marketing email to your personal Gmail account. If it’s in the 'Junk' folder, you’re in trouble. 3. No One is Complaining: This sounds weird, but if you send an email to 1,000 people and not one person asks to be taken off the list or replies with a question, it’s likely because no one saw it.
Many owners try to save a buck by using cheap or free tools, but email platform costs often hide the fact that these services have poor reputations with Google, meaning your mail is doomed before you even write it.
Trends for 2025: What’s Changing for Brisbane Businesses?
If you think it's hard now, it’s going to get tougher. Here is what we are seeing on the horizon and what you need to do to stay ahead of your competitors.
1. Reputation is Everything
Google now looks at how people interact with your mail. If you keep sending emails to people who never open them, Google decides you are a nuisance. They will start blocking your emails to everyone, even the people who actually want to hear from you.This is why we tell our clients to stop wasting money on dead leads. If someone hasn't opened an email from you in six months, delete them. It feels counter-intuitive to have a smaller list, but a smaller list that actually gets delivered will make you far more money than a huge list that gets blocked.
2. The "One-Click" Rule
Starting this year, if it’s hard for someone to unsubscribe from your list, the big providers will penalise you. You shouldn't be afraid of people leaving your list. If they don't want your service, they aren't going to give you money anyway. Make the 'Unsubscribe' button clear. It actually helps your reputation with the 'Digital Posties'.3. Personalisation Over Blasts
The days of 'blasting' your entire list with the same generic message are over. If you own a pet shop in Chermside, don't send cat food specials to dog owners. When people see irrelevant stuff, they hit 'Report Spam'. Too many of those hits, and your business email is blacklisted.You want to get new customers by being helpful, not a pest. Sending the right message to the right person is the only way to stay in the inbox in 2025.
How Much Does This Cost to Fix?
I’ll be blunt: ignoring this is the most expensive option. If you’re paying $100 a month for an email tool and it’s not resulting in bookings, you’re just lighting $1,200 a year on fire.
To get a professional to audit your setup and fix the technical 'ID' issues (things like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC—don't worry about what they stand for, they are just digital ID cards), you’re usually looking at a one-off cost between $500 and $1,500 depending on how messy things are.
If you do it yourself, it costs nothing but your time—but be warned, if you tick the wrong box in your domain settings, you could accidentally take your entire website and business email offline for 48 hours. I’ve seen it happen, and it’s a nightmare for a busy business.
How Long Until I See Results?
The good news is that once the technical fixes are made, the 'Digital Posties' notice pretty quickly. Usually, within 2 to 4 weeks, you’ll see your open rates climb.
We saw this with a professional services firm in Milton. They fixed their authentication settings and cleaned their list. Within a month, their 'replies' doubled. They weren't writing better emails; they were just finally showing up where they were supposed to be.
What You Should Do First (The 3-Step Plan)
If you're worried your emails aren't working, don't panic. Do these three things this week:
1. Clean Your List: Go into your email software and find anyone who hasn't opened an email in the last 6 months. Move them to a separate list or delete them. 2. Check Your 'From' Address: Never send business marketing from a @gmail.com or @bigpond.com address. It looks unprofessional and the filters hate it. Use your business domain (e.g., info@yourbusiness.com.au). 3. Ask for a Reply: In your next email, ask a simple question. "Hey, just checking if you saw our latest project in Indooroopilly—any questions?" When people reply to your marketing emails, it tells Google you are a 'trusted friend' and ensures your future emails land in the primary inbox.
What is a Total Waste of Money?
Don't buy 'email lists'. Ever.
I don't care how good the salesperson makes it sound. "10,000 local Brisbane homeowners for $200!" is a trap. These lists are full of 'spam traps'—fake email addresses designed to catch people like you. Send one email to a list like that, and your domain reputation will be ruined for months. It’s the fastest way to make sure your actual customers never hear from you again.
The Bottom Line
Marketing isn't about the fanciest graphics or the smartest 'algorithms'. It’s about being seen. If your emails aren't hitting the inbox, you don't have an email marketing strategy—you have a digital diary that no one is reading.
Fixing your deliverability is like unblocking the pipes in your business. Once the flow is back, everything else—your sales, your bookings, your profit—becomes a whole lot easier.
Most Brisbane business owners are too busy to worry about the 'Digital Posties'. That’s where we come in. We don't just 'send emails'; we make sure they actually turn into money in your bank account.
Ready to stop shouting into the void? If you want to make sure your business is actually reaching your customers, let’s have a chat. We’ll look under the hood of your email setup and tell you exactly why you’re not getting the calls you expect.
Contact Local Marketing Group today and let’s get your emails working for you, not against you.