The rule
Send when there is a reason. Do not send when there is not.
The test before every send: would a customer be glad they opened this? If the honest answer is no, skip it. Nobody has ever unsubscribed because an email arrived less often.
What counts as a reason
A season starting. Pre-summer cooling checks, freeze preparation, hurricane season, spring pest activity. Houston's calendar is predictable a year ahead, so these can be planned.
A service interval reached. Twelve months since their last visit.
Something genuinely useful. A problem you keep seeing that customers could prevent.
A real offer. Pre-season pricing, a slot before the rush, a maintenance plan.
Something that affects them. A change in hours, a new service they would actually want.
Four to eight sends a year covers all of that for most service businesses, and each one earns its place.
What does not count
Company news, generic seasonal greetings, industry articles available anywhere, and anything written because it has been a while.
Sequences are different
Triggered sequences — after an enquiry, after a job, at twelve months — can be more frequent, because each person receives them at their own moment rather than in a broadcast.
A five-email sequence over three weeks is not the same as five newsletters in three weeks. The first is relevant to where they are; the second is a barrage.
Most of your email volume should be sequences, not broadcasts.
The signals you are sending too often
Unsubscribes rising across consecutive sends.
Spam complaints. The most damaging signal there is, and it usually means frequency or a hidden unsubscribe.
Engagement falling. Fewer clicks and replies over time. Open rate is less reliable than it was, so watch clicks.
Nothing to say. If you are inventing reasons, you are already over-sending.
The signals you are sending too rarely
Customers who did not know you offer a service you have offered for years.
Reactivation campaigns that surprise people — "I forgot you existed" is a real reply, and a costly one.
A high bounce rate when you finally do send, because addresses have gone stale.
Repeat work going elsewhere because nobody reminded them.
Cold lists need care
If you have not emailed in a year or more, do not send to everyone at once. A sudden burst to a dormant list looks like a compromised account to mail providers and can land the whole thing in spam.
Batch it over several days, most recent customers first, watching bounces and complaints.
The practical answer
For most Houston service businesses: four to eight broadcasts a year, plus triggered sequences running continuously.
That is enough to stay remembered without becoming noise, and it is achievable without anyone dreading it.
Where it sits
Campaign support and sequences are part of email marketing setup at $650 a month.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a local business send email?
Four to eight broadcasts a year when there is a genuine reason, plus triggered sequences running continuously. Sending on a schedule produces filler that trains people to stop opening.
What counts as a reason to send?
A season starting, a service interval reached, something genuinely useful, a real offer, or something that actually affects the customer. Not company news or generic greetings.
How are sequences different?
Each person receives them at their own moment rather than in a broadcast. Five emails over three weeks in a sequence is relevant; five newsletters in three weeks is a barrage.
What if I have not emailed in over a year?
Do not send to everyone at once — a sudden burst to a dormant list looks like a compromised account to mail providers. Batch it over several days, most recent customers first.