The Personalisation Renaissance: How small brands can win with data and better email marketing

Personalisation in communication, especially in email, is not new. We've been at it since the first marketer added "Dear [First name]," and that was perceived as cutting edge. But Mintel says we're entering a "Personalisation Renaissance" and this is exciting.

Why, you ask? Well, this means that all businesses, big and small, can now create communication structures that feel one-to-one instead of one-to-many.

Think about it, if you're a B2B or D2C, you can use the advancements in analytics to split your audiences, then send slightly altered versions of the same email that resonate with that particular individual. It's the digital equivalent of knowing when to get someone a pint or make them a cup of tea. That sort of segmentation is what makes people feel like you are speaking to them, not just firing off into the void. Sabri Suby would probably call it common sense wrapped in smart strategy.

A steep learning curve in my email marketing journey

I'll admit, my own journey with email marketing started off rough. In my first marketing role, customer emails were sent by BCC. Once, on my birthday, no less, I was asked to get an email out by the CEO. It was a Saturday morning, 8 AM, when I got a call from the CEO to contact the customers who signed up. Back then, we didn't have a glossy CRM; we had an internal system where you needed to put people into BCC and send it to yourself. I accidentally CC'd everyone instead, which I couldn't recall for all. Nothing says "rookie" like that.

Eventually, I moved on to mail merges, if that doesn't speak personalisation enough! But at the time, it was wizardry. It was a steep learning curve, but it put me on the path of understanding how to do effective email marketing.

Since then, I have run mass campaigns to thousands of people. At CIWEM, I learned what got people to open my emails and what got them to take action. At Bopper Media, I had the privilege of learning from colleagues who were masters of the craft, fine-tuning emails and automations.

Along the way, I've watched the "gurus" online swearing by beautifully designed emails, and glossy templates that look amazing. Every day since making the transition out of my former role, I have taken the time to sharpen my tools and my knowledge, reaffirm tactics that worked in the past, and add more strings to my bow. All so I am prepared to help businesses win the battle of the infinite inbox.

The Good, the Bad, and the "Dear Customer"

We've all seen personalisation done badly. I have mistyped my own name in a signup form, and the brand rolled with it for months. They had my email address, complete with my correct first name, but didn't bother cross-referencing the database or provide me an opportunity to update my details. To that brand, I will forever be Alez, and it is laziness like that, which is worse than no personalisation at all.

But let's not get started on the "Dear Customer,". Nothing says "we don't really care who you are" quite like that. If you know my name, use it. If you don't, maybe hold off until you do. Most of the emails people actually open are from friends, family, or colleagues anyway. So when your brand email shows up in the inbox, you're already pushing shit uphill. Don't make it harder by being bland, boring, and just obviously uninterested in people whom you are trying to sell to. Otherwise, you allow the "hope strategy" to run amok in your marketing communications.

Why small businesses may have the edge

Here's the good news. Smaller organisations can be more genuine because they feel more that way to us as customers. This is because we know they don't have a million contact details to wrangle. If you get an email sent from someone at the smaller company, it actually feels like it came from a real human being. Compare that to Currys trying to "personalise" a campaign for millions of people - it just comes across as rather crass. And don't even think about sending from "no-reply@..." that's the fastest way to remind customers you're a faceless organisation pretending to care, but are actually only interested in pushing your latest offer to me, in the hope I buy.

Some quick steps for SMEs

1. Gather data ethically. Gather prospects' data and be clear with them about your intended use, then actually send information in line with that intended use that I may be interested in.

2. Segment by behaviours, not demographics. Just because two people are 30 years old, it doesn't mean they want the same things. You should be doing more to learn about your lists as a small company, looking at building loyalty and a real community, (that's another subject for another day) and communicating to them things that they're interested in, as well as how and when they want to be contacted.

3. Use AI with oversight. Let tools suggest, but keep a human in charge of tone, judgment and decision-making.

   
   

Closing thought

We are in what Mintel calls the Personalisation Renaissance. But it isn’t about gimmicks like adding a first name to a subject line or designing the prettiest template.

It’s about sounding like someone worth listening to. It’s about writing emails that people actually want to open, and ensuring the message inside feels like it was meant for them.

Small businesses don’t need to mimic the giants; they can win by being genuine, human, and deliberate. That’s what this renaissance really means. Not just more personal offers in the body of an email, but mastering the only two things that matter: getting opened and sparking interaction.

That’s the battle of the infinite inbox — and it’s where the best marketers will stand out.

P.S. if you want to discuss with me more about how to improve your email marketing, connect with me and drop me an email. I'd be more than happy to chat, and maybe even help your small business.