The $1.2M Email Secret: How to Stop Leaving Money on the Table

Most fractional executives are sitting on a goldmine they don't even know exists. While you're burning cash on new client acquisition, there's a revenue stream right under your nose that could transform your business overnight.

I'm talking about email marketing. Not the "monthly newsletter" kind. The kind that turns a $250K annual email revenue into $1.2M monthly. Same offers, same funnels, same everything. Just a completely different approach to the leads you already have.

We recently had Cole VanDeWoestyne on Six-Figure Secrets of Fractional Experts, co-founder of Inboxing Engine, who shared the exact strategies he uses to help companies scale past $3 million through email optimization. Cole has sent hundreds of millions of emails and worked with everyone from big-name gurus to supplement companies crushing multiple categories. His track record speaks for itself: taking clients from good email performance to extraordinary results using the exact framework I'm about to share.

Why Email is the Ultimate Untapped Revenue Source

Here's the brutal truth: most business owners treat email as an afterthought. They're obsessed with client acquisition while completely ignoring the treasure trove sitting in their CRM.

But email offers something no other channel can match: immediate, actionable data. Open rates, click-through rates, earnings per click, sales conversions. You can test, adjust, and optimize in real-time. No waiting weeks for campaign results or wondering if your LinkedIn posts are working.

The best part? Your email list consists of people who've already raised their hand and said "I'm interested." They've downloaded your lead magnet, registered for your webinar, or engaged with your content. These aren't cold prospects – they're warm leads you're probably underutilizing.

The Million-Dollar Email Framework

The difference between mediocre email performance and life-changing revenue comes down to a systematic approach most people never implement.

Phase 1: The Pressure Cooker (Days 1-10) When someone opts into your lead magnet, you have 72 hours of peak interest. This isn't the time for gentle nurturing – it's the time to strike. Send 5-6 emails daily pushing them toward your core offer. Yes, you read that right. Multiple emails per day.

The goal is simple: get them to your webinar, sales call, or core offer while their interest is at its highest. If they don't convert during this window, they move into the nurture sequence.

Phase 2: The Three-Week Nurture For the next three weeks, send nothing but value. No pitches, no offers, just content that addresses their biggest objections and builds trust. This is where most people get it wrong – they either skip this entirely or make it too salesy.

The content strategy? Talk to your sales team. What objections are they hearing? What questions come up repeatedly? What language do prospects use when they're hesitant? Turn those insights into email content that preemptively handles objections.

Phase 3: The One-Week Promotion After three weeks of pure value, you've earned the right to make an offer. This isn't a single email – it's a carefully orchestrated sequence designed to move people through three psychological phases:

Days 1-2: Getting Clicks Your goal is simply to get people to your sales page. Use curiosity-driven subject lines and hooks that make them want to learn more.

Days 3-5: Emotional Engagement Now you're painting the picture of what their life looks like without solving this problem. What's it costing them? What's it costing their family? Get them feeling the pain of inaction.

Days 6-7: Urgency and FOMO Create real scarcity. Set a deadline and stick to it. Actually take the offer down when you say you will. Your email list will learn to trust your deadlines, making future promotions more effective.

The Mindset Shift That Changes Everything

Most business owners are terrified of "bothering" their email list. They send one gentle email and hope for the best. This mindset is costing you massive revenue.

Here's the reframe: if you genuinely believe your service helps people, then not following up aggressively is selfish. You're depriving them of the solution to their problems because you're worried about being perceived as pushy.

People who join your email list want what you have. They're not victims of your marketing – they're prospects who need multiple touchpoints to make a buying decision. The average person needs 7-12 touchpoints before purchasing. If you're only sending 2-3 emails, you're leaving money on the table.

What This Looks Like for Fractional Executives

Let's make this practical. Say you're a fractional CMO who helps companies optimize their marketing spend. Your lead magnet might be "The Marketing Audit That Saved Me $50K Monthly."

Pressure Cooker Sequence:

• Email 1: Deliver the audit checklist
• Email 2: Case study of a client who found $75K in wasted spend
• Email 3: The #1 mistake you see in marketing audits
• Email 4: Social proof from other fractional CMOs
• Email 5: Direct invitation to book a strategy call

Nurture Sequence:

• Week 1: Address the "we can handle this internally" objection
• Week 2: Content about the hidden costs of delayed optimization
• Week 3: Stories about companies that waited too long to get help

Promotion Sequence: Get them to your sales page, make them feel the cost of inaction, then create urgency around booking a call this month.

The Systems That Make It Work

Successful email marketing isn't about writing better copy (though that helps). It's about having systems that ensure consistency and optimization.

Daily Planning Plan your email content the night before. Know exactly what you're sending and why. This prevents the "what should I email today?" paralysis that kills consistency.

Data Tracking Monitor everything: open rates, click rates, unsubscribe rates, and most importantly, revenue per email. Test subject lines, send times, and content approaches. Let data drive your decisions.

List Hygiene Embrace unsubscribes. If someone doesn't want to hear from you, let them go. A smaller, more engaged list will always outperform a large, disinterested one.

The Objection You're Probably Having

"But I don't want to be one of those annoying marketers sending daily emails!"

Here's the reality: you're not emailing random people. These are qualified prospects who've shown interest in your services. They want to hear from you – they just might not be ready to buy yet.

The key is providing value in every email. Even your promotional emails should teach something, share insights, or provide case studies. Make every email worth opening, and you'll build a list of people who actually look forward to hearing from you.

Your Next Move

Stop treating email like a side project. If you have any email list at all – even 100 people – you're sitting on potential revenue you're not capturing.

Start with one simple change: commit to emailing your list consistently. Pick a schedule (daily is ideal, but 3x weekly works) and stick to it for 30 days. You'll be amazed at how much more engagement and revenue you generate just from showing up regularly.

The biggest mistake isn't having a small list. It's having a list and not using it.

Your prospects are waiting to hear from you. The question is: will you email them, or will your competition?

Mylance

‍This value-added article was written by Mylance. Mylance takes your marketing completely off your hands. We build the marketing machine that your Fractional Business needs, but you don't have time to run. So it operates daily, growing your brand, completely done for you.Instead of dangling numbers in front of you, our approach focuses on precise and thoughtful input: targeted outreach to the right decision makers, compelling messaging that resonates, and content creation that establishes trust and legitimacy.To apply for access, submit an application and we'll evaluate your fit for the service. If you’re not ready for lead generation, we also have a free, vetted community for top fractional talent that includes workshops, a rates database, networking, and a lot of free resources to support your fractional business.