If You Feel Like You’re Bothering People with Emails… Read This

May 2

Written By Women For Women .

What to Say in Your Emails as a Small Business Owner

If you’ve ever stared at a blank email wondering what to say—or worried you’re bothering people by sending one—you’re not alone. This simple framework will help you show up consistently without overthinking every email.

by Leah Wilkerson

I’ll be honest with you. There are still days I sit down to write an email… and think:

What am I even supposed to say?

And right behind that thought is another one:

Am I bothering people?

It’s a quiet hesitation, but it’s enough to stop me.

So I close the tab. Tell myself I’ll come back to it tomorrow. And sometimes… I don’t.

The Shift I’m Starting to See

Here’s what I’m realizing (and maybe you need to hear this too):

Your email list is gold.

It’s yours. You built it. These are people who said, yes, I want to hear from you.

No algorithm.
No wondering if your post was even seen.

And yet… it’s the place we show up the least.

Why It Feels So Hard

I think it comes back to one question: What am I supposed to say?

Because if we don’t know what to say, we say nothing. And saying nothing feels safer than saying the wrong thing.

The 10 Email Types (Start Here)

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel every time you sit down to write.

These are 10 proven types of emails you can come back to again and again:

Value Email — Teach something useful your reader can apply right away
Story Email — Share a personal moment or experience from your business or life
Offer Email — Invite your reader to buy, join, or take the next step
Results Email — Show what’s possible through real outcomes or transformations
Behind-the-Scenes Email — Give a look into your process, your work, or how something comes together
Conversation Email — Ask a question and invite your reader to respond
Curated Email — Share what you’re reading, loving, or learning lately
Paradigm Shift Email — Challenge a common belief or way of thinking
Announcement Email — Share something new, upcoming, or worth paying attention to
“Mr. Miyagi” Email — A lesson wrapped inside a simple story

You don’t need to master all 10. You just need to pick one and start.

You might notice something about this list. Not all of these are about selling. In fact… most of them aren’t. And that’s the part I’m starting to understand.

If every email feels like a pitch, of course it feels uncomfortable to send. Of course it feels like you’re bothering people. But when you mix in value, stories, and real moments from your life or business…it stops feeling like selling. It starts feeling like staying connected.

And the truth is… the emails I open most aren’t the ones trying to sell me something. They’re the ones that feel like a person wrote them.

This Week’s One Action (I’m Doing This Too)

So instead of overthinking the whole email… I’m starting smaller. I’m picking two email types from the list above and I’m writing just the subject line for each one.

That’s it.

Not the full email. Not the perfect wording. Just the subject lines. Because once the subject line is there… it’s a lot easier to keep going.

And if I can do that consistently—even imperfectly—that’s how this actually starts to work.

If You’re Feeling This Too

If you’ve ever wondered if you’re bothering people, you’re not alone. I’m right there with you.

But I’m starting to believe this: If someone gave you their email, they’re not asking for perfection.

They’re just open to hearing from you.