One Simple Change Businesses Can Make This Week to Increase Sales and Leads

Most businesses are chasing attention.

Likes. Shares. Tags. Comments.
And while those things look good on the surface, they rarely build anything you actually own.

There’s a simpler, more reliable lever that hospitality, entertainment, fashion and almost any consumer-facing business can pull this week.

Email marketing. Done properly. Personalised. Automated. Owned.

Everyone Has a Birthday. Most Businesses Ignore That.

Every customer has a birthday.
Very few businesses use that fact well.

Instead, many rely on like, share, tag competitions on social media. Aside from often breaching Meta’s terms and conditions, these competitions tend to:

• Attract freebie hunters, not real customers

• Damage engagement metrics

• Confuse algorithms

• Deliver short-term noise rather than long-term value

There’s a better approach.

Replace Social Media Competitions With Email-Led Ones

Rather than running competitions on rented platforms like Facebook, Instagram or TikTok, create a simple competition that captures data you own.

For example:

• Name

• Email address

• Birthday

• Optional: gender or preference

That’s it.

Now you’re not chasing vanity metrics.
You’re building an asset.

An email list is owned land. Social media is rented land.
Algorithms change. Email addresses don’t.

Why Birthday Email Marketing Works

Birthday emails work because they are:

• Personal

• Timely

• Expected

• Easy to automate

And most importantly, they feel like a gesture, not a promotion.

With the right setup, a birthday campaign quietly runs in the background and drives repeat visits without constant posting, boosting or scrambling for content.

What This Looks Like in Practice

Once the data is collected, automations do the heavy lifting.

You can set up an automated email to go out one week before someone’s birthday, personalised with their name and tailored to your business type.

Here are a few examples.

Hospitality Businesses

• A free meal if they bring two friends

• A complimentary drink or dessert

• A birthday booking reminder with a limited-time incentive

This turns one customer into three or four.

Entertainment & Experiences

• Group discounts for birthday bookings

• Free entry for the birthday person

• Special packages for parties of five or more

Now the birthday becomes an event, not just a date.

Fashion & Retail

• A birthday-only discount

• Early access to new stock

• A time-limited offer that feels genuinely exclusive

No pressure. No spammy urgency. Just relevance.

Automation Is Where the Real Value Is

The real power here isn’t the email itself.
It’s the system behind it.

Once set up, this runs automatically:

• No manual sending

• No remembering dates

• No constant planning

One form. One automation. Ongoing results.

Keep It Simple With the Right Email Platform

One of the easiest email marketing platforms out there for businesses getting started is MailerLite.

It’s simple, affordable and powerful enough to handle:

• Signup forms

• Segmentation

• Birthday fields

• Automated email sequences

You don’t need a complex setup to make this work. You just need a platform that lets you collect data, personalise emails and automate the process without friction.

Check out MailerLite here and start driving more sales to your business.

Better Data Leads to Better Decisions

When customers willingly share their details, you gain insight:

• Who your real customers are

• When they’re most likely to buy

• What offers actually work

That’s far more valuable than a post that gets a few hundred likes from people who’ll never walk through your door.

Build What You Own

This isn’t about abandoning social media.
It’s about not relying on it.

Use social platforms to invite people into something you control.
Build systems that work even when you’re not posting.

Email marketing isn’t old.
It’s just grown up.

And for many businesses, a simple birthday automation could be the easiest win they make all year.