Most brands find their sweet spot with two or three emails per week and a few well timed SMS messages per month. That benchmark, which Kunle Campbell shared on the 2X eCommerce Podcast, is the best starting point for structuring your calendar because it reframes the goal. The point isn't just to send more messages, but to establish a consistent and strategic cadence that keeps you top of mind without overwhelming your audience.
Breaking that down, the two or three weekly emails become the steady rhythm of your brand. It’s where you can share longer-form content, tell stories, and run your main promotions. The "few well timed SMS messages per month" are your sharp, high-impact notes. Kunle makes the point that with a 98 percent open rate, SMS is a powerful tool for time-sensitive communication. Think flash sale reminders, abandoned cart nudges, or last-minute holiday deals. Using it sparingly makes those alerts feel more urgent and special.
The most important rule is that these channels must work together. As Nichelle Hubley explained on Honest Ecommerce, you should think of your back-end communication as "one cohesive piece" because you're talking to the same list of people. Sending one message on email and something completely different on SMS is jarring. The brands that succeed are the ones who have their strategy dialed in across all touchpoints. Building a coordinated, strategic calendar means deciding how each channel supports the other to create a single, seamless conversation with your customer, rather than just filling slots on a schedule.
