Email marketing in Russia 2026: platforms, metrics and automation

Every time a client says “email is dead, everyone has gone to TG,” I ask them to look at retention analytics. Email gives an ROI of 30-40x, which is more than most paid channels. He didn't die. They just started doing it poorly.

I'm running email marketing on four projects right now: an e-com with a base of 12,000 contacts, a B2B SaaS with 3,400, an EdTech with 28,000, and one local business with 800 subscribers. Open rate from 19% to 38%. The numbers below are from these projects.

Email is not dead. Mass mailings to purchased databases have died. These are different things.

1. Which platform to choose for mailings in Russia

Three main players in 2026: Unisender, SendPulse, Mindbox. Everyone has their own niche.

Unisender is the standard for small and medium-sized businesses. Free plan for up to 500 subscribers and 1500 emails per month. Paid tariffs - from 990 ₽/month. The interface is simple, integration with amoCRM, Bitrix24, Tilda is available. Data is stored in Russia - important for compliance.

SendPulse is a multichannel platform: email + web push + SMS + TG bot. Convenient when you want to manage several channels from one cabinet. Automation is more flexible than in Unisender. Free plan - up to 500 subscribers, up to 15,000 emails per month.

Mindbox - for large e-com and EdTech with 50K+ subscribers. Powerful segmentation, trigger scenarios based on behavior on the site, integration with CRM and payment systems. Price - from 30,000 ₽/month. Three of my projects are on Unisender/SendPulse, one large EdTech switched to Mindbox after accumulating a base of 25K.

2. Segmentation: how to divide the database so that emails are read

There is no segmentation - there is no point in mailing. One letter “for everyone” gets an open rate of 12-15% and a high unsubscribe. Segmented letters - 25-40% and retention.

Basic segmentation by activity: new subscribers (up to 30 days from the date of subscription), active (opened at least one email in 90 days), dormant (91-180 days without opening), dead (180+ days - delete or reactivate). This is the minimum that I set first on all projects.

Advanced segmentation: by source (where it came from - paid traffic / organic / offline), by behavior on the site (bought / viewed a product / abandoned cart), by interests (what topic was clicked on in previous emails). Mindbox does this automatically, in Unisender it is configured through tags and conditions in automation.

3. Automation: three scenarios without which you should not start

The welcome series is the most important. The first 5-7 days after subscription are of maximum interest. Three letters: 1st immediately (introduction + promised value), 2nd after 2 days (case or guide without sale), 3rd after 5 days (soft offer or next step). Open rate of the welcome series is 40-60% versus 20-25% for regular mailings.

Abandoned cart - for e-com. The user added to cart but did not purchase. Email after 1 hour: “Your cart is waiting.” Second in 24 hours: 5-7% discount or free shipping. The CR of this scenario is 5-15% of abandoned carts. On an e-com with a turnover of 5M ₽/month, this can give an additional 250-750K ₽ per month.

Reactivation of inactive ones. A letter with the subject “Are you still with us?” after 90 days without opening. Offer - the best from the archive or a special discount. 10-15% of sleepers open. Those who did not open 3 reactivation letters should be deleted. Dead subscribers drag down a domain's reputation and reduce deliverability for the entire database.

4. Deliverability: why emails end up in spam

Deliverability is the technical basis of email marketing. Without it, the rest makes no sense.

Mandatory DNS settings: SPF record (list of allowed IPs for sending), DKIM (signing a letter with a key), DMARC (mismatch policy). All this is configured through the domain DNS provider. Unisender and SendPulse provide step-by-step instructions for connecting a domain.

The sender’s reputation is built on three things: domain history (a new domain has a low reputation and needs to be “warmed up”), the quality of the database (the fewer complaints about spam and bounce, the better), the regularity of sending (a sharp jump in volume from a new domain is a red flag for email providers).

If your emails are in spam, check with mail-tester.com. The service gives a score from 0 to 10 and a list of problems. The goal is 9/10 and above.

5. Benchmarks by niche in Russia 2026

Open rate below 15% - either there is a problem with deliverability, or the subject line is not working, or the database has not been cleaned for a long time. CTR is below 1% - the content of the letter is not of interest to the audience or the CTA is weak.

6. Mistakes that kill email marketing

1. Purchased base. Buying a database of email addresses is the path to spam for 2-3 mailings. It will take 2-6 months to restore the domain's reputation. Build a database only through opt-in: subscription form, lead magnet, registration on the site.

2. Mailing without UTM. In Y.Metrica, email traffic without UTM is attributed as “direct visits” or “unknown source”. It is impossible to calculate the CPL and ROI of a channel. All links in emails are from UTM. Read more about UTM tag scheme.

3. One letter for the entire database. “20% discount - promotion until the end of the month” goes simultaneously to new subscribers, regular customers and those who have not opened letters for six months. Result: high unsubscribe from an overheated audience, loss of sales from those who need another offer.

4. No subject line testing. A/B testing of a theme gives an increase in open rate by 15-30%. You can test on 20% of the base (10% for each option), and send the winner to the remaining 80%. Unisender and SendPulse support A/B tests natively.

7. Summary

Email works. Not as a mass mailing, but as a channel for segmented communication with the base that you yourself have collected. ROI of 30-40x is possible only with proper segmentation, automation and a clean database.

Three steps to get started: choose Unisender or SendPulse, set up a welcome series of 3 letters, categorize your database into active and inactive. This is the minimum that gives results in the first month.

Related materials: benchmarks for open rate email campaigns, cold email chain templates, CRM marketing and retention, UTM scheme for an agency, email chain generator.

If you want to review your email strategy, write to Telegram or through form. Starting consultation - 0 ₽.