How to Send an Email to Multiple Recipients Individually

Learning how to send an email to multiple people while maintaining a personal touch is crucial. Whether it’s for personalized marketing emails, special invitations, or timely updates, the ability to send mass email individually is a valuable skill.

Each option suits different needs, from simple, one-off emails to complex marketing campaigns.

Why Send Mass Emails Without Displaying Recipients?

There are quite a few reasons why companies may be doing this.

• Privacy protection: This keeps each recipient’s email address confidential and protects them from potential spam and unauthorized contacts.
• Professionalism: It also offers a more personalized approach. You get to avoid the impersonal nature of mass emails – and each person you send the email too may feel individually addressed.
• Avoids clutter: This prevents the recipients from accidentally hitting the “reply all” button.
• Focused communication: You get to ensure that your message is tailored and directed. And this improves the likelihood of engagement.

How to Send an Email to Multiple People via Email Clients

If you’re sending the same email to multiple recipients separately via an email client, you should be familiar with the terms CC (carbon copy) and BCC (blind carbon copy). 

CC: Carbon copy

• Function: When you add recipients in the CC field, each recipient can see the email addresses of all other recipients listed in both the To and CC fields. It’s like making a statement in a room full of people – and everyone knows who else is in the room.
• When to use: Use CC for emails where you need to be transparent and when it’s important for everyone in the email to know who else has received this message. This is most common in workplace interactions – or any scenario when you are dealing with information that is not sensitive and encourages collaboration.

BCC: Blind carbon copy

• Function: Adding recipients in the BCC field sends them the email without disclosing their addresses to other recipients. In this case, only the sender knows who all the BCC recipients are. It’s like whispering a message to several people in a room without others knowing who else heard it.
• When to use: BCC is ideal for sending mass emails where recipients’ privacy needs to be protected, such as newsletters, invitations, or announcements. It prevents recipients from seeing each other’s email addresses, thereby safeguarding their privacy and reducing the risk of spam. Additionally, it’s used to avoid the “Reply All” clutter that can happen with CC’d emails.

How to send a mass email and hide recipients in Gmail

1. Log into your Gmail account and click “Compose”.
2. Enter your email address in the “To” field. To keep the recipients hidden, enter your own email address in the “To” field. Your email address will act as a placeholder. 
3. Click the “BCC” button to the right of the “To” field. If you can’t see it, click the “To” field, and you should see the options for adding CC and BCC.
4. Enter the email addresses of all the needed recipients in the BCC field. This way, each recipient will receive the email without seeing who else it has been sent to.
5. Write your email as you normally would. Once you’re happy with your message, hit the “Send” button. Now, all the recipients will receive your email individually. They will not see other recipients’ email addresses.

How to send mass email individually in Outlook

1. Open Outlook and click on “New Email” or “New Message.”
2. In the new email window, you’ll find the “To,” “CC,” and “BCC” fields. If the BCC field is not visible, click on “Options” at the top of the message window.
3. Enter the email addresses of the recipients in the BCC field. 
4. Since the BCC recipients are hidden, it’s a good practice to address the email generally, such as “Dear Colleagues” or “Dear Friends,” unless the email content is personalized for mass sending.
5. After you’ve written the email, double-check it to make sure everything is correct. Then, press the “Send” button. 

Drawbacks of sending emails to multiple recipients via email clients

However, there are quite a few drawbacks to sending emails this way compared to using dedicated email marketing platforms or services. 

1. Limited personalization

Email clients offer limited options for personalizing emails for each recipient. This can make this quite challenging to tailor messages on a person-by-person basis. This lack of personalization can make your communication much less effective.

2. Risk of being marked as spam

When you send a large volume of emails at once via a standard email client, you can trigger spam filters. This could affect the future emails you send and substantially reduce their visibility and effectiveness.

3. Difficulty managing subscriptions

Email clients generally do not come with integrated tools that will help you manage opt-ins and opt-outs. This can make it difficult for you to maintain an up-to-date list of subscribers. This can also lead to you sending emails to people who have actually requested to unsubscribe. And if you do, you may be violating privacy regulations like GDPR.

4. Lack of analytics

Standard email clients tend to offer minimal (if any) analytics on how your sent emails are doing. This means you will have very limited information on open rates, click-through rates, and engagement metrics. Without these, you will find it increasingly difficult to measure the  effectiveness of your email campaigns and make data-driven tweaks and improvements.

5. Scalability issues

As your email list grows, managing and sending mass emails via an email client will most likely become impractical and time-consuming. This can limit your ability to scale your communication efforts as your audience or business grows.

6. Attachment limitations

Most email clients have size limits for attachments. You may find this very restrictive when sending large documents or media files to multiple recipients. This is when you may need to start looking into third-party services to share large files.

7. Time consumption

Manually entering or copying email addresses into the BCC field, especially for large lists, is time-consuming and prone to error. This inefficiency can divert valuable time away from other important tasks or lead to mistakes, such as omitting recipients or including incorrect addresses.

While email clients are useful for day-to-day communication and smaller-scale email blasts, these drawbacks highlight their limitations when used for mass email campaigns. For larger, more targeted, and more engaging email campaigns, it’s often more effective to use specialized email marketing tools designed to handle these challenges.

How to Use the Mail Merge Feature with Microsoft Word and Outlook

If you are looking to send the same email to multiple recipients separately, there is a feature in Outlook you will really appreciate – it’s called Mail Merge. This lets you personalize each email you send based on the information in your recipient list.

Here’s a quick guide on how to use Mail Merge: 

Step 1: Prepare your recipient list in Microsoft Excel

• Create an Excel spreadsheet that includes columns for all the personalized information you want to include in your emails (e.g., first name, last name, email address, etc.).
• Fill in your data with the details of your recipients. Ensure the email addresses are in one column.
• Save your Excel file in an easily accessible location.

Step 2: Start the mail merge process in Word

• Open Microsoft Word and create a new document.
• Navigate to the “Mailings” tab and click on “Start Mail Merge.” Select “E-mail Messages” as your document type.
• Click on “Select Recipients” in the Mailings tab, then choose “Use an Existing List.” Navigate to where you saved your Excel spreadsheet and select it.
• Click on “Insert Merge Field” in the Mailings tab. You’ll see a list of the column names from your Excel spreadsheet. Insert these fields into your document where you want the personalized information to appear.

Step 3: Write your email

• Compose your message in the Word document, placing the cursor where you want each piece of personalized information to go. Use the “Insert Merge Field” button to add these fields to your message.
• Format your email as desired, using Word’s formatting tools. Remember, this will be the body of your email, so make it engaging and readable.

Step 4: Preview your emails

• Click on “Preview Results” in the Mailings tab. This allows you to see how each email will look with the personalized information filled in. Use the arrows in the Preview Results section to scroll through different recipient emails.
• Make adjustments as necessary. If you notice any formatting issues or errors, now is the time to correct them.

Step 5: Complete the merge and send emails

• Click on “Finish & Merge” in the Mailings tab. Select “Send E-Mail Messages.”
• Set up the mailing by choosing the field containing the email addresses under “To,” entering a subject line, and selecting the email format (HTML is recommended for formatted text and images).
• Send the emails by clicking “OK.” Word will communicate with Outlook, which will send the emails to your list of recipients.

Important considerations

• Email limits: Be aware of any sending limits imposed by your email provider to avoid your account being temporarily suspended for sending too many emails in a short period.
• Test your email: It’s wise to send a test email to yourself first by including your email address in the recipient list. This allows you to check the email’s appearance and functionality before sending it to your entire list.
• Privacy compliance: Ensure that your use of recipients’ email addresses complies with privacy laws and regulations, such as the GDPR in Europe. Always include an option for recipients to unsubscribe from future emails.

Using Email Marketing Tools to Send Emails to Multiple Recipients

Email marketing tools are designed specifically to optimize the process of sending mass emails. They offer a suite of features that standard email clients just can’t compete with. There are lots of benefits to using a pro email marketing tool:

• Personalization at scale: You get to automatically personalize each email with the recipient’s name, preferences, and other details, making them feel uniquely addressed.
• Advanced analytics: You can now track open rates, click-through rates, conversions, and more. 
• Automation: There is an option to set up automated email sequences based on triggers or actions taken by your readers.
• List management: You can easily manage your mailing lists, segmenting users based on behavior or demographics.
• Design and templates: You will also be getting access to a wide range of customizable templates and a drag-and-drop editor.

Top 5 email marketing tools 

• Mailchimp is a versatile email marketing platform known for its user-friendliness. It comes with lots of templates, automation options, and detailed analytics. It is a great fit for smaller to mid-sized businesses.
• Brevo is a another good option for a marketing solution with extra features like SMS marketing and live chat. It stands out for its advanced automation capabilities and detailed segmentation. This makes it a great choice if you are looking to personalize your communications at scale.
• Constant Contact is renowned for its excellent customer support and extensive library of templates, Constant Contact is a favorite among small businesses and nonprofits. It offers easy-to-use tools for creating effective email campaigns, managing contacts, and analyzing results.
• Campaign Monitor. With its beautiful design templates and intuitive interface, Campaign Monitor caters to marketers looking for a blend of simplicity and power. It offers high-level personalization, automation features, and detailed analytics to help businesses craft impactful email campaigns.
• GetResponse is a comprehensive marketing platform that includes email marketing, automation, landing pages, and webinars. Its strength lies in its automation workflows, which allow for intricate subscriber engagement based on their actions and preferences.

To learn more about email marketing tools, check out these articles:

7 Best Email Marketing Services in 2024

Top 5 Mailchimp Alternatives: A Detailed Feature and Pricing Comparison

Top 5 Constant Contact Alternatives: A Detailed Feature and Pricing Comparison

Top 5 ActiveCampaign Alternatives: A Detailed Feature and Pricing Comparison

Top 5 Brevo Alternatives: A Detailed Feature and Pricing Comparison

Custom Scripts or Programs

Using custom scripts to send personalized emails offers great flexibility. This method involves writing code to automate your email process. However, creating custom scripts can be complicated and take quite a bit of your time.

Custom scripts for sending emails typically involve using a programming language that supports email sending functionalities. Python is a popular choice because it is relatively simple and comes with powerful libraries, such as smtplib for sending emails and email for creating email messages.

Writing and troubleshooting code requires patience and a willingness to learn. There are many resources available online such as documentation, tutorials, and community forums, which can be very helpful. 

To Sum Up

You probably know this already – but sending personalized emails to each recipient is very effective. It brings engagement and helps you foster genuine relationships with your readership. And if you have the option to make your email communications individual and personal, this would be the best way to go about your marketing efforts.

There are lots of marketing tool options to choose from. And, if you are not scared of a learning curve, you may want to look into working with custom email scripts for ultimate customization.