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Article · Client communication
A monthly SEO tips newsletter for clients and past clients
One short email a month to clients and past clients who said yes, each with one check the reader can do alone. Who to ask, what US law expects, twelve topics, a template, how to read the numbers, and the setup in systeme.io.
The short answer: ask each client and past client first, one to one, and add only those who say yes. Send one issue a month with one check, one link and one question. Treat every issue as commercial email: accurate sender and subject, an advertisement line, your postal address and a working unsubscribe, with opt-outs handled well inside the FTC guide's 10 business days. Count replies, unsubscribes, bounces and complaints; promise nothing. In systeme.io, newsletters go to contacts by tag, and the free plan lists one tag: enough for one list.
When a newsletter fits a solo consultant
A newsletter keeps you in touch with people who know your work, between projects. It suits you if:
- you have past clients who may need help again, or may mention you to someone;
- your work produces checks an owner can repeat alone, in Search Console or their Business Profile;
- you can plan twelve issues before you send the first.
It is not a way to reach strangers. Google's page on hiring an SEO tells site owners to be wary of consultants and agencies that email them out of the blue. Nor does it replace the monthly report email: a report is one to one, while a newsletter goes to a group and never mentions anyone's data.
Who you may email, and how to ask
The FTC's CAN-SPAM guide sets what each commercial email must contain and how opt-outs work. It makes no exception for business-to-business email, says that "a message to former customers announcing a new product line" must comply, and warns against assuming that messages to people with an ongoing commercial relationship are transactional. It does not make permission the rule: its section on subscribers and members says you do not need members' consent to send them marketing email, but they keep the right to opt out.
systeme.io is stricter: imported and hand-added contacts need explicit consent, and bought lists are forbidden. Its spam-complaint guide adds that consent must fit what you send. Treat a signed contract as covering project emails, not a newsletter, and ask.
| Who | Add them? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Current client | After a yes | Ask in a one-to-one email, not inside the report. |
| Past client | After a yes | Ask once. systeme.io suggests reconfirming contacts you have not reached in a long time; your ask does that. |
| Prospect in a follow-up series | After a separate yes | Ask at the end of the series. |
| Directory, scraped or bought list | No | systeme.io forbids bought lists and says a public address is not necessarily an opt-in address. |
The ask
Subject: A short monthly SEO email: would you like it?
Hi [first name],
I am starting a short monthly email for [clients and past clients]. Each one has a single search check you can do yourself in about [10] minutes, such as [checking your holiday hours on your Business Profile]. It never includes anyone's site details.
Would you like it? Reply "yes" and I will add you. If I do not hear back, I will not add you or ask again. Every issue has an unsubscribe link, and you can reply "stop" at any time.
[Your name]
[Business name] · [phone]
Send it one to one and keep it to the question; an ask with an offer needs the same footer as an issue. Record each yes with the date, the context and your exact wording, as systeme.io's guide to compliant lists recommends.
What the FTC guide expects in every issue
The guide sorts content into commercial, transactional or relationship, and "other". A mix of commercial and other content is commercial if a reader of the subject line would likely conclude that it advertises a product or service, or a reader of the body would likely conclude that promotion is its primary purpose; where the commercial content sits, how much space it takes and how it is highlighted all count. A tips issue that mentions your services can cross that line, so treat every issue as commercial.
| Requirement | The FTC guide, paraphrased | In each issue |
|---|---|---|
| Header information | "From", "To", "Reply-To" and routing information must be accurate and identify who sent it. | Your name, business and domain; a reply address you read. |
| Subject line | Must accurately reflect the content. | Name the month's check. |
| Identify it as an ad | Clearly and conspicuously; the law leaves leeway in how. | One line in the footer. |
| Postal address | A street address, a PO box registered with the US Postal Service, or a private mailbox registered with a commercial mail receiving agency. | In the footer. |
| Opt-out notice | Clear, by reply or another easy online method; a menu must include stopping all marketing email; your spam filter must not block requests. | Unsubscribe link plus "reply stop". |
| Subscribers and members | An ongoing relationship does not remove the right to opt out; a message with no opt-out must fit a transactional or relationship category. | Clients get the same footer. |
| Honor opt-outs | Within 10 business days; working for at least 30 days after sending; no fee, nothing beyond an email address; not sold or transferred, except to a company helping you comply. | Act the same or next business day. |
| Others who send for you | You cannot contract responsibility away; the promoted company and the sender may both be liable. | The settings are your job. |
The guide lists civil penalties of up to $53,088 for each separate email in violation.
A plain-language summary of the FTC's business guide, not legal advice. It covers US federal law only; if anyone on your list is in another country, check the rules where they live.
A 12-month topic calendar
A hypothetical calendar for a list of local service businesses. One check per issue, each one an owner can do alone. Move months to fit your readers' seasons.
| Month | Topic | The reader's check |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | Which searches found you | Search Console, Performance report: the queries with the most clicks (the default view covers three months). |
| Feb | Pages not indexed | Page indexing report: is an important page Not indexed? Google says not to expect every URL to be indexed. See indexing statuses. |
| Mar | Profile details | Business Profile: do the hours, phone number and website link match the site? |
| Apr | Reviews | Business Profile: read new reviews. Google says the business must be verified before it can reply, and approved replies are posted publicly under the review. |
| May | Summer holiday hours | Business Profile: special hours for summer holidays or a short closure. Google's page says they suit closures of up to 6 days in a row; for 7 or more, mark the business temporarily closed. |
| Jun | Page experience | Core Web Vitals report, built on real-world usage data: any URL groups marked Poor? See Core Web Vitals. |
| Jul | The pages people click | Performance report, Pages: do the five most-clicked pages say what you do, where, and how to reach you? |
| Aug | Before any redesign | List the pages that get clicks before anyone changes addresses. See the redesign checklist. |
| Sep | Who has access | Who can get into Search Console and the Business Profile? Should anyone be gone? |
| Oct | Year-end hours | Business Profile: special hours for the holidays ahead. Google suggests confirming holiday hours even when they match the regular ones. |
| Nov | Seen but not clicked | Performance report: pages with many impressions and few clicks. Read their titles as a searcher would. |
| Dec | The year on one page | What changed on the site this year, and one thing to look at next year. Invite replies. |
- No client details: no names, numbers or screenshots.
- No promises: Google's page on hiring an SEO says "No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google." Say what the check shows, not what it will earn.
An issue template you can copy
Subject: [Month] check: [the check in plain words, for example "your holiday hours"]
Hi [first name],
This month's check takes about [10] minutes: [what to check, and where].
Why it matters: [one sentence on what the reader will find out; no promise about rankings, traffic or sales].
How: [step 1]. [Step 2]. [Step 3].
If you see [problem], start with [first fix]. Google's help page on it: [link].
From me: [one line, such as when you have room for a project]. Reply with what you found and I will tell you whether it is worth fixing.
[Your name]
[Business name] · [phone]
You are getting this because you asked for a monthly SEO email from [your name] at [business name]. This email is an advertisement for [business name]'s SEO services.
[Business name], [street address, registered PO box or private mailbox], [city], [state] [ZIP]
To stop all marketing emails from me, use the unsubscribe link in this email or reply "stop".
[On systeme.io's free plan:] The "Sent with systeme.io" link at the end of this email is a paid link. I may earn a commission if you sign up through it.
Why the last line: systeme.io calls that footer line an affiliate link, and the FTC's endorsement FAQ says "Paid link" right next to an affiliate link should be adequate.
Before each send: the subject names the check, the one link works, the footer is complete, and opt-outs since the last issue are applied.
How to measure it without promising results
The newsletter's job is to be useful and easy to answer. systeme.io's spam-complaint guide suggests watching, after each send, complaints, bounces, unsubscribes, clicks, and open rate "when this data is available and interpretable". Add replies, counted by hand.
| Issue | Sent to | Replies | Unsubscribes | Bounces | Complaints | Clicks | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Month] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [topic, anything unusual] |
- Replies show a topic was useful. Keep the questions for next year's calendar.
- A jump in complaints after one issue: systeme.io's guide says to stop sending to the whole list and look at the contacts' source, the content, subject, frequency and volume. Treat a jump in unsubscribes the same way.
- Where to look: the Email activity filter in CRM, Contacts shows who has not opened or clicked since a date. For other figures, see what your account shows after the first send.
- What not to write: that the newsletter improves rankings, brings leads or pays for itself.
Set it up in systeme.io
As listed on systeme.io's pricing page on 29 October 2026:
| Pricing page row | Free | Startup ($17 per month, monthly billing) |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts | 2,000 | 5,000 |
| Tags | 1 | 10 |
| Email newsletters | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Email campaigns | 1 | 10 |
| Automation rules | 1 | 10 |
One tag means one list. The newsletter help article lists an existing tag as a requirement: an issue reaches only contacts with a selected tag, and one excluded tag overrides any included ones. With one tag, every issue goes to everyone who has it: fine for one list of clients and past clients. If that tag already does another job, such as starting the Tag added rule in Part B of the walkthrough, tagging a reader starts that rule too; systeme.io's tagging page warns that adding a tag can trigger the actions tied to it. For one such job, see onboarding emails started by a tag.
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Authenticate your sending domain
Profile picture, Settings, Emails; in Domains, follow the link to authenticate, enter the domain without "www" and Save. Add the three CNAME records and the DMARC record at your domain host, then contact support, as the help article asks. Per that article, authentication is mandatory, the domain needs an active website, personal webmail domains are refused, and a domain works in one account only.
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Confirm your sender and test addresses
Settings, Emails, Verified email addresses, Click here to confirm your email address; enter an address on your domain, Save, then open the link in the email and click Confirm. In Testing, enter and confirm a test address other than your sender, as systeme.io recommends.
-
Set the unsubscribe link and footer
Tick Display "Unsubscribe from campaign" link and set its text per language. Under Footer text, choose your sender address or domain, paste the footer from the template and Save. The help article describes the link as unsubscribing from "your email campaign" and does not say whether newsletters show it, so check the first live issue you receive. On the free plan the "Sent with systeme.io" line stays.
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Create the tag and tag the people who said yes
CRM, Tags, Create, a Tag name such as "monthly-tips", Save. For existing contacts: CRM, Contacts, select them, More actions, Add tag, Add tag to contacts. New ones: Create contact, Email, Language, the tag, Save. Add yourself, so every live issue reaches you. For a public form, see the lead magnet article; tags can be added automatically through automation rules, but the free plan lists one rule, so if it already runs a follow-up sequence, tag new readers by hand.
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Write the issue
Emails, Newsletters, Create; enter the subject, sender name and sender address, and pick an editor. Classic suits plain text; switching editors loses the work in the current one. In the email settings, choose your tag under Select contacts by tag.
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Test, then send or schedule
Save and test sends a copy to your test address; the sender must be verified first, and variables are not filled in on tests. Then Save and send, or Save and schedule for a date and time.
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Handle replies and opt-outs
Each business day, check your inbox and spam folder for "stop" replies. Then CRM, Contacts, select the contact, More actions, Unsubscribe from all marketing emails, and note the date. Do the same for anyone who unsubscribes through the footer link, since the help pages do not say how far that link reaches.
Automatic list cleaning (Settings, Emails) runs weekly and can unsubscribe or delete contacts who have not opened any email for 1 to 26 weeks. If you use it, pick a window that suits one email a month, and prefer unsubscribing: per the help article, unsubscribed contacts stay in your list, while deleting also removes their sales records.
For the sending domain, footer and a follow-up campaign on the same free account, see Part B of the walkthrough.
Sources
- Scope, former customers, primary purpose, subscribers and members, requirements, opt-outs, liability, penalties:CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business (FTC)
- Labeling affiliate links: FTC's Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking (FTC)
- Unprompted email from SEOs, no guaranteed #1 ranking: Do you need an SEO? (Google Search Central)
- Search Console Help: Performance report; Page indexing report; Core Web Vitals report
- Business Profile Help: special hours; reviews
- Plan rows, Startup price, free plan FAQ including inactive accounts (as listed on 29 October 2026):systeme.io/pricing
- Newsletters, tag selection, verified sender for tests: article 358; test address, variables in tests: article 290
- Tags: article 303, article 348; contacts and consent: article 310, article 238
- Domain: article 316; sender: article 2070; unsubscribe link, footer, "Sent with systeme.io": article 2008
- Email activity filter, unsubscribe from all: article 139; automatic list cleaning: article 4216
- Permission, purchased lists: article 363; reconfirmation, consent records, bought lists:article 11009; consent fit, public addresses, metrics, complaints: How to reduce spam complaints