If you’re in B2B sales or marketing and need to actually reach decision-makers (not just spam a list), email is still your best bet. But just blasting out newsletters from your Gmail account isn’t going to cut it. If you’re using Microsoft Dynamics, you’ve got a lot of tools for building real campaigns—if you know where to look, and what to skip.
This guide is for folks who want to set up targeted, effective email marketing in Dynamics without drowning in jargon or pointless features. We’ll walk through the real steps, point out what’s worth your time, and flag what to ignore.
1. Get Your Dynamics House in Order
Before you even think about writing an email, you need the basics sorted out.
- Licensing: You’ll need Dynamics 365 Marketing (not just Sales). If you’re not sure what you have, check with your admin. The regular Sales module won’t cut it for email campaigns.
- Permissions: Make sure you can actually create marketing emails and segments. If you see a bunch of “access denied” messages, you’re missing permissions.
- Data Quality: Garbage in, garbage out. If your contacts are a mess—old emails, duplicates, missing names—fix that first. Dynamics isn’t magic.
Pro tip: If your data’s a disaster, stop here. Emailing the wrong people will do more harm than good.
2. Build a Clean, Useful Contact List
Dynamics calls these “segments,” and you can get fancy with dynamic rules, but don’t overcomplicate it at first.
How to create a segment: 1. Go to the Marketing app in Dynamics. 2. Under “Customers,” select “Segments.” 3. Choose “New segment” and pick either Static (one-time list) or Dynamic (auto-updating based on criteria).
What actually works: - Start broad, then refine: Don’t try to build the perfect segment with 15 rules. Start with something like “all contacts with work emails in the construction industry,” then tighten it up. - Always exclude internal emails and competitors. Easy to forget, and awkward if you don’t. - Test segmentation: Pull a sample and spot-check. If you see weird entries, fix your criteria.
Ignore: The temptation to sync every single CRM field. Most of it won’t be useful for email targeting.
3. Set Up Your Email Marketing Basics
Think of this as your email campaign “plumbing.” If you skip this, expect deliverability headaches.
- Authenticate your sending domain: DKIM and SPF records need to be set for your email domain, so your messages don’t get flagged as spam. This usually means a quick chat with IT.
- Compliance settings: Add your company’s physical address and a clear unsubscribe link. Dynamics handles most of this, but double-check.
- Subscription centers: Microsoft makes you set these up for compliance. Use a simple one—just a page where users can opt out or choose different types of emails.
What’s worth your time: Making sure your emails actually land in inboxes, not spam folders. Everything else is secondary.
4. Create Your First Marketing Email
Here’s where everything either gets fun or frustrating.
- In Dynamics, go to “Marketing Emails.”
- Click “New,” then pick a template (if you want) or start from scratch.
- Use the drag-and-drop designer to add content blocks: text, images, buttons, etc.
Best practices that actually matter: - Keep it short: B2B folks don’t have time for long-winded intros. - Use a clear subject line: Not “Quarterly Solutions Update”—try “Cut vendor onboarding time by 30%.” - Personalize, but don’t get creepy: “Hi [First Name]” is fine. “We saw you looked at our pricing page” isn’t, unless you’re sure it’s relevant. - One call to action: You want them to book a call, download a whitepaper, or reply. Don’t ask for all three.
Things to ignore: Over-the-top graphics or anything that looks like a retail coupon. B2B audiences see right through it.
Pro tip: Always send a test email to yourself and a colleague. Check how it looks on mobile and desktop.
5. Set Up (Simple) Automation
Dynamics offers “Customer Journeys”—basically automation flows. You can spend days fiddling with these, but start simple.
- Go to “Customer Journeys.”
- Click “New,” and pick a template (e.g., “simple email campaign”).
- Add your segment as the target audience.
- Add your email as the action.
Start with: - One email to a segment. - Wait a week. - Follow-up email only to those who didn’t open/click.
What works: Basic sequences. Complicated multi-branch journeys sound fun, but usually just confuse you and your prospects.
Ignore: Triggers like “when someone visits our website 3 times in 5 days.” Unless you have a big, active audience, this is overkill.
6. Test Everything (and Expect Weirdness)
Here’s the honest truth: marketing emails break in weird ways, and Dynamics is no exception.
- Spam filters: Even if your IT swears “everything is set up,” test with Gmail, Outlook, and a personal email address.
- Links: Make sure all links point to the right place, and that tracking works.
- Rendering: Emails look different in Apple Mail vs. Outlook. Check the basics—don’t obsess.
What matters: Does the email show up, can you read it, does the call to action work? Don’t sweat pixel-perfection.
7. Hit Send—But Monitor Closely
Once you’re happy, schedule or send your campaign.
- Monitor delivery and open rates: Dynamics gives you basic analytics. If open rates are below 10%, you’ve got a deliverability issue (or your subject line is terrible).
- Check bounces and unsubscribes: High bounce rates mean bad data. Lots of unsubscribes? Your list or messaging is off.
- Reply handling: Make sure someone is monitoring the inbox your emails come from. B2B prospects might reply directly.
Ignore: Vanity metrics like “impressions” or “reach.” Focus on replies, meetings booked, or qualified leads.
8. Learn, Adjust, and Don’t Overthink It
Every campaign is a learning experience. Don’t expect perfection.
- Tweak subject lines and calls to action. Small changes make a big difference.
- Prune your segments. If people never open, stop emailing them.
- Don’t get distracted: Fancy features (A/B testing, AI scoring, etc.) are only useful after you’ve nailed the basics.
Pro tip: Keep a simple doc with what you tried, what worked, and what bombed. Your future self will thank you.
Final Thoughts
Setting up B2B email marketing in Dynamics isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to get stuck fiddling with settings no one cares about. Nail the basics: good lists, simple emails, and honest measurement. Start small, iterate, and don’t buy into the hype. The best campaigns are usually the least complicated.
Now go send something useful—and see what happens.