If you’re running outbound email campaigns—maybe for sales, recruiting, or fundraising—you know the pain: you send a bunch of messages, then stare at a spreadsheet and wonder what’s actually working. Open rates, click tracking, replies, conversions...it’s easy to lose track and even easier to waste time on “analytics” that don’t mean much. This guide is for you: practical, straight-talking advice on how to use Yamm (short for Yet Another Mail Merge) to track your outbound emails and figure out what’s really moving the needle.
No fluff, no marketing-speak—just a clear path from setup to real results.
Step 1: What Yamm Actually Is (and Isn’t)
Yamm is a Google Sheets add-on that lets you send personalized emails in bulk using your Gmail account. You build your contact list in Google Sheets, write an email draft in Gmail, and Yamm merges it all together. It’s popular for a reason: it’s dead simple, cheap, and doesn’t require you to mess with complicated software or email servers.
But here’s what Yamm doesn’t do: - It’s not a full marketing automation tool. - It won’t manage replies for you. - It won’t A/B test subject lines automatically. - It’s not built for cold mass outreach at spammy volumes (if you want to blast 10,000 strangers, look elsewhere).
If you’re sending a few hundred targeted, personalized emails at a time, Yamm is a solid choice. If not, you’re probably better off with something else.
Step 2: Set Up Your Contact List in Google Sheets
Yamm pulls contacts from a Google Sheet, so this is where you start.
Create a Google Sheet with columns like:
- First Name
- Last Name
- Email Address
- Company
- Anything else you want to personalize (e.g., Custom Message, Referral Source)
Pro tips:
- Double-check email addresses for typos. Yamm won’t warn you if you’re about to send to a fake address.
- Avoid emailing people who’ve unsubscribed or opted out. (It’s not just polite—it’s the law in a lot of places.)
- If you want to track campaign-specific data, add a Campaign column. Makes life easier down the road.
Step 3: Draft Your Email in Gmail
You write the actual email in Gmail, but use “merge tags” to personalize each message. For example:
Subject: Quick question for {{First Name}} at {{Company}}
Hi {{First Name}},
I saw that {{Company}} recently...
- Keep it short and to the point. The more your email looks like a real human wrote it, the better.
- Avoid images and fancy formatting—simple text gets better deliverability.
- Don’t overdo the personalization. Using someone’s name three times in one paragraph is a red flag.
What to ignore:
People obsess over perfect subject lines and slick HTML. In reality, relevance and clarity beat cleverness every time.
Step 4: Set Up Tracking in Yamm
Here’s where Yamm earns its keep. Basic tracking is built in, but it’s not magic.
What Yamm Tracks (and How)
- Opens: Yamm inserts a tiny invisible pixel into each email. If someone’s email client loads images, Yamm marks the email as “opened.”
- Reality check: Some people block images, so “opens” are always undercounted.
- Clicks: If you add links, Yamm can track who clicks them.
- Reality check: Click tracking is more reliable than open tracking, but some folks copy/paste links or have privacy blockers.
- Replies: Yamm can’t directly track replies. You’ll need to do this yourself by monitoring your inbox or using Gmail filters.
How to enable tracking: - When you’re ready to send, hit the “Start Mail Merge” button in your Google Sheet (the Yamm add-on). - Make sure to check the boxes for “Track emails opened” and “Track emails clicked.” - Send a few test emails to yourself first. Always.
What to ignore:
If you see “100% open rates,” don’t believe it. Some email clients auto-load images, some never load them. Use open rates for trends, not gospel truth.
Step 5: Launch the Campaign
- Double-check your merge tags (nothing kills credibility like “Hi {{First Name}}”).
- Start small. Send to a handful of contacts as a test.
- Once you’re sure it works, send to the full list.
Yamm sending limits (as of 2024): - Free Gmail accounts: ~50–100 emails/day. - Google Workspace (paid): ~1,500 emails/day.
Go slow. If you try to push past limits, Google can temporarily block your account.
Step 6: Review Results in the Yamm Dashboard
Yamm adds tracking data right to your Google Sheet.
You’ll see columns like:
- EMAIL_SENT
- EMAIL_OPENED
- EMAIL_CLICKED
- ERROR (if the email bounced)
What these mean:
- EMAIL_OPENED = TRUE → The pixel loaded. The person might’ve actually read it… or maybe it was just their email preview.
- EMAIL_CLICKED = TRUE → Someone clicked a link. That’s usually a real signal.
Be skeptical: - High open rates, no replies? Maybe your subject line was good, but your message missed. - Zero clicks? Maybe you buried your call-to-action. - Lots of errors? Clean your list.
Don’t chase vanity metrics.
Open rates and clicks are useful for spotting problems, not bragging rights. What matters is replies or real conversions (sales, sign-ups, whatever your goal is).
Step 7: Measure Real ROI (Not Just Opens and Clicks)
Here’s where most people get it wrong—they stop at open rates and feel good (or bad). ROI means tracking what actually matters to your business.
Ways to connect email sends to real results:
- Track replies manually:
- Set up Gmail filters or labels for campaign replies.
- Use your Google Sheet to log responses (add a
RepliedorInterestedcolumn).
- Use unique links:
- Point your call-to-action to a unique URL for each campaign. Use UTM parameters so you can see traffic in Google Analytics.
- If it’s a calendar booking, use a unique Calendly or booking link.
- Log sales or conversions:
- When someone converts (books a meeting, buys, signs up), mark it in your Sheet.
- Calculate your conversion rate:
# of conversions / # of emails sent
- Calculate ROI:
- What’s your cost (time, Yamm subscription, etc.) vs. the revenue or value generated?
- If you’re selling a $500 product and you get 2 sales from 100 emails, that’s $1,000 from a few hours’ work.
Pro tips: - Don’t get lost in the weeds. If you’re spending more time tracking than emailing, you’re doing it wrong. - You don’t need fancy dashboards. For most small teams, a Google Sheet and pen-and-paper math is enough.
Step 8: Rinse, Repeat, and Improve
Outbound email isn’t a “set it and forget it” game. It’s trial and error.
- Review your Sheet after each campaign. What worked? What flopped?
- Tweak your message, subject line, or list based on actual replies and conversions—not just open rates.
- Keep your lists clean. Remove bounced emails and unsubscribes.
Ignore the hype:
There’s no secret template or tool that’ll guarantee results. The best campaigns are targeted, honest, and persistent.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
You don’t need a $500/month tool to get real value from outbound email. Yamm, Google Sheets, and a little discipline go a long way. Focus on tracking what actually matters (replies, conversions, ROI), not just opens and clicks. Start simple, learn as you go, and don’t let “best practices” get in the way of actually sending good, useful emails.
Good luck—and remember: the only metric that really matters is whether your emails get real replies from real people. Everything else is just noise.