Beginner's Guide to Sending Email Campaigns with BetterMerge

Introduction

This tutorial takes you from an empty Google Sheet to a launched campaign and its first results. It works the same way in the web app and in the Google Sheets add-on, and the Free plan is enough to follow every step.

Along the way you will build a small sample list, write one email that uses merge tags, send yourself a test, and read the campaign report. Each step links to a detailed guide in case you want more.

Use addresses you own

The sample list below uses made-up tenmailer.com addresses so you can see how it works. Before you launch, replace them with addresses you own or have permission to email, such as your own other inboxes.

Step 1: Prepare Your Contact List in Google Sheets

Create a new Google Sheet at sheets.new and type this list into the first sheet tab:

First Name	Email	Company	Topic
Alex	alex.demo@tenmailer.com	Northwind Studio	your spring launch
Priya	priya.demo@tenmailer.com	Bluebird Labs	your onboarding emails
Sam	sam.demo@tenmailer.com	Harbor & Pine	your new menu

Note

• Row 1 must hold the column names. Each column name becomes a merge tag you can use in your email.
• Emails go only to visible rows. To skip someone, hide the row or filter it out. See Skip rows.
• Keep the column that holds email addresses clean. One address per cell.

Step 2: Open BetterMerge

Pick one of the two ways in. Both open the same app, so every later step is identical.

Web app

1. Go to app.bettermerge.com and sign in with Google. The first sign-in asks you to approve the permissions BetterMerge needs. See Web dashboard.
2. On the Dashboard, click New campaign. You can also use New campaign in the left menu.

Google Sheets add-on

1. Open your sample Sheet.
2. Click Extensions > BetterMerge Mail Merge for Gmail™ & Google Sheets™ > Open Dashboard. If you have not installed it yet, follow Install the add-on.
3. In the dashboard that opens inside the Sheet, click New campaign.

Step 3: Create the Campaign

Click Create regular campaign. BetterMerge creates a draft and opens the campaign editor. The editor has six tabs: General, Recipients, Template, Delivery, Preview, and Summary.

On the General tab, change Campaign name to Sample campaign. Only you see this name. The Sender section already shows your Gmail address; leave it as it is.

You do not need to save

BetterMerge saves your draft automatically a couple of seconds after you stop typing. Watch for Saving… and then Saved at the top of the editor. Learn how saving works.

Step 4: Choose Your Recipients

Open the Recipients tab.

1. Next to Google Sheet, click the picker button and choose your sample Sheet.
2. Under Tab, pick the sheet tab that holds your list.
3. Under Email (To) Column, make sure Email is selected. BetterMerge usually picks it for you.

BetterMerge shows how many visible rows the tab has. The final recipient count is confirmed again before you launch.

Step 5: Write Your Email

Open the Template tab. A template is the email you want to send, with merge tags where each person’s details go.

1. Click Write your email (or create a new template if you already have templates). The template editor opens.

2. In Subject, type: A quick idea for {{Company}}

3. In Body, type:

   Hi {{First Name}},
   
   I was reading about {{Topic}} at {{Company}} and had a quick idea to share.
   
   Would you be open to a short chat this week?
   
   Best regards,
   Jamie

A merge tag is a column name inside double curly braces. When the email is sent, {{First Name}} becomes Alex for the first row, Priya for the second, and so on. The name must match the column header exactly, including capital letters and spaces. You can type the tags or insert them from the Merge tags menu. See Create an email template.

The template saves itself as you type. When the header says Saved automatically, click Back to campaign. Your new template is already selected on the Template tab, with a preview of the email.

Step 6: Preview and Send a Test

Open the Preview tab.

1. Use First, Prev, Next, and Last to look at each recipient’s email. The preview fills in that row’s merge tags and shows From, To, and Subject.
2. Under Send a test of this row to, enter your own address and click Send test. The address is filled in with your account email by default.

The test arrives with [Test] in the subject. It is not tracked and does not count toward campaign statistics. You can send a test to up to three addresses at once.

Open the test email in your inbox and check the subject, the greeting, and any links before you continue.

Send tests to yourself, not to the sample list

Tests go to the address you type, not to the recipient on the row. Your sample recipients receive email only when you launch the campaign.

Step 7: Check Tracking and Launch

1. Open the Delivery tab. Turn on Track email opens and Track link clicks if you want to see engagement; both are included on every plan. Track unsubscribes adds an unsubscribe link and records opt-outs. Scheduling and pacing options are optional and can stay off. See Tracking.
2. Open the Summary tab. Under Review before sending, it checks the Sender, Recipients, Template, Merge tags, and Delivery, each with a Review link. The Spam check is optional and uses an AI credit.
3. Click Start campaign at the top right.

A confirmation window shows the Campaign, From, Subject, number of Recipients, Delivery, Tracking, and Pace. If something is missing, a “Finish setting up this campaign” list tells you what, with a link to fix it. When you are ready, click Start campaign. Sent emails cannot be recalled, so check the recipient count first.

Step 8: Read the Results

After you launch, BetterMerge opens the campaign report. A status badge such as In progress or Completed and a progress bar sit at the top, and the Performance panel shows counts for Recipients, Sent, Delivered, Unique opens, Unique clicks, and Unique unsubscribes. Use the refresh button to update the numbers.

Your Google Sheet is updated as well. Two columns named STATUS (Sample campaign) and LOGS (Sample campaign) appear on the right, showing SENT, OPENED, CLICKED and so on for each row, with timestamps.

For a full tour of the report, see How to read the campaign report. When a campaign finishes, BetterMerge also emails you a report.

Next Steps

You have sent your first campaign. Here is where to go next:

• Create a campaign: every tab of the editor in detail, plus saving and recovery.
• Create an email template: formatting, images, and links.
• Schedule a campaign: send at a later date and time (Lite plan and above).
• Manage your contacts: see who is sendable, unsubscribed, or bounced.

Before you send to real customers

• Read the Email sending guidelines and Deliverability best practices.
• New Gmail and Google Workspace accounts have low daily limits set by Google. See Email quotas and Email warm-up.
• Keep your list clean and send only to people who agreed to hear from you. Always give recipients a way to unsubscribe.

Happy sending!