💡 How to Use Mailchimp for Cold Emailing — Without Breaking Rules

A cold email is one sent to someone who hasn’t interacted with your business before. While this approach can be effective, it must be done carefully to avoid legal issues and spam filters. In this article, we will analyze the nuances of the mailing list with the help of Mailchimp and other alternative services.

📌 Key Considerations:

1. Understand GDPR: In the EU, emailing people without consent is risky. You need either explicit permission or a legitimate interest. B2B emails are allowed under certain conditions, but you should always provide an easy opt-out.
2. Clean Your List Before Uploading: Remove duplicates, invalid emails, or people who never agreed to receive emails from you.
3. Upload to Mailchimp Safely:
   • Go to Audience → Manage Contacts → Import contacts
   • Clearly mark which contacts have consent (use tags or groups)
   • Avoid uploading lists purchased or scraped from the internet
4. Warm Up Cold Leads: Don’t start with a sales pitch. Send value-driven emails first — guides, helpful articles, or invitations to webinars.
5. Use Tags and Segments: This lets you target people based on interests or behaviors, increasing engagement and reducing unsubscribes.
6. A/B Test Your Subject Lines and Content: Mailchimp allows you to test different versions of an email to see what works best.

🔄 Mailchimp vs. Alternatives: Which Email Tools Compete?

While Mailchimp is popular, it’s not the only player in the game. Depending on your goals, there are several powerful platforms that offer unique features — some are even better suited for cold outreach and local EU compliance.

Let’s look at the top alternatives, including a rising star: Bravo.

💬 Why Consider Bravo?

Bravo is gaining popularity among European users because it strikes a balance between automation, cold email outreach, and ease of use. It’s especially useful if you’re looking to:

• Combine cold and opt-in campaigns from one dashboard
• Track replies and lead activity in real time
• Avoid deliverability issues with smart warm-up tools
• Keep your campaigns GDPR-compliant with built-in privacy settings

Bravo’s customer support also receives high marks — and for small businesses or agencies working in multiple languages, that can be a huge plus.

🚫 How to Stay Out of the Spam Folder (And Save Your Sender Reputation)

Spam filters are more advanced than ever, and cold emails are at higher risk. Here’s how to avoid major pitfalls when using Mailchimp (or any platform):

✅ Do:

• Use verified sender email domains (avoid free Gmail/Yahoo addresses)
• Write human-sounding subject lines (no ALL CAPS or too many exclamation points)
• Include an easy-to-find unsubscribe button
• Add a physical mailing address (Mailchimp requires this by default)

❌ Don’t:

• Send emails to huge cold lists all at once
• Add misleading content or false promises
• Use shady link shorteners like bit.ly
• Ignore bounce rates — they affect your domain reputation

🧼 How to Clean Your List:

Even Mailchimp recommends using email hygiene tools like:

• ZeroBounce
• NeverBounce
• BriteVerify

These tools help remove invalid, inactive, or fake emails from your list — which keeps your bounce rate low and deliverability high.

✉️ Practical Tips for Beginners Using Mailchimp

If you’re new to email marketing or just started using Mailchimp, here are some quick wins:

• Test your subject lines: Mailchimp’s A/B testing tool lets you test open rates.
• Start with 1–2 emails per month: Quality matters more than quantity.
• Segment by interest or engagement: Don’t treat all subscribers the same.
• Use automations: Welcome sequences and follow-up emails save time and convert better.
• Track results: Mailchimp’s dashboard shows opens, clicks, and more.

Also: always preview your email on mobile before sending — over 70% of users check email on their phones.

🔍 Final Thoughts: Is Mailchimp Worth It for Cold Outreach?

Absolutely — but only if used responsibly. While Mailchimp isn’t designed specifically for cold emailing, you can use it for outreach if you follow GDPR, segment your audience smartly, and provide genuine value.

Among all the tools available, Mailchimp remains one of the most widely used platforms — but newer options like Bravo are quickly becoming favorites, especially for businesses targeting cold audiences in the EU.

And remember: no tool will work if your content isn’t relevant, helpful, or human. That’s what keeps your emails out of the spam box and inside inboxes across Europe.