Meet Wendall — our custom-trained AI sidekick.
There’s no doubt the AI is not a “for tomorrow” type thing, but a “you better be on it today” situation.
…and here at Chimp Answers, we’ve been spending a bit of time understanding how we can use AI ourselves.
Yes, there are lots of great things you can do with it, but we’ve been really drilling down into the Mailchimp side of things (as if you didn’t know!), and wanted to give you a “behind the scenes” view of what we do and how we use AI to make things quicker, easier and better… for you.
…and at the core of everything we do with Mailchimp is Wendall.
Wendall knows our brand voice. He understands how we think about Mailchimp. He even knows the difference between a well-timed welcome email and a sad, lonely broadcast sent into the void.
Wendall is part of the team.
Now, don’t get us wrong. We’re not handing him the keys to the email kingdom. But we are letting him ride shotgun—giving us nudges, shortcuts, and sometimes a full-on map when we’re stuck.
This isn’t about letting AI take over. It’s about getting our brains (and yours) back.
Before we get into things, we want to address the elephant in the room… how Mailchimp itself uses AI…
What about Mailchimp’s own AI?
OK, so we’re not here to start taking pot shots at Mailchimp’s use of AI… in fact for many it’s a really good and simple way of bringing in tone of voice and other elements and making it easier to actually create the right style of email.
…but here’s the problem with Mailchimp’s version of AI.
It’s generic…. i.e. it’s the same for everyone.
If you draft an email and then get Mailchimp to make it more “humourous”, it’s not going to adopt your own personality, knowledge and experience… because it doesn’t know it (yet).
It’s going to produce something that’s definitely a bit different to what you’ve done… but it’s not going to be you… your voice… your tone… your personality.
…and that’s where we think there’s an opportunity for us to take a few steps (and a few more) down the road to make AI bespoke to us.
Hence our work on Wendall.
So, with that in mind, here’s how we use Wendall to make life easier and get more done.
1. Idea Creation Without the Blank Page Panic
Ever opened a new doc and instantly forgotten everything you ever knew?
Yeah, that’s us.
That’s where Wendall shines. He’s our idea buddy. Our brainstorming wingman. Our “what if we tried it this way?” generator.
Whether we’re planning a blog series, developing a new service, or just trying to figure out the next best freebie to offer, Wendall gives us a starting point. Sometimes it’s gold. Sometimes it’s way off. But either way, it’s better than staring at the blinking cursor of doom.
And honestly? He’s faster than a flipchart and less judgy than a whiteboard full of half-baked ideas.
💡 Bonus Tip:
Use your own “Wendall” to explore angles you hadn’t considered. Want to do a blog on segmentation? Ask him for 10 metaphors. Want to launch a new quiz? Ask him to sketch out potential questions and outcomes. Even if you don’t use them all, you’ll unlock ideas you wouldn’t have reached on your own.
2. Content Creation and Formatting: Faster, Smarter, Sharper
We truly believe the following when it comes to email marketing:
If we had unlimited time, we’d send a personal, individual email to everyone in our audience… but we don’t – so end up sending the same email to everyone
With AI, we may not have unlimited time, but it compresses time, which can make a big difference in what you do.
It means we can get closer to the goal of a completely bespoke email for each user, based on data we’ve captured… and taking less time to do it than we used to creating one email for everyone.
That’s not wishful thinking. That’s Wendall.
We’ve trained him to know our voice, understand our tone, and reflect how we speak to our different audiences—from Mailchimp beginners to seasoned senders and agencies.
So when we need to create emails, nurture flows, landing pages or blogs, he helps us shape it all, fast. Not just one version either—he adapts the content to different segments and avatars. Tailored, relevant, and most importantly, done.
Then he formats it. Buttons, headers, spacing, structure—even HTML-ready if needed. No more copying and pasting from a Google Doc that never quite behaves.
And if we want to send one email with multiple messages inside? Wendall helps us convert it into dynamic content, so each segment gets their version without us sending five separate campaigns.
This is the big time saver for us.
Previously creating 5 variations of the same email targeted at our 5 core segments took us forever (to be honest, it was something that we rarely did due to the limitations of time).
Nowadays though… we create custom versions of every email for each section of our audience, specifically tailored to them based on what we know about them – which makes us more relevant to them.
More relevance. Less repetition. Massive time saved.
💡 Bonus Tip:
Have your own “Wendall” generate variations on subject lines, preview text, and even button text. Want to test a “fear of missing out” version versus a “value-driven” version? Ask Wendall to write an A/B test with confidence.
3. Analysis That’s Actually Actionable
We don’t just want open rates. We want insights.
This is where Wendall stops being a clever copywriter and turns into a strategic sidekick.
He reviews campaigns, landing pages, automations, and forms—spotting what’s working and what’s quietly tanking in the background (and it’s not just ours he helps with… when we do a Mailchimp Health Check, he steps in to support.
Is your welcome email the real MVP? Or is it quietly ghosting new subscribers? Wendall will tell you.
He highlights weak subject lines, underperforming CTAs, and even spots trends in subscriber drop-off or form fatigue.
And when it comes to your Mailchimp data, Wendall helps us slice and dice without slicing our sanity. He flags segments that are flatlining, points out missing tags, or helps us clean up lists that are costing money without delivering results.
Less staring at spreadsheets. More doing something useful.
💡 Bonus Tip:
Not sure where to focus first? Have your version of Wendall look at your last three campaigns and identify the lowest-performing metric. Then ask what changes might improve that stat—whether it’s subject lines, timing, or call-to-action clarity.
4. Time Back in the Tank
Here’s the magic.
Wendall doesn’t just save time—he gives it back.
Because he handles the heavy lifting, we spend less time formatting emails, building segments, or wondering if we’ve already written a blog on that topic (answer: yes, and Wendall found it).
That means we can focus on the stuff AI can’t do:
• Building real relationships with clients.
• Solving complex strategy problems.
• Teaching. Coaching. Creating.
Basically, all the stuff that requires a beating heart, a spark of creativity, and a bit of hard-earned experience.
💡 Bonus Tip:
Use the time saved to revisit the big picture. Take a few hours you would’ve spent writing and use it to audit your full email journey. Where are people dropping off? Where’s the next opportunity? Wendall can help highlight these too.
Final Thoughts: AI Isn’t a Shortcut. It’s a Superpower.
Wendall isn’t magic. But he is mighty helpful.
He doesn’t replace us.
He amplifies what we do.
Helps us move quicker.
Think clearer.
And show up more consistently with less chaos.
He’s a co-pilot. And for anyone DIY-ing their Mailchimp setup, strategy, or content, having a Wendall in your corner can be a game-changer.
Want to Develop Your Own Wendall?
Book a 121 with us and let’s see how AI could help you build smarter, send better, and get more done (without needing a time machine).
