Email marketing is the bread and butter for most marketers because it generates the most ROI compared to other marketing channels. With most brands implementing an inbound methodology, marketers choose email marketing as the best way to build trust and increase sales. The potential customer approaches you with a problem and subscribes to your emails in the hopes of being educated and finding a solution to their problems. At this critical time, if they don’t receive your emails, you lose a valuable lead and the fault may lie with the email service provider (ESP) you use (or your email design is flagged as SPAM).
If you are wondering what an ESP is, or if you are having issues with your current ESP, this article is for you.
Role of the messaging service provider
Now, to send an email and have it delivered to the Anguilla Email List customer’s inbox, you need to send it through an email server that acts as a media. While webmail services like Gmail, Yahoo, or AOL can send/receive emails, they are only useful for sending one-on-one sales emails. You cannot rely on them for marketing emails because sending a large number of emails through them will mark your emails as SPAM. To avoid this deadly path, specialized platforms are created that allow you to send email to your entire mailing list at once called email service provider.
ESPs have other features built in, making them the first choice for any email marketer, such as:
Extensive library of email templates
Database and application API integration
Mailing list segmentation and management tools
A / B test capability
Automated sending of emails
Post-shipment analysis
How to choose an ESP
Setting up an ESP involves an investment of money and time, so marketers should choose one that meets their current needs while being ready for the future. When choosing an ESP, always consider the following prerequisites:
Costing : In the field of ESP, there is one for each type of budget. There are free ESPs like Mailchimp that offer a user-friendly email editor, premium email template library, email automation workflows, and email campaign analytics for next to nothing. that you send less than 2,000 emails per month. While that sounds like a good deal, the email template is not yours and the footer will contain the Mailchimp banner. Additionally, you can only send 10 campaigns per month. This is a great option for someone who is just starting out or is on a tight budget. (PS: their paid program is also cheap compared to others and has competing features.) On the other end of the spectrum you have enterprise level ESPs like Act-on, DotMailer that provide top features. range in the form of heat maps in emails. , dynamic content, support for CSS interactivity, but it is only suitable for marketing agencies or global brands as the price starts from $ 900 per month.
Deliverability Standards : All emails you send are scanned by an ISP on the user side before being delivered. If the IP address you send your emails to is blacklisted, the ISP filter will not allow your emails to pass. Since you will be using an ESP to send your emails, you need to make sure that they give you good deliverability. Check for industry-approved authentication methods such as SPF, SenderID, DomainKeys, DKIM, and DMARC. Ask for the option of a dedicated IP address, as this ensures that you are not blocked because someone else has sent SPAM using the IP address you share with them. Learn about the different types of reputation support such as whitelists and feedback loops.
API Integration Support : Sending emails is a process that is constantly being improved based on the performance of previous campaigns. This requires the participation of 3 apps third party / plugins to monitor some settings that your ESP will not provide. Check if your email service provider supports API integration for the tools you use to perform analytics.
Scalability : Since you have a mailing list of <2000 subscribers, you decide to go for the free ESP model. Will your ESP have the capacity to send emails when your mailing list explodes to over 20,000 subscribers? Does it support adding additional users to your plan? Check the scalability of your ESP based on email volume, speed, lists, and other factors.
Customer Support : Imagine you scheduled an email to be sent early in the morning but due to an ESP server downtime, the campaign could not be delivered. Does your email service provider handle customer support at irregular hours? Research the frequency and pattern of downtime, and learn about ESP’s downtime crisis management plan.
Ease of use : Are the specified features easy to use? Is the FAQ section easily accessible? How quickly is customer service responding? Do you need technical knowledge to operate the platform? Does your ESP provide a digital grip when needed?
