email marketing software

[shandy]

Help needed...
I have read some of the posts, but I am a bit unsure if I got it all right.
There is talk about email marketing service - is that a company that does it all for you or is it software you buy and do it yourself?

What I need is some advise regarding a software my company is about to buy (I have some input).
An advertising company offered a sortware called mailability. www.mailability.de
Unfortunately the site is in German (I am hoping that there are people on this board that can read German and help)

There spin is that they optimize the text and have tools to analyse what kind of mailigns gets the most replies/reactions. They then tailor the next mailing and target the groups that responded to certain content.
Now is that something quite common and would I be able to get this kind of software anywhere or is it quite specialized?

Thanks a lot

[alfbrand]

Generally running your own email marketing software is not a good idea these days, unless you have a full time email marketing division within your company that can handle your relationships with all of the various ISPs to make sure your mail is getting through. Also, you'll need someone who can ensure all of your mailings are compliant with the latest US federal CAN-SPAM Laws, if you're mailing to US addresses.

A large part of your research should be deliverability. Working with a company that has been whitelisted with the major ISPs like AOL, Yahoo, MSN, etc. will dramatically increse your deliverability rate, and in turn your response rate. it would be very hard to achieve whitelist status yourself.

Can i suggest you take a look at www.verticalresponse.com
I have been using them for years, and have been very happy with my response rate.

They have an on-line solution, with excellent reporting features, including and option to download lists of clickers and/or openers, so you can do a targeted follow up campaign. Another great feature about them is its free to set up an account and you only have to pay them when you mail a campaign. so you can use their entire system for free, which gives you list great management tools and opt-in and opt-out forms for your website.

Anyway hope this answered some of your questions.
Good Luck,
Alf

[shandy]

thanks for the reply Alf

[Delgado]

I work for an email marketing software developer and I believe the feature you are referring to is called a/b messaging, where you have the ability to compose two different emails to launch in the same campaign, but giving each unique adjustments to the creative to measure response success.

That approach is effective in measuring the more effective message, but does require a good database person or other IT guy or girl who is accessible in-house. This a/b messaging feature is present in more higher-end email marketing software products, including the one I work with, which is viewable from the first link in my signature.

BTW there is a translation tool for IE on the Google tool bar that will translate html text to English. The mailability website you are referring to did not have its pricing posted, so I can't tell what price range your company is looking. But if your lists are large, and growing, and you are looking to use your database to optimize your response rates, your company should be looking at the higher-end of the email marketing spectrum.

[John Glube]

Help needed...
I have read some of the posts, but I am a bit unsure if I got it all right.
There is talk about email marketing service - is that a company that does it all for you or is it software you buy and do it yourself?

Email service provider (based on the email service provider coalition) is the name given to a company which does the mailings for the client.

We need to keep in mind there are generally two categories:

* Firms which provide sequential auto-responders along with email broadcasting capability; and,

* Firms which provide list management capability.

Most of the providers referenced in this forum fall into the second category.

Some firms will simply do the mailings and the client provides the content. Other firms also provide templates.

Other firms offer a managed solution in which the firm writes the copy, does the mailings and so forth.

In comparing apples to apples, one needs to go through the benefits list.

However, as Alf Brand notes of significant import for delivery is being 'white listed' at the network server level, particularly with the big mailbox providers like AOL, British Telecom, Comcast, Earthlink, Microsoft and Yahoo!.

This is doable for larger firms who do their own mailings, but presently it is awkward for most small firms.

For this reason, a lot of people are now recommending to farm out your mailings to a 3rd party - an email service provider.

What I need is some advise regarding a software my company is about to buy (I have some input).
An advertising company offered a sortware called mailability. www.mailability.de
Unfortunately the site is in German (I am hoping that there are people on this board that can read German and help)

There spin is that they optimize the text and have tools to analyse what kind of mailigns gets the most replies/reactions. They then tailor the next mailing and target the groups that responded to certain content.

Now is that something quite common and would I be able to get this kind of software anywhere or is it quite specialized?

Thanks a lot

From reading the material (difficult, because even with google's translation tool we still get the sentence with the verb end and the site material is somewhat coy) it looks like the software provider is offering:

* content testing for filters, split testing, list segmentation and some sort of managed solution as far as doing the mailings.

This looks like a high end solution and these are features which a number of other software providers do offer.

These features are also offered by a number of email service providers.

It seems from the web site for mailability that in essence there market focus is advertising agencies who outsource their mailings.

Here it seems the software firm is hosting the software and sending out the mailings, but the client is given access to the software and provides the content.

This is more akin to an email service provider solution, than an email marketing software solution.

Typically, when looking at email marketing software, depending on list size and other factors:

* The client places the software on her computer and does the mailings by accessing her web host's virtual mailserver through port access; or

* The software is hosted on the client's server and the client does the mailings either through port access from her computer, or through a web interface using a control panel.

(These sets up are most typical in the SOHO, although there is no reason why it won't work with the small and medium size firm, except the IT department likes to control the mailings.)

At the high volume/price end, you see:

* software hosted on client's server, client does mailings; or

* software hosted by the service provider, but the client does does the mailings.

My point? The full feature set offered by mailability.de is also offered by a couple of other European and North American email marketing software providers. You just need to do some shopping.

If you are looking for an email service provider - two solutions - both American based - Aweber or Bighip.

If you are looking for an email software solution at the high end - Mailworkz.com, Arialsoftware.com, Lsoft.com and Lyris.com.

Trusting these comments are of some help.

John Glube
Toronto, Canada

[mlevenhagen]

Shandy,

Here is a Suggestion:

Constant Contact

This one's worth checking out. This is who I use for my newletters, promotions, business letters... you name it. It's very affordable and has a lot of good features... I don't know how big your list is.

It's worth getting your free 60 day trial just to watch the FREE Email Marketing 101 Webinar.

Other features:

• Builds and manages your permission-based email lists
  Provides 75+ professional HTML email templates (or create your own)
  Measures email campaign results instantly
  97% email deliverability CAN-SPAM Act compliant
  FREE phone and email support
  And it's in English!

Hope I've helped someone!