subject: Choosing The Right Email Marketing Solution [print this page] How do you choose an email marketing solution that is right for your needs? Email marketing has become an increasingly important part of any marketing campaign since, unlike traditional advertising campaigns, an email can be tailored to the particular segment of the audience you are trying to reach. Even better, the intended recipients have opted-in to receive emails, meaning that they are more receptive to your message than those who are unsolicited recipients. Note that unsolicited emails can be considered as spam and may be in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003.
The first step in finding the best email marketing solution, is to determine what your needs are. For example, what kinds of email messages do you need to send? Are you planning to send newsletters or do you need an RSS feed to send your blog posts by email? Do you need an autoresponder that will automatically send follow-up emails? Figure out what you need for your business and write it down so that you can compare it with what the various email marketing packages offer. Of course, you should also consider what your budget is for email marketing so that you ll know how much you can afford to pay.
Next, take a look at what email marketing solution packages are available. You can ask your business colleagues what packages they re using or you can ask for recommendations from professionals that you know from social networking sites. In addition, you can look for online reviews at review sites, which will allow you to check out the features of several packages so you can find the one that best meets your needs. In particular, seek out ones that will let you to try out the service for a trial period.
During the trial period for the email marketing package, evaluate it by looking at the tools that are available with the package such as email and newsletter templates, scheduling features, opt-in forms and email delivery issue management. In addition, the package should be able to integrate with a statistics program such as Google Analytics so that you can monitor the performance of your emails and make the necessary improvements when you find weak points. Just as importantly, you should contact their customer support to check out how responsive they are. Try out several packages to find the one that you feel most comfortable with.
Finally, look at the plans that the providers offer. Even if you think you will just go with the basic package, you may end up deciding that a higher-priced package will be better value in the long run. Keep in mind that an email marketing solution is a cost-effective way of marketing your products compared with traditional methods, so investing in the right solution will not only save you more in the long run but also greatly enhance your business marketing efforts.
