Emailing software: 8 criteria to evaluate before choosing your solution
In 2019, email marketing remains an essential channel for business development, whether for e-tailers, bloggers or NGOs. Inexpensive and highly profitable, emailing also allows you to send individualized messages and bypass the chaos of social media by arriving directly in your recipients' inboxes.
Although it's a fairly simple type of marketing tool to use, not all emailing software is created equal, as it often meets different needs. In this guide, we'll explain what features any self-respecting software should offer. We'll also show you how to define your needs and determine the type of features and pricing model that suits you best.
Confused by the sheer number of providers on the market? Don't worry: after reading this article, you'll know exactly which email marketing software to choose!
The essentials: what emailing software has to offer
The choice of email marketing software depends very much on your needs. That said, there are a number of things that any good emailing solution should offer. So make sure you opt for a tool that guarantees high inbox placement and good ergonomics, so you don't waste unnecessary time creating your campaigns.
High deliverability
For an email campaign to be effective, your emails must first and foremost arrive at their destination, i.e. be delivered to your recipients' inboxes and not end up in the spam folder. To guarantee high deliverability, email marketing software must offer you certain essential services.
Authentication methods
Over the years, messaging systems have set up numerous barriers to intercept spam. The problem is that legitimate messages can often be mistaken for spam. That's why it's essential that your email marketing software offers authentication methods. These allow you to authenticate that you are indeed the legitimate sender of your messages, and to certify them to messaging services. There are several authentication standards, but without going into detail, make sure that your emailing software offers the essentials: SPF, DKIM and DMARC.
Reputation management for your IPs
If your IP address has a bad reputation, because it has often been used to send spam, you have virtually no chance of reaching your inbox. So it's imperative that you opt for an emailing software provider that monitors and manages the IP addresses used for sending. Only this type of provider will ensure your good reputation as a sender. Don't hesitate to ask the support team how the provider of your choice manages the IP addresses used.
An intuitive interface
To set up successful e-mail campaigns, you need easy-to-use software that lets you create messages with designs tailored to the expectations of web users. What's more, once your campaigns have been sent out, you need access to comprehensive reports, enabling you to optimize your strategy in the future. Many email marketing software packages offer a test version, so we recommend that you create an account and try it out for yourself to see what suits you best.
An easy-to-use editor
The most important thing when creating your email campaigns is to have access to an easy-to-use, intuitive editor. This should enable you to easily create responsive emailings by inserting your content in drag-and-drop mode. It should also enable you to preview your email on different platforms (desktop, smartphone, tablet) so you can test it. Some emailing programs offer pre-designed templates into which you can easily insert your content, without even having to worry about the layout. Others, like Newsletter2Go, even let you synchronize your account with your shop system, CRM or CMS, so you can import all your products and content into your newsletters with a single click. It's up to you to see what works best for you!
Customization options
Today, it's high time to say goodbye to impersonal mass e-mails! To create a lasting relationship with your recipients, you need to send them individualized messages that respond precisely to their needs and expectations. So be sure to opt for emailing software that gives you the option of inserting personalization modules. These allow you to dynamically modify certain elements of your content according to criteria such as first name, age or purchasing behavior. So, for example, you can address your recipients by their first name and offer them products in line with what they have previously purchased.
Comprehensive, easy-to-read reports
But it's not enough just to create newsletters and send them out. You also need to be able to analyze the success of your campaigns in order to optimize them for the future. To do this, the emailing software of your choice needs to give you access to a number of reports. Most emailing solutions let you view deliverability, open, click and conversion rates. Some even go a step further, offering geolocation features or the ability to see exactly which links your recipients have clicked on.
Identify your needs: what do you expect from emailing software?
Email marketing software enables you to send email messages - so far, so good. That said, there are many different uses to which this tool can be put. Some, for example, are content to send product newsletters, i.e. emailings designed to inform their customers of new products in stock. Others will want to go much further and use emailing software to automate their entire business. Once again, it's up to you to know what your needs are, so you can identify the emailing software that's right for them.
Newsletters
The easiest way to use email marketing software is to send out newsletters. These are created manually and can regularly inform your recipients of new products in your store or new articles on your blog. For this, you need robust emailing software that lets you quickly create beautiful, responsive and personalized newsletters, like Newsletter2Go.
Automated emailing
Another way of using emailing software is through marketing automation. You can program automated emails that will save you time and greatly improve your customers' experience.
There are several types of automated emailing. Transactional emails enable you to automate certain important processes, such as sending invoices, purchase confirmations, shopping cart reminders or password reset confirmations.
Classic automated emailings, on the other hand, enable you to send messages responding to a specific event. For example, you could send birthday mailings containing a gift voucher. These will be sent automatically to your recipients when it's their birthday: all you have to do is program the emailing once, and it will be sent automatically thereafter.
Many emailing software packages offer automation features. It's up to you to find out what suits you best: from simple automated messages to advanced systems enabling you to set up more complex automation scenarios.
Choose a price that suits you: email software comparison
Finally, when choosing your email marketing software, you need to find a pricing model that suits you. The various existing emailing solutions offer very different types of packages. Some charge per contact (you pay more depending on the number of recipients in your address book), while others charge per email sent (in this case, it doesn't matter how many addresses are on your list). Some solutions give you access to all their features right from the start, while others offer different packages with different features (which can be handy if you don't use advanced features and can therefore pay less). Finally, there are also different subscription models: monthly, yearly, with or without commitment.
To give you an idea of the rates you're likely to encounter, let's take the example of Newsletter2Go, a French service provider offering a comprehensive and very affordable rate. Here, you pay according to the number of monthly mailings and features. If you don't intend to send complex automated emails, you can take advantage of the Lite offer - here you get 1,000 emails free every month.
If you want to use the more advanced features, Newsletter2Go offers a standard rate containing almost all the features at a very attractive price:
- For 1,000 emails/month: €0 at the Lite rate or €20 at the standard rate,
- For 5,000 emails/month: €30 Lite or €50 Standard,
- For 10,000 emails/month: €60 Lite or €90 Standard.
Article translated from French