Evaluation Criteria - Email Marketing

topseos.com, the independent authority on search vendors, rates and ranks the best email marketing software companies in the industry. We often times contact clients of each vendor to obtain their evaluation. Additionally, we delve into the business practices of a vendor to determine the real quality of the work output. Once the evaluation process is complete we publish a list of the best companies.

We have identified five key areas that separate the average from the best. These categories are submission interface, protocol compliance, delivery rates, analytics, support.

The first aspect that we review is the submission interface. How easy is it to setup an email marketing campaign? Does the software provide templates while still allowing for a custom template?

Next we review the protocol compliance of the software. Does the software follow protocols such as DomainKeys and SenderID in order to maintain high trust levels with the recipients.

Another aspect that is reviewed is the actual delivery rate of emails sent by the software. Does the software have high-quality standards that prevents spamming and increases trust of email that is sent by the tool and also increases delivery rates?

Analytics is another valuable aspect recognized by us. Does the vendor provide statistical information such as open rates, click thru rates, and forwards?

The final key factor identified by topseos is the support provided for the email marketing software. Can a client easily get in contact with a vendor if there is a problem with the software? Beyond just getting in contact, what sort of response time does the vendor provide?