I’m sure by now you have heard about autoresponders a lot. However, choosing the autoresponder solution might not be that easy. Of course one of the main criteria is the price. However, there are many other issues you should pay attention to.
Let’s start with the main basic distinction, and this is the external autoresponder service or self-hosted internal autoresponder software. The external autoresponder service is operated by a specialized company. Self-hosted internal autoresponder software is software run by you on your own server on your own domain.
So what type of solution to choose? Let’s look at the main distinctions:
Software installation and maintenance
External autoresponder service is easy to set up – just register, pay, login and you are ready to go. The software is managed by the service company. Upgrades, system errors and everything else is taken care of. One of the great features is that by using one account you can have multiple autoresponder sequences on multiple websites.
In case of the self-hosted autoresponder software, you need to install it (hire somebody or do it yourself), then you have to take care of any possible errors, upgrades and maintenance issues. Usually you have to install the software on every domain you use. Thus the more domains you have the more operational issues you face.
Price
Usually you pay monthly or yearly for the autoresponder service as long as you use it. The price goes up depending on how many subscribers you have, but by the time you get over 500 or so the extra money is negligible. For Aweber, it is $19 monthly (or $119 yearly) per up to 500 subscribers.
Self-hosted autoresponder is a one-time payment (couple of hundred dollars). Then you can use this software on as many domains as you want (usually). No monthly fees, no limit on the number of subscribers.
Blacklisting
When using a self-hosted autoresponder, and emailing too much or emailing to bulk addresses, your domain might get blacklisted. It is even worse when you use this domain for your regular emails. They might not get delivered. You have to constantly check if your domain is blacklisted.
When using an autoresponder service, you do not have to worry about blacklisting. They take care of everything.
Deliverability
The autoresponder services usually guarantee the deliverability of the emails. It is usually a 99% or higher delivery rate. You have to watch, monitor and measure your deliverability when using self-hosted software.
Bulk email lists
The one think with autoresponder services is that you cannot import bulk (not opted in) email lists to it. However, it is not a real disadvantage, because you should use a mass email service for that type of emails anyway.
Legal compliance
This becomes more time-consuming these days. The autoresponder service guides you to comply with the latest rules, when you’re creating your email campaigns. It might not be the case with a self-hosted autoresponder. If your emails do not comply with the rules (CAN-SPAM act) your domain gets blacklisted very easily.
Spam
Whatever service you use, make sure the spam check is in place. Every message you send should be checked. Spam check ranks every message and tells you if it’s likely to be recognized as spam or not. This should improve your deliverability.
Integration (for pros only)
Integration with 3rd party services or an all-in-one box might be a critical issue once your list grows bigger. There should be an ability to integrate your autoresponder with the payment processor, membership sites, mail fulfillment or other parts of your e-commerce business. Alternatively, there is an ability to move customers to new segments automatically.
So, what are the possibilities? Here are some tips.
Some of the most used autoresponder services are Aweber, GetResponse, iContact, Infusionsoft. Autoresponseplus and Interspire are well-known self-hosted autoresponder software packages.
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