Email Service Provider

An email service provider (ESP) is a technology vendor that lets brands and retailers send email campaigns to a targeted email list. Their primary services concern building and storing email addresses and sending emails, but they can also offer additional features. ESPs have their own servers, software, and hardware required in delivering bulk emails.

ESP Services

ESPs primarily store email addresses and send emails. Vendors can have different policies to prevent system abuse and allowable email volumes, but the basic functions remain the same. However, you can opt for more features depending on your company goals and needs. Some ESPs will offer the following services:

• Provide tracking information and status of email sent
• Divide your address list into groups or categories
• Create templates/Have pre-made templates to send to your subscriber list
• Hold other important information about your subscriber list for easier filtering
• Automatically update your subscriber list to remove uninterested subscribers
• Conduct A/B testing of effective subject lines and email content
• Implement website tracking for better segmentation of subscriber list
• Have statistics of sent emails that show the campaign success rate
• Allow customization of email for more personalized content
• Have spam testing for a better campaign success rate
• Send email content in various formats depending on compatibility
• Ensure emails are compliant with CAN-SPAM Act and similar regulations
• Resolve any issues related to blocking of IP addresses
• Make your subscriber list safe from hacking
• Provide marketing strategy and consultation services

The Benefits of Using an Email Service Provider

With an email service provider, you can be consistent in your one-on-one communications with both customers and prospects. Customers can check their mail with a few clicks on their mobile devices, making automated emails one of the easier ways to maintain connections. Moreover, your emails can encourage traffic to multiple brand channels and strengthen brand loyalty, especially when you’re able to personalized them for each user.

Here are more benefits to having an email service provider:

• Better list management. Your email service provider can automatically update your subscriber list as well as segment lists into groups based on relational data.
• Drive stronger engagement. ESPs can help you create dynamic content that customers and prospects can respond to.
• Have access to key reports. With ESPs, you can monitor how effective your email marketing campaigns are, and plan accordingly.
• Increased deliverability. Your emails can easily pass through mail filters with ESPs. Having read emails can translate to increased conversions and a return on investment.
• Support multichannel marketing. With the right email service provider, you can encourage subscribers to check out other channels that are part of your marketing strategy.