Why choose an agency versus an email service provider to handle your email?

1. Email doesn’t work alone.
The goal of email is to get the user to click through or move on with a process. Generally, email drives users to a landing page or website. Email usually is a component of a larger, multichannel strategy.

This is one of the primary reasons I believe an agency should handle email strategy and execution. It’s important to consider exactly what role the email channel plays in the process. And then ensure the messaging and content of the email is tightly aligned to the process.

Furthermore, it’s critical that there is tight integration between email and other parts of the multichannel strategy. Message, look, copy tone and calls-to-action should be integrated and complementary to other tactics within the marketing channel mix. The user should perceive a cohesive experience across all channels. A disjointed user experience can reduce marketing channel effectiveness.

2. Someone needs to tightly manage the details and quality-control process.
Email execution is riddled with details. At J&C, our QC process entails email quality control testing against multiple browsers, multiple email clients (AOL, Gmail, Outlook, etc.) and cross-device testing. Each email goes through a rigorous process to ensure it will render correctly in each browser, email client and across different mobile devices.

Some clients prefer to go through all the quality control steps themselves, but we’ve actually seen a bigger trend to outsourcing that part of the work. Our experience is that not all agencies and email service providers provide the same rigorous level of quality control. We’ve actually had several clients move their email marketing to J&C because they are more comfortable with our QC process, and it reduces the amount of internal resources they need to apply to the execution and quality control aspect of the process. Most clients still spend some time reviewing and spot-checking emails, but they don’t go through every step of due-diligence. They basically are outsourcing that aspect of the quality control process.

3. Agencies tend to be committed to thought leadership and strategy.
In today’s changing world, clients expect agencies to be on top of the marketing landscape. Marketing leadership expects agencies to understand best and next practice techniques that can positively impact their marketing objectives. Strong marketing agencies have adopted thought leadership as a core value, and they’ve developed the ability to drill these practices down into actionable applications that deliver response and results.

4. Agency compensation tends not to be tied to deployment quantities.

5. Many agencies aren’t tied to one single email platform.
By nature, email service providers are focused on their platform. At J&C, for example, we work with several email service provider platforms, but we also overlay deliverability software. We aren’t tied to one single platform. We fit the needs of a client to the platform that makes the most sense.

6. Find an agency that is rooted in performance and measurement.
Most agencies rooted in direct marketing have measurement flowing through their veins. Direct marketing agencies are trained to ask about how the program will be measured before initiating planning. And most are accustomed to being evaluated based on actual program performance.Many marketers are turning to digital marketing channels, such as email, because they want performance-based marketing. Marketers are under ever-increasing pressure to demonstrate tangible results and understand the best opportunities for generating a return on their marketing investment. They believe channels such as email marketing will provide that performance avenue.

7. Find an agency that has a test and apply discipline.
It turns out that email marketing is often the most efficient way to gain quick learnings. Direct marketing is predicated on measurement and response and therefore has a standard set of best practices that can be applied to various mediums, including email. Having an agency handle your email that has this structure and process in place for efficient and measurable testing is critical.

8. Find an agency rooted in response.
Email is a stop in the process, but generally not the destination. It is important to apply successful direct marketing and response triggers to email to drive the user to action. Agencies rooted in direct marketing are grounded in techniques and mechanisms to generate response. They understand proven language, placement of calls-to-action, the number of times they’re used and how to ask for the action.

9. Find an agency that is accustomed to complex execution.
Email is generally a complex and detailed discipline. Email marketing requires a proficiency in operational expertise across multiple channels, devices and platforms. Clients should not treat executional strength in their agency as a commodity. Agencies rooted in response and direct marketing are accustomed to complex execution and typically require a depth in data management, personalization, email operations, programming and analytics.

10. Find an agency that is expert at analytics-based planning.
Email marketing provides a plethora of data and information. Agencies rooted in direct marketing are accustomed to utilizing analytics and data to inform decision making.