| You need an autoresponder. At least if you have a | | | | autoresponder services. |
| business or are planning to build one. But which | | | | One aspect of pricing is what they count as a |
| system is right for you? Read on to discover a few | | | | subscriber. Some services, including Aweber and |
| options you should consider. | | | | iContact counted a subscriber multiple times if he or |
| 1) Self-Hosted vs. Autoresponder Service | | | | she was on multiple lists. So you could have 1,000 |
| First of all, there's the question whether you should | | | | subscribers, but if they are on 5 lists each, those |
| install autoresponder software on your own server | | | | services would charge you as if you had 5,000 |
| or whether you should go with an autoresponder | | | | subscribers. |
| service | | | | 1shoppingcart counts just the email addresses, so if |
| That's an easy one. You should definitely go with a | | | | you had those same 1,000 subscribers, and each of |
| reputable autoresponder service. The reason is very | | | | them were subscribed to 5 lists, they would still |
| simple -- this will protect you from spam complaints, | | | | count that as just 1, 000 subscribers. This can make |
| in part because the services force you to play by | | | | a huge difference once your list grows. |
| the rules. | | | | 4) Ease of Use |
| If you send mass emails from your own server, you | | | | Some autoresponders are more user-friendly than |
| risk getting your IP address blacklisted with the first | | | | others. Most of them give you the option to test |
| few spam complaints, and your whole business can | | | | drive them for a negligible amount -- or even for |
| get shut down. | | | | free. Take advantage of that opportunity and see |
| 2) Email Deliverability | | | | which one you like best. |
| You should definitely check out the email delivery | | | | 5) Quality of Support |
| rates of the services you're considering. The big | | | | Your autoresponder is the lifeblood of your |
| ones, Aweber, 1shoppingcart, and iContact all have | | | | e-business. So you want to have access to |
| excellent rates. I haven't checked GetResponse, but | | | | knowledgeable support staff as much as possible. |
| they're also a reputable option. | | | | Check the hours of availability and check how friendly |
| 3) Pricing | | | | and knowledgeable the staff actually is. During your |
| What are their rates per subscriber. Some of them | | | | trial period, give them a call with a few questions and |
| start low but the rates can go up very quickly as | | | | see what you think. And beware of extra charges |
| you sign up more subscribers. Find out before you | | | | for the privilege of talking to a live person. |
| get locked in. It's a huge hassle to have to switch | | | | |