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Powerful autoresponders with good deliverability

by Dural
11 replies
Anyone have opinions on powerful autoresponders with good deliverability?

By "powerful," I mean you can set up if/then rules, move subscribers between lists, and set up complicated sequences. By "good deliverability," I mean the emails don't end up in your spam box.

For several years, I've been using aweber, but it's just not powerful enough anymore, and after speaking to support, they really have no plans of adding those features anytime soon. Broadcasts are fine, and I might continue using them for that, but the majority of my money comes from autoresponders.

Currently, I have about 14,000 double opt ins on my various lists, and I'm adding about 1000 per month. Paying aweber $149 per month and climbing.

Price is important, but it's not really the most important factor here. With enough power, I could easily add a couple grand a month to my income.

Also, I'm a technical dude, and I have programmers on staff. So, I'm not afraid of getting my hands dirty for the right system.

I know the obvious solution is Infusionsoft, but I just have too many friends who have had terrible deliverability issues with them, both in the distant past and recently. It also seems like OfficeAutopilot does what I need, but I can't find much info about their deliverability and how it compares to a service like aweber.

Anyone have any personal experience? Or recommendations for other services to check out?
#autoresponders #deliverability #good #powerful
  • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
    You only have 2 options:

    InfusionSoft and Office Autopilot.
    Those are the only 2 options with complicated sequencing.
    InfusionSoft puts every solution out there to shame with it's actionsets and rules. It is simply mindblowing. I hear OAP sorta kinda competes.

    Every other option out there is nearly identical to Aweber in regards to actions/rules and sequences. For example, GetResponse is great (I use them), but they only have if/then rules to move subscribers from one list to another.

    InfusionSoft deliverability is pretty bad. But a customer told me (heard from an InfusionSoft rep) that there is a second mail server on a different IP if your list is confirmed optin. That mail server doesn't suffer from the same issues the single optin mail server does. That could have been some Rep's BS speech to "save the sale"...so take it with a grain of salt.

    I can't comment on OAP's deliverability. I'm still waiting for someone in the IM world to chime in about them.
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    • Profile picture of the author JVManna
      Originally Posted by Dural View Post

      I know the obvious solution is Infusionsoft, but I just have too many friends who have had terrible deliverability issues with them, both in the distant past and recently. It also seems like OfficeAutopilot does what I need, but I can't find much info about their deliverability and how it compares to a service like aweber.

      Anyone have any personal experience? Or recommendations for other services to check out?
      I would love to hear more about the recent deliverability concerns you have about Infusionsoft. We made many recent enhancements to our email infrastructure and we have data that supports that email reputation is strong and stable for all users.

      (Last time I posted an update about our email systems, the thread was pulled, but if you want to know more, I'm happy to disclose more.)

      Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

      You only have 2 options:

      InfusionSoft and Office Autopilot.
      Those are the only 2 options with complicated sequencing.
      InfusionSoft puts every solution out there to shame with it's actionsets and rules. It is simply mindblowing. I hear OAP sorta kinda competes.

      Every other option out there is nearly identical to Aweber in regards to actions/rules and sequences. For example, GetResponse is great (I use them), but they only have if/then rules to move subscribers from one list to another.

      InfusionSoft deliverability is pretty bad. But a customer told me (heard from an InfusionSoft rep) that there is a second mail server on a different IP if your list is confirmed optin. That mail server doesn't suffer from the same issues the single optin mail server does. That could have been some Rep's BS speech to "save the sale"...so take it with a grain of salt.

      I can't comment on OAP's deliverability. I'm still waiting for someone in the IM world to chime in about them.
      Thanks for the comments about our automation and segmenting abilities. We bump into a few different solutions out there and don't really consider them as rivals. Every solution has an ideal, target customer. A major reason why people consider Infusionsoft is the all in one approach for their marketing, sales and e-commerce instead one or two different benefits.

      I would love to clarify and update you on how our email infrastructure works. Actually, all three of our email queues are solid and have great email reputation/deliverability (avg: 99.3%) -- but confirmed opt-in is the highest (avg: 99.7%). I can produce data that supports this, but as with any trusted email sender, it will vary on a number of technical and non-technical factors.

      Our team doesn't give out BS. We will be more than happy to produce the data to back any claims or statements. If you have any experience that is anything less than excellent, please let me know so we can correct it.

      In the past, our deliverability (and what really matters, inbox placement) suffered due to a number of factors including lack of abuse management, email throttling, and limited email MTA servers. Since then, we brought everything up to spec and have tripled the size of our email compliance team so they can address situations quicker before users see any impact from them. Our MTA runs on the same software (Message Systems) that Facebook uses to deliver email to their users and has significantly improved the email sending ... and delivering ... performance for our users.
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  • Profile picture of the author BDubbels
    Hey Dural,

    Despite what many ESPs out there will tell you, if you're dealing with a professional, legitimate email service provider, you'll find that the infrastructure (including MTA) we all use is very similar. We may use this or that type of server or whatever, but the fundamentals (SPF, DKIM, correct header setup and a whole lot more) must always be in place. Without the basics, you're really not in business as an ESP.

    SO, assuming that you're dealing with an ESP that has the basics down, the REAL variables that come into play with email delivery are domain reputation, list makeup, and message content.

    As a marketer, especially if you're sending a good volume of email, it's critical that you learn how to manage these issues. Of course, you weren't born knowing this stuff, so it's important to work with a service provider that can help.

    If I were a high-volume email marketer (who didn't have the background I have as an ESP Postmaster), what I'd be looking for in an ESP is this:

    1. Basic infrastructure in place. You can assume that if ANY high volume mailer is doing well at an ESP, they've probably got the basics in place.
    2. Quality support
    3. A company that considers themselves to be in partnership with their clients vs. in conflict with them.

    This third issue is really important, because a quick Google search will bring up dozens of horror stories from users about having their accounts shut down out of the blue. The impact of this on a business can be devastating.

    Here, we have learned that it's worth it to put in the extra time it takes to walk the fine line between keeping outright spammers off our network and reaching out to support and train clients who WANT to be doing the right thing but don't always know what that is.

    For example, we contact our customers and work with them before delivery becomes a deal-breaking issue. We prepare a personalized "to-do" list of things that can be changed to ensure the best inbox delivery possible. In this sense we are much more of a partner to our clients, rather then just a technical service provider. Through use of these practices we are able to ensure that our customers (and by extension, us) succeed.

    As for the question about who's using our system.. we currently have over 2000 clients from many countries around the world, ranging from single-person startups to international companies doing tens of millions of dollars a year. Although we can't release our client list, a few names that we CAN mention from this industry: Mike Hill, Sean Greeley, Eben Pagan, Mindvalley.. and many more.

    If you have any additional questions please don't hesitate to respond with them here or give me a call on my direct line - 1-888-767-7429 x 104.

    -Brendan
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    • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
      Originally Posted by BDubbels View Post



      (snip)

      If you have any additional questions please don't hesitate to respond with them here or give me a call on my direct line - 1-888-767-7429 x 104.

      -Brendan
      Very well said, Brendan. FYI...that number corresponds with Office Auto Pilot and SendPepper. It's nice to see a response from this company.
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      • Profile picture of the author BDubbels
        Also, here's a similar post from a little less then a year ago about delivery specifically.

        http://www.warriorforum.com/internet...erability.html

        And if you're in need of other resources regarding delivery or just looking for some personal education word to the wise is a great resource. Regardless of what provider you choose, having a little extra knowledge to ask the right questions is always a plus!

        If you don't already subscribe, I highly suggest it.

        You can check it out at:
        Word to the Wise - Email, Delivery, Spam and more
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  • Profile picture of the author Dural
    After reading Brendan's response, I decided to sign up for the free trial of SendPepper, the lighter version of OAP, and test the deliverability for myself. I split off a small, random portion of my list from AWeber, and I imported it into Sendpepper. I then suppressed the exported portion of the list in AWeber, and then I mailed the exact same message on both AWeber and SendPepper.

    The result?

    Exactly the same percentage of clicks from AWeber and SendPepper. No difference at all.

    I was pleased, obviously, but then I realized something: I had forgotten to suppress unsubscribes and bounces when I exported from AWeber. So, the list I sent to on SendPepper was actually of dramatically inferior quality, and it still got the same click through rate. If I remove the unsubscribes and bounces from the data, SendPepper actually got something like 30% more clicks.

    That's pretty amazing. Obviously, I'm signing up, and I'll test things further, but for right now, I'm totally sold. SendPepper and OAP are the best available right now.
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  • Profile picture of the author big-marketing
    you definitely want office auto pilot
    Signature

    Big Jason Henderson of Breakthrough Email Marketing
    18+ years of email marketing... Certified Email Marketing Optimization, Landing Page Optimization, Value Proposition Development and Online Testing Specialist by MECLABS

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  • Profile picture of the author jwilder
    Originally Posted by Dural View Post

    Anyone have opinions on powerful autoresponders with good deliverability?

    By "powerful," I mean you can set up if/then rules, move subscribers between lists, and set up complicated sequences. By "good deliverability," I mean the emails don't end up in your spam box.

    For several years, I've been using aweber, but it's just not powerful enough anymore, and after speaking to support, they really have no plans of adding those features anytime soon. Broadcasts are fine, and I might continue using them for that, but the majority of my money comes from autoresponders.

    Currently, I have about 14,000 double opt ins on my various lists, and I'm adding about 1000 per month. Paying aweber $149 per month and climbing.

    Price is important, but it's not really the most important factor here. With enough power, I could easily add a couple grand a month to my income.

    Also, I'm a technical dude, and I have programmers on staff. So, I'm not afraid of getting my hands dirty for the right system.

    I know the obvious solution is Infusionsoft, but I just have too many friends who have had terrible deliverability issues with them, both in the distant past and recently. It also seems like OfficeAutopilot does what I need, but I can't find much info about their deliverability and how it compares to a service like aweber.

    Anyone have any personal experience? Or recommendations for other services to check out?
    I did Lyris - Sparklist for years- very powerful and great deliverability- switched to AWeber because of price-but if price isn't a problem, highly recommend Lyris.
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  • Profile picture of the author teguhyuliantos
    If you want powerful autoresponders with good deliverability, please try the service from Mailchimp.com.
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    • Profile picture of the author Its Trish
      OAP looks really good--my only concern is the monthly limit of 100k emails.
      (i.e. Mail to 50k subs 2x monthly... or mail to 100k subs 1x monthly)

      InfusionSoft on the other hand has a 500k limit.
      (however I won't signup with them)

      Granted, OAP does offer ability to increase the monthly email limit, by purchasing 100k chunks at a time, but that can get rather expensive per month.

      OAP, if you're listening, my question to you is this.
      Have you ever considered increasing your monthly limits offered?
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  • Profile picture of the author Estelle T. Dunomes
    Although this might me a no-brainer in the end, I am looking for information on the Direct Responders autoresponder service.

    Does anyone know anything about this service?

    Thanks. Your help and shared information is most appreciated.
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