Email marketing has grown in popularity and sophistication, with many editors utilizing third-party providers to distribute these communications.

Eight Marketing has utilized both Constant Contact and Emma for email production and distribution with each provider offering different strengths.

Constant Contact provides effective, efficient and affordable services. Its strongest features include its vast library of templates, ease of use and detailed tracking services. The newsletter you are reading now is created monthly using this service. So why go anywhere else?

This question was answered when we needed to create a customized newsletter for a client, complete with enclosures. While Constant Contact offers a wide array of services, enclosures is not one of them. This took us to a lesser known provider, Emma. Emma, based in Nashville, TN, uses IMG tags to load graphics from a remote server into its email marketing programs, allowing users to include files, photos and forms into its communications.

So which do you choose? For Eight Marketing, we use both providers based on the project and the client. The following is our informal review of the two services and their strengths.

• Templates: Advantage Constant Contact. With a wider array of layouts, formats and features, Constant Contact has the clear advantage.
• Customized Templates: Advantage Emma. Emma provides quick, customized templates for less than half the cost of customized templates at Constant Contact.
• Reporting Features: Tie. Both Constant Contact and My Emma allow users to track opens, deletions and click throughs in real time.
• Enclosures: Advantage Emma. If enclosures are key to your communications, Emma provides the ability to purchase storage space to accommodate your files.
• Reuse of Content: Advantage Constant Contact. Constant Contact allows you to download your documents in HTML format for easy posting to websites.
• Photo Uploading: Tie. Both services provide easy uploading and editing of photos to suit your layouts.
• Flexibility: Advantage Constant Contact. Constant Contact provides more flexibility of design and content, with no web knowledge required.
• Cost: Tie. Both Constant Contact and Emma are affordable priced, with most subscriptions available for under $50 per month.
• Customer Service: Slight Advantage Emma. Both Constant Contact and Emma provide direct assistance in the use of their product and services. Emma gets the edge for their informal style and dare-we-say fun approach to design. Just check out their website and you'll see why.

Eight Marketing is a tourism and attractions marketing firm that specializes in increasing revenue for its clients through partnerships and strategic planning.

To learn more, call us at (610) 667-2400.