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The pitch
The two questions I get most often are:
- Can you recommend a CRM?
- Can you recommend an email marketing tool?
I credit this to these tools being the most often used, and the most often neglected. Eventually, users blame the software, not, well … apathy.
Whatever the case, it’s important that your next email management provider have some things that stand out in the industry to help you understand why it costs what it does, and to help you want to use it.
Maybe you want better customer support; maybe you need Salesforce integration. Or, maybe you want a better way to track your messages’ performance. Whatever it is you need in an email marketing partner, make sure that Emma gets a spot in your due diligence.
The sale
I find Emma highly open to its customers. From support resources to video messages from executives, the company is making itself accessible. I like that.
Emma also does a good job of finding the right industry partners to benefit its customers. For example, its recent handshake with Avari allows Emma users to very easily drag and drop dynamic social media content directly into templates.
Using this option, users can include an actual Instagram or Facebook feed directly into the body of a message.
This is a terrific way to go beyond just entering little buttons or a plead to share. Agents can drop in Instagram shots of clients at closings or the local coffee shop in a fast-selling neighborhood. This feature also demonstrates that you have an active, participatory online presence, which will further augment how readers view you.
In addition to partnering with Salesforce, Emma has recently combined forces with Eventbrite, a popular online venue for agents to promote open houses and classes. If you want to push out several open houses for example, Emma allows for multiple Eventbrite events in a single message, and you can track registrations directly in Emma’s metrics dashboard.
These third-party integrations translate into ease of use. It means the software was built well enough to allow for easy collaboration. For users, that means you’ll be getting an email provider that is always capable of adding more features to better your investment.
Emma does a lot of the basics well, too. Its home screen has been overhauled recently to make tracking your message performance visual and intricate.
The folks behind Emma have created a scoring system that scales each message from 1 to 10. Each message score is based on a tally of each result, like opens, clicks or unsubscribes. This is an effective way to understand how messages stack up against one another. It gives users something to shoot for with each send.
Emma also applies ratings to individual components of a message, scoring sidebars, images and links separately so you can better understand a template’s performance, or know if one home picture isn’t as click-provoking as another.
The tracking also includes device type and email client used, allowing you to get a nice picture of where and how people are looking at your messages.
Emma also has a unique email builder. It gives you a very clean, organized canvas on which to build, using a lot of icons for quick scrolling between sections, and it includes a device viewer so you can visually test your message on a phone or tablet.
Pictures and videos are easy to drag and upload, and text is simple to edit. It looks better than most email builders I’ve used.
I can’t talk about email without mentioning segmentation. It’s critical, and Emma knows this. You can very easily create A/B split messages (one email sends to two lists) to test subject lines and further understand your audience.
Emma also includes a very sharp automated messaging feature. This makes it really stand out. For example, let’s say you send an invite for class on home loans and refinancing that a lender partner is holding. Using segments of your list, you can create and send an automated message for each audience within your great contact list.
For example, first-time homebuyer subscribers will want to get something different out of the event than your investor clients. Craft a unique, automated message for each party to ensure you’re addressing their unique needs. Each time a person in a designated audience registers, they receive a more personal response.
The close
Emma’s tools can make you spend a lot of time thinking about how you brand yourself. There are plenty of unique features here, but none of them are hard to use. The entire interface is clearly thought about every time a new piece of the puzzle is inserted.
Emma also clearly thinks about the strategic needs of customers before adding a feature, meaning that if they include it, you probably need it.
This is a very comprehensive, intuitive piece of marketing software. If you are even considering a new approach to your email outreach, ask Emma.
Do you use Emma? What do you think? Leave a comment and let us know!
Do you have a product for our tech expert to review? Email Craig Rowe.
