What Else Should You Ask When Considering a Vendor for Integration?

Beyond the API, you should also check-in with respect to the following:

  • Content syndication: Does the ESP have a means of integrating content from their website to your email? This type of functionality makes it possible to integrate content such as bar codes, maps, data tables, RSS feeds, and more.

  • Web forms: Do they offer “out of the box” solutions for integrating web forms without the need for an API?

  • Partner integrations: What other vendors has the ESP partnered with to seamlessly integrate their solution with others?

  • Scripting engines: Does the ESP offer customers the ability to write scripts within their emails to dynamically generate content? This enables customers to create robust, dynamically generated, and targeted emails both through the user interface and through the API.

Case Studies

Case Study 1: How Does Automation Work?

A company targeting millions of individuals dealing with a specific medical condition (lactose intolerance) developed a powerful e-commerce site that could integrate with its CRM solution. While the data collection means was effective, the company quickly tired of shuffling data back and forth between its CRM system and email system.

In order to effectively move customers through the lifecycle, the company needed to remove several manual steps. After consulting with an online business solutions company, the decision was made to integrate existing systems rather than build a new system ...

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