Forrester’s 37-criteria evaluation of email marketing vendors, in The Forrester Wave, identified six significant providers in this category, Epsilon, ExactTarget, Experian CheetahMail, Responsys, StrongMail, and Yesmail Interactive and researched, analyzed, and scored them. The report details findings about how each vendor measures up to help interactive marketers select the right partner for their email marketing efforts. The study found a vibrant and volatile Email market, even though the email channel is so well established. The report says that even though Email marketers aren’t completely clear of list growth and boosting opens and clicks, their use of advanced email practices is much more prevalent than in the 2009 evaluation of email marketing vendors. Addressing challenges and employment of tactics speaks to the “gaining sophistication” of Email marketers described by Forrester in the report: Continuing Marketing Challenges in Next Two YearsChallenge% of Respondents (Multiple Choice OK) Integrating email with other channels 57% Leveraging dynamic content 50% Leveraging segmentation 43% Managing email frequency and cadence 38% Increasing open and click-through rates 38% Finding new email subscribers 36% Creating and managing email content 35% Retaining current email subscribers 34% Having adequate staffing resources 31% Source: Forrester Research, Q1 2012 Frequency of Applied Tactics (% of Respondents) ProgramAt Least MonthlyDaily Run welcome email programs 93% 86% Coordinate email with site promotions 85% 36% Segment users based on past purchases 73% 47% Segment users based on site behavior 68% 35% Coordinate email with display 53% 19% Clean lists of inactive users 51% 30% Coordinate email with mobile 43% 16% Source: Forrester Research, Q1 2012 According to the report, client references said that good account management mattered most when considering email vendors. But many also care about email vendors’ multichannel integration, customer database support, and ability to power non-email campaigns. Account Management Matters Most In Email Vendor SelectionVendor OfferingsAverage Rank (8.0 “least important;” 1.0 “most important.”) Good account management 1.96 Integration with other online tools 3.73 Automation of next-best action 3.85 Support for your database of record 3.96 Professional services 4.54 Support for channels outside of email 5.01 International campaign support 5.89 Proprietary offices around the world 7.05 Source: Forrester Research, Q1 2012, Email Marketing Customer Reference Survey To address the implications of the changes in the email market, the study included those vendors that could manage marketers’ immediate email marketing needs and also know how and why to integrate email into cross-channel conversations. Six email vendors, out of an original pool of 48, met these requirements. The report concludes by noting that this evaluation of email marketing vendors is based on the criteria deemed to be most critical to the market at this time and is intended to be a starting point only. The authors encourage readers to view detailed product evaluations and adapt the criteria weightings to fit their individual needs. To access the complete study in PDF format, with additional charts, graphs and data, please visit here.