• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, March 26, 2020

Most of us are numb from the daily barrage of bad news. At times, even journalists get weary of that old mandate: If it bleeds, it leads.

But there are some inspiring stories — in the tireless efforts of healthcare workers and volunteers. And in the email field, several firms are stepping up to help clients in need.

Today, we’re focusing on three. They are by no means the only ones, and we suspect other firms will soon alert us to their good deeds. But here they are: 

Email On Acid 

Email on Acid, a firm that offers a variety of email services, is providing complimentary subscriptions to people and organizations in severely affected industries. And there is no cutoff date — these subs will remain active for the foreseeable future. 

Existing accounts should alert the firm if they think they qualify. The complementary accounts will also have unlimited access to the firm’s pre-deployment checklist: Campaign Precheck. According to a company blog post, the invitation is being extended to eligible firms in the Hospitality, travel, entertainment, education, dining, consultancy and non-profit fields. 

Movable Ink

Movable Ink is offering its Critical Messages app for free the rest of the year to help brand clients place timely messages in their emails even after the messages are in the recipient’s inbox. 

The app is powered by a blank pixel that can be powered as needed to display a timely message or alert.

The firm hopes to “remove all barriers for our clients to easily make timely and accurate COVID-19 servicing updates in their emails and communicate to their customers, employees and communities without concern for how this will draw down on their license to the Movable Ink platform,” CEO Vivek Sharma writes in a blog post.

Sharma adds: “If you’d like to take advantage of this special offer, please reach out to your client experience team to ensure that these Critical Messages Apps are marked as “complimentary.”

Mailchimp

Marketing service firm Mailchimp is providing what it calls Standard accounts for eligible public service organizations through June 30. This extends to local governments, schools, healthcare providers, nonprofits and other such entities.

Existing customers on the firm’s Standard plan will not be billed, and those already on the Free plan will be upgraded to Standard — at no charge.

In another display of good will, Mailchimp is helping filmmakers display their short films following cancellation of the SXSW festival because of concerns over the virus, Campaign reports. Fans can watch the shorts on Mailchimp Presents, Mailchimp’s streaming platform.

Stay well, everyone.