Why Your Business Needs MailChimp Experts (And How an Email Marketing Agency Can Help)

There’s nothing easy about finding an email marketing agency.

You can spend months researching, only to find that your top choice doesn’t use your preferred platform. (Yikes!) Even worse, they may not have any experience with your pre-established setup.

Sure, you can migrate your email marketing to another platform. You can export your contacts and rework all your templates. But nobody wants to do that! No, it’s always better to find a group that knows what you have. Unfortunately, it’s one of those “easier said than done” deals.

So, to make your life easier, I’ve gathered a list of the top 5 MailChimp experts. These email marketing agencies have established themselves as partners of the longstanding email service provider, and their services are unmatched.

What Is MailChimp?

Of course, time is precious to small business owners. You have goals to meet and meetings to attend, so I won’t beat around the bush.

I’ll start by making sure we’re on the same page. While I’m sure many readers already know what MailChimp is, one should never assume!

Here’s what you need to know: MailChimp is one of many pre-packaged email marketing programs.

But there’s more to MailChimp’s story than a laconic one-liner…

As of 2023, this brand has surpassed its 20th birthday! When it launched — way back in the distant year of 2001! — MailChimp was a premium-only platform; its popular “freemium” plan was introduced in 2009. Its headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia, although it also has offices in Brooklyn, New York, and Oakland, California. It operated as an independent company until August 2021, when it was acquired by Intuit.

Okay… But What Is MailChimp?

Now, I’ll be the first to admit none of that business talk tells you what MailChimp does. Nor does its inclusion in the 2016 Forbes Cloud 100 list. And not even its place on Face Company’s 2017 “Most Innovative Companies” list says much about its purpose.

So, the spotlight’s on me again!

At its core, MailChimp is a collection of email marketing tools. Its all-inclusive software gives agencies and first-party users access to all the email campaign management capabilities they’ll ever need. Summarily, it’s an email marketing and customer relationship management platform rolled into a convenient package.

Of its many capabilities, MailChimp’s most lauded features include:

• Analytics tools (e.g., A/B testing capabilities, engagement statistics, and KPI tracking)
• Consistent customer support for both first-party users and agencies
• Customer relationship management (CRM) tools (e.g., audience sorting, profiling, and segmentation)
• Design and implementation assistance (e.g., integrated features, smart layouts, and pre-made templates)
• Email automation support (e.g., campaign management and scheduling)
• Integrations (i.e., the ability to seamlessly merge with other marketing channels and software)
• Legal support for consent, customer management, and email marketing requirements

That is a lengthy list of features, and it’s nowhere near complete! It’s easy to see how large and small businesses worldwide have fallen for the MailChimp platform. Its massive toolkit makes it the right fit for everyone! You get more control over your business goals, and customers get delightful weekly emails.

Is MailChimp the Only Email Marketing Service?

However, despite sending over a million emails every day, MailChimp is not the only option on the market for managing your email list. There’s no denying its power; it’s certainly earned its place as one of the most popular and trusted email marketing services! Nonetheless, it’s one of many ways to manage your email campaigns.

Some other top picks in the email marketing world are:

• Brevo (also known as Sendinblue)
• HubSpot
• Klaviyo
• Omnisend
• The Salesforce Marketing Cloud

All these options include many of the same features as MailChimp. The main differences are cost, implementation technicalities, email design capabilities, and support services. But that’s not the topic of today’s blog post, so…! Moving on…!

Why Do I Need an Email Marketing Agency?

It’s time to tackle the next question.

“If MailChimp lets me create my own project and manage my own email marketing campaigns, why should I use an agency? I can just work hard and write my own content!” I hear some variation of this all the time, and it’s not entirely wrong. You can connect with customers without an email marketing agency. All you need to do is create an account and refine your skills.

Marketing Myth Busting

Here’s the truth, though: Training yourself to be an email marketing specialist is not the most efficient solution. You’re wasting countless hours learning to refine a message that MailChimp experts can put out in an hour or less.

“Well, Melanie,” you may be saying, “my strategy is different! I’ll be hiring freelancers to handle my email-based sales. They’ll be the perfect fit for my brand, and I’ll know exactly what to expect from their work.”

Again, it seems like a sound idea! You get on-site help and a reliable, open communication channel. You’ll never have to search for your agency contact or micromanage another team’s progress on your beloved project.

Nope!

Sorry to pop your bubble, but in-house freelancers can be just as bad as unscrupulous email marketing agencies. Your personal “perfect fit” MailChimp consultant won’t be cheap. You’ll have to pay them a salary and treat them as an employee. More importantly, you’ll spend untold hours vetting candidates to find someone with a proven track record!

And don’t get me started on the many talents you’ll need to build a successful email marketing strategy. There might be a mythical MailChimp consultant with everything you need, but few freelance MailChimp experts tick every box. Don’t believe me? Well, then, why don’t I introduce you to…

What Does an Email Marketing Agency Do?

Obviously, an email marketing agency strives to improve your overall performance. Think of them as many people working as a single marketing specialist. They’re here to ensure you achieve success and reach your full potential.

However, unlike freelancers, these companies do the training and screening for you. They hire experienced MailChimp experts and optimize your business’ marketing plan by closely monitoring every project. They have the power to create content that delights your email list and delivers success beyond your wildest dreams. And all the training is part of the package.

Yes, you can find, fund, and train your own team of freelance MailChimp experts, but they’ll need a diverse skillset.

Allow me to explain. At my marketing agency, The Email Marketers, I ensure every client gets a full team of marketing pros. And that team looks something like this:

• Analysts work closely with everyone, conveying vital information about each campaign’s performance. Their work aids the development team and informs the strategists’ content calendars. Their skillset includes data analysis, development, and brand cohesion.
• Campaign strategists handle content development and planning. They utilize strategy, brand development, and sales skills to become the behind-the-scenes magic of your marketing success.
• Copywriters weave bite-sized narratives into each email. These artful writers can turn even the dullest of sales announcements into beautiful prose. Aside from writing, copywriters must also handle brand awareness and content management.
• Designers create stunning emails that work on any device. They’re also responsible for overseeing your templates and — in some cases — landing pages. Visual focus, email design, and content development are common facets of their daily jobs. Designers are always working in close collaboration with implementation teams.
• Implementation specialists handle the coding and targeting of your campaigns. Alongside your analyst, an implementation specialist tackles audience research, campaign flows (e.g., post-purchase emails and welcome series templates), integrations (i.e., with sales platforms and existing marketing channels), marketing automation, and reporting.

Now, how many skills have we used to create one email campaign?

I’ll spare you the trouble of counting. The development of a single email marketing campaign takes sixteen different skills, and that number doesn’t account for unique campaigns. Anything more complex than newsletter templates requires even more work.

So, can your company do its own email marketing?

Yes. You can do all the hiring, designing, strategy, and writing. You can handle the internal collaboration between your departments. You can learn the ins and outs of MailChimp and landing pages.

The real question is whether or not your company has the bandwidth, budget, and skill to do so.

Access Expertise and Refine Your Strategy

Notably, you also need technical skills to run successful email campaigns. It’s not enough to hire freelance MailChimp experts with paper credentials; you need a team with proven experience. You need a team backed by actual, proven success. And they must work in collaboration at all times.

Fortunately, an email marketing agency — like The Email Marketers — is packed with these MailChimp specialists. You’ll always have a web design expert on hand to manage your requests, and your analytical partner within the agency can address your business concerns. If you need it, MailChimp professionals can even make custom templates for your email campaigns.

But there’s even more to consider!

Most email marketing campaigns fail for one of four reasons:

• Inaccuracy: Complaints of inaccurate data include obvious points — such as incorrect names — and egregious errors — like having the wrong address on file. These complaints suggest your team is not collaborating with your email service provider. Alternatively, you may be keeping outdated data.
• Irrelevance: Customers receiving irrelevant email campaigns are victims of poor planning and marketing automation.
• Repetition: Nobody likes being nagged. Aside from signaling a lazy email marketing strategy, repetitive email marketing campaigns are an easy way to lose customers. A MailChimp specialist can remedy this repetition with clever use of email templates, varied campaign calendars, and strategic marketing.
• Spam: Customers won’t see your spam emails. To put things bluntly, you’re wasting your time, money, and full potential by allowing low-quality content past your filter.

These points are signs of a poorly laid strategy, and they’re bound to happen when you rely on an in-house team of ragtag freelancers. Even the brightest minds and shiniest newsletter templates can’t save you from poorly implemented marketing automation. However, a trusted MailChimp expert can.

Think of it this way: An email marketing agency must hire the best and brightest. Their success depends on your email marketing’s performance. So, they’ll give you the best marketing specialist they have. And that means you can rest easy! Your MailChimp marketing specialist will handle everything I’ve already discussed and additional concerns, namely:

• Legal matters (i.e., compliance with major regulations and email list maintenance)
• MailChimp capabilities (i.e., ensuring you’re using the platform to its full potential)
• Unique email design concepts (e.g., embedded purchase options, interactive content, and purpose-built templates)

Find the Best MailChimp Consultants

Obviously, hiring your own team of MailChimp experts isn’t the best plan. You’d need more than one marketing specialist, and few MailChimp consultants can seamlessly fill every role. You’ll have the same problems with freelance MailChimp experts, too!

Instead, invest in a marketing agency.

At The Email Marketers, my team of marketing pros has helped both large and small businesses. We’ve tackled everything, — from simple MailChimp template production to web design — and we’re email automation experts.

Get in touch! Schedule a free strategy session today, and we can discuss your business’ needs. You’ll get more than a MailChimp specialist; you’ll gain a whole team of strategic masterminds to handle your campaigns.