
Review: MailChimp (Email Marketing) - twampss
http://paulstamatiou.com/2009/03/25/review-mailchimp-email-marketing
======
bradgessler
If you're using chimp in a rails app, watch out; their gems (mailchimp_fu and
acts_as_mailchimp) are kind of crappy because:

    
    
      * They're all untested.
      * None of them support the concept of environments. If you run your test suite, it tries to call
        mailchimp over the wire which is super slow and doesn't work on offline.
      * Calls to chimp API are done synchronously an the AR after_save callback which kills performance.
      * There is no method of batch process synch between your app and chimp.
    

I'm working on a gem that solves some of these problems at
<http://github.com/bradgessler/mailchimp/tree/master> (this isn't even alpha
yet) which should make chimp integration easier. If anybody is integrating
their ruby/rails app with chimp and are finding those plugins I mentioned
inadequate let me know and maybe we can solve this annoying problem.

------
ShabbyDoo
Why does it cost so much to send out just a few thousand emails? It seems that
MailChimp's marginal costs ought to be quite low. Are there any less expensive
competitors, even if the process is more DIY w.r.t. campaign composition?

~~~
imp
The marginal costs may be low, but overall the value is in their ease-of-use,
reports and analytics, and time saved in not worrying about email
deliverability.

I think it depends on what features you need and how much time you want to
spend on it. I recently set up their RSS to email feature, which is really
cool. When I write a blog post that I want to be sent in an email campaign, I
just give it a certain tag ("newsletter") and then the next day it
automatically goes out to my list.

------
param
How did MailChimp confirm that only 20% of the users even opened his email? If
I use a mail client that doesn't load external images, is there an alternative
way email 'read time' can be determined?

~~~
aaronblohowiak
Nope. Email opening confirmation is not reliable, and is more useful for
trends of certain demographics than for absolute numbers.

------
mtodd
Good article. Their offices are right around the corner from ours, probably
about a mile away.

------
julien
Awesome article! I am looking forward to testing them.

------
bsgamble
Great article. Looking forward to giving them a try.

------
firebug
Do these types of apps have any built-in safeguards to avoid spammers using
them for their campaigns? Or do they not make judgments about what they're
used for?

~~~
PStamatiou
yes. there are a few hoops you have to jump through before they let you send
campaigns.

~~~
richcollins
"known for his prowess with all things tech"

seriously?

~~~
PStamatiou
and now you remember me. worked.

~~~
richcollins
Perhaps I will remember not to read any links with paulstamatiou.com in them
...

