Aurea List Manager vs. Mad Mimi

Lyris LM is suited well with an organization or group that have several lists, as virtual list hosting is not represented by any other hosting company as far as I can tell.

Mad Mimi is perfect for scheduling remainder emails. For instance, if you need to remind a client about a pending order next week, you can schedule the remainder email today and it will be sent exactly the date and time you want it to even if you are out of office. If you need to contact thousands of people at a time, Mad Mimi can be used to send the emails all at once to all of them, especially for marketing purposes and newsletter purposes.

Incentivized

• Reports: extensive reporting on mailings and membership. Pre-built reports/charts include Mailings, Members, Server Performance, Web site, Purchases, Interest and Surveys. If Aurea ListManager doesn't have the built-in chart needed, you can easily create your own.
• Easy to analyze mailings: Completed mailing can be analyzed quickly. Options include viewing any errors that may have resulted, and checking list performance, evaluating recipient actions, ( opens, click-troughs). Details can be seen on a per-recipient basis, allowing you to see exactly what happened with each message sent.
• Discussion Lists. There are numerous list setting to customize each list.

Incentivized

• I've been on the free plan for years and it has suited me very well. It's reliable and has all the core features I need at the moment. Considering how all the online tools can add up, this is right for my business.
• Mad Mimi has a super-simple interface, and it's drag and drop, so I don't have to spend a lot of time designing each email. Although you can customize with your logo and colors.
• There are several free add-ons, which allow for a limited amount of automation. I would recommend taking advantage of the RSS feed, webform, and drip campaign features.
• You can segment your list into as many groups as you like, which makes for more effective email marketing.

Incentivized

• Tech support is limited for standard users, especially during non business hours even for critical errors
• Installation/upgrade is often complicated
• Version releases are too frequent

Incentivized

• The ease on adding links, such as unsubscribe links, is not as easy as it is with other email service providers. Creating simple tags that take the place of a link could help a lot, especially for those not as familiar with HTML.
• Perhaps a way of archiving old emails, or hiding them from the past emails area. It can look a bit cluttered, and can be confusing in some circumstances.
• Providing some learning material, or at least a more thorough overview of email marketing, and the user interface would be of great use to beginners.

We will most likely not use Lyris LM for much longer. We have recently been offered to utilize a different software that better meets our needs, is current, user friendly, and has fantastic reporting capabilities.

Pretty simple, I know I'm getting what I pay for and a little more. Although simple and easy for the new user; a more seasoned marketer can still get the most from MadMimi. Especially if the primary purpose is to generate strong brand loyalty with effective communication that integrates your various outlets: MadMimi makes it easy for your customer to pick-up what the business owner wants to relay.

I find it very easy to use just like my colleagues too. The learning curve is straight forward.

Incentivized

I have not needed to utilize customer support during my use of Lyris LM.

My issues are usually quickly resolved and their support staffs are very knowledgeable on the software generally

Incentivized

I was not part of the implementation process.

We selected Lyris LM based on cost, the fact that we can create custom reports and the way that they handle bounced emails just to name a few, It is easy to use and we have control of who can and cannot use. With a virtual list I can create a list or take a list down at any given time without filling out a form or contact with my provider and my list looks as if it is coming from my own server @museum.com.

Constant Contact is the Goliath of the industry and to us, it was unnecessarily complex and expensive. We chose Mad Mimi, after looking at several other new offerings and we've been extremely satisfied with our choice of Mad Mimi.

Incentivized

• Aurea as a company is mediocre with support. The former LM staff was better informed about the product.
• LM can do almost anything you need. it's complete.
• ROI has suffered as Aurea has not updated the product, charges a considerable amount for renewals, promises with no results.

Incentivized

• I've spent 3 years creating blog posts, and it is only now encompassing the breath that allows me to draw upon this pieces as a reusable resource, but now this is happening.
• I preferred the Mad Mimi platform to Mail Chimp, and I suspect it continues to offer advantages. I felt Mad Mimi did themselves a disservice by failing to support their free subscriber service to the same extent that Mail Chimp does. When one's mail list gets sufficiently large, then it does pay to pay them, but not in the context I was using it.
• It seems that Mad Mimi is targeting direct marketing purposes, as this is a use where ROI is more easily measured.

Incentivized