Email and customers · Lesson 5.3
How to Choose Email Automation Sequence Tools: A Scorecard
Search for email automation sequence software and you will find dozens of tools that all promise the same thing. This post does not rank them. I have not run a head to head test, and a ranking from someone who has not tested would be worth nothing. Instead it gives you a scorecard you can run on any tool in about an hour, using your own sequence as the test.
Lesson 5.3 shows how to design the journey before you pick where it lives: An email journey that keeps paying.
Pick the tool that does your five email sequence with the fewest steps, and check its limits, exits and reports on its own help pages before you pay.
Design the sequence first
A tool is easier to judge when you know what you need from it. Here is the minimum:
- A sign up form or a way to add subscribers.
- A trigger that starts the sequence when someone joins.
- Five emails with waits between them.
- A way to stop the emails when someone buys.
- A report showing clicks and replies per email.
- A footer with your postal address and a working unsubscribe link.
If a tool does these six well, it can do your first sequence. Anything beyond that is optional.
The scorecard
Score each tool from 0 to 2 on each line. Zero means it cannot do it, one means it can with effort, two means it does it clearly. Write the score only after you read the tool's own help page or try it yourself.
| Criterion | What to check | Score 0 to 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Can joining a list start the sequence? | |
| Waits | Can you set the gap between emails in days? | |
| Number of steps | Does your plan cap the steps in a journey? | |
| Exit rule | Can a purchase or tag stop the pitch emails? | |
| Reporting | Does it show clicks per email, not just opens? | |
| Footer and unsubscribe | Is the unsubscribe link added and is your address easy to place? | |
| Sending authentication | Does it help you set up authentication for your domain? | |
| Editing | Can you edit one email without restarting the sequence? | |
| Export | Can you take your list and emails with you if you leave? | |
| Support | Is there plain help documentation you can follow? |
Total up to 20. A tool scoring under about 12 for your needs is probably the wrong fit. That cut off is my own rule of thumb, not an industry standard.
What each criterion means in practice
Trigger and waits
Every tool you will look at should start a sequence when someone joins a list. Mailchimp's Customer Journey Builder, for example, is described by the company as a visual builder where automations send messages based on where people are in a journey. Check that the trigger you want exists and that the waits can be set in days.
Number of steps
Some plans cap what you can build. Limits on journeys can differ by plan, and plans change, so do not rely on any article for current limits. Read the tool's current pricing and help pages, and count your five emails and the waits as steps.
Exit rules
This is the one many people forget. Test it by adding a tag or a purchase on a test contact and seeing whether the next pitch email would still go out.
Reporting
You want clicks per email and, ideally, the ability to see replies. Do not count on opens. Mailchimp's Apple privacy FAQ says emails in Apple Mail are reported as opened regardless of the contact's activity, which inflates opens. Google also says it does not track open rates and cannot verify third party ones.
Footer and authentication
The FTC's CAN-SPAM guide requires commercial emails to carry your valid physical postal address and a clear way to opt out. Google's sender guidelines ask senders to set up authentication for their sending domains and to keep spam rates low, under 0.10% in Postmaster Tools. A good tool will guide you through authentication. If it hides this, ask why.
Export
Check that you can export your contacts and copy your emails out. Moving later is painful otherwise.
Run the one hour trial
- Write your sequence in a documentFive subject lines, five short drafts, and the waits. Use the same text in every tool you test.
- Build it in each toolTime how long each takes from sign in to a finished sequence. Note anything confusing.
- Test the exitAdd a test contact, trigger the exit, and see what happens.
- Send a test sign upJoin from a fresh address and read the emails on a phone.
- Read the help page for limitsFind the current plan limits on the tool's own site.
- Score and compareFill in the scorecard, add the totals, and choose.
Do this with two or three tools at most. More than that, and you will spend a week on tools instead of emails. This echoes advice in our guide on choosing AI video tools: a small shortlist and the same test for each beats endless browsing.
Things to ignore
- Feature lists. Most of the features on a comparison page will not matter for a five email sequence.
- Unverifiable claims. Be wary of any claim of a percent lift in opens or sales that does not show how it was measured.
- Prices in articles. Prices change. Check the tool's own page on the day you decide.
Questions people ask
Which tool is the best?
There is no honest single answer. It depends on your list size, budget and how you build. Use the scorecard on your own sequence.
Can AI choose the tool for me?
It can help you build the scorecard and read help pages with you, but verify any feature on the tool's own site, since AI can state outdated details.
Should I pick the cheapest?
Only if it passes the scorecard. An exit rule or an export you cannot do will cost more than a monthly fee.
Do I need a separate CRM?
Some small businesses use the list inside their email tool. Lesson 5.1 covers a simple CRM if you want contacts and leads in one place: Every customer in one place.
Where to go next
If you want a clear design to take into any tool, Lesson 5.3, An email journey that keeps paying, maps and writes the five emails and sets the timing. Then use the scorecard to choose where to build it. For the structure itself, see the five stage frame.