New smartFOCUS Inbox Preview Automates Email Testing across Twenty Clients and Mobile Devices from Smartphones to iPads

BOSTON & BRISTOL, U.K.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--smartFOCUS, a global provider of intelligent multi-channel marketing software, has launched a new email testing capability for its eChannel marketing software. ‘Inbox Preview’ enables marketers to test the display of marketing emails across more than twenty leading email clients, including Gmail, Hotmail, Lotus Notes and Outlook 2003 through to 2010, and mobile devices such as smartphones and iPads.

smartFOCUS’ new Inbox Preview functionality has been added to smartMARKETER eChannel, an application within smartFOCUS’ flagship smartMARKETER suite. Pricing for Inbox Preview starts at $40 per month for a minimum of 100 tests per month.

smartMARKETER eChannel is a powerful yet user-friendly e-marketing SaaS platform that spans email, SMS, RSS, and web microsites. It can be used as a standalone application or used as an integrated module of the smartMARKETER suite. It handles all digital channels with fully dynamic personalization capabilities and integrated content management for editing text and images. smartMARKETER eChannel provides real-time tracking for campaign management and optimization; can be automatically triggered so campaigns can be linked to events and responses; and provides advanced reporting.

‘Inbox Preview’ provides an intelligent solution to the lack of established standards for displaying email. Until now, marketers have struggled to ensure that their communications display correctly across a broad range of email clients. With Inbox Preview, marketers simply load an email and see how it displays across more than 20 of the most popular email clients. Tests are run for, Outlook 2003 through to 2010, Hotmail, Gmail, Lotus Notes and many others. There is no need to install and log in and out of a succession of different email systems. Inbox Preview also solves the challenge of marketing to increasing numbers of mobile end users reading HTML email across diverse devices, clients and screen resolutions.

Curt Bloom, president for smartFOCUS said: “End users today have so many options when it comes to choosing email clients, types of device, and sizes of display –and as consumers use more devices for reading emails, including smartphones, iPads and other mobile devices, it’s become impractical for marketers to manually test campaigns across them all. Inbox Preview is an exciting, practical new tool that eliminates this frustration, freeing up marketers to concentrate on campaign tuning and creative development, without the unnecessary distraction of inbox infighting.”

Another pain point for marketers arises from image blocking rules and how images are displayed when blocked. This can have a negative impact on the success rates of email campaigns and reduce response rates. smartFOCUS Inbox Preview enables emails to be previewed with and without images blocked, so marketers can test thoroughly and with confidence.

About smartFOCUS:

A leading international provider of multi-channel marketing software and services, smartFOCUS and its Intelligent Marketing solutions integrate data to deliver the most powerful analysis and customer insight, enabling communication across the entire marketing operation.

More than 700 companies worldwide rely on smartFOCUS to inspire customers, improve results and transform marketing performance. Clients and partners include AAA, ABN AMRO, Centre Parcs, EasyJet, EMI, Equifax, Eurocamp, Harrods, Landal Green Park, Lastminute.com, Manchester United FC, QVC, Rabobank, RCI-GVN, Société Générale and Sony Europe.

smartFOCUS provides e-mail and digital marketing with smartMARKETER eChannel, a fully on-demand digital marketing solution that serves each of its customers with e-mail, mobile, social network, landing page, microsite and RSS channel communications.

In the news media industry, smartFOCUS Astech offers marketing expertise and Intelligent Marketing solutions that serve more than 200 news media companies internationally. Customers include USA Today, the New York Times Regional Media Group and the Washington Post.

smartFOCUS is headquartered in Bristol, U.K., with operations in the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific. For more information, visit www.smartFOCUS.com.