The document outlines a model for assessing the maturity of an organization's email marketing strategy across five stages: 1) Undefined, 2) Progressive, 3) Mature, and 4) World-Class. It evaluates orientation, leadership, tools/platforms, lead generation, content marketing, cross-channel marketing, budget/staff, and metrics across each stage to identify areas of improvement.

1. Email Marketing
Stage 1: Undefined
Stage 2: Progressive
Stage 3: Mature
Stage 4:
World-Class
Orientation
No defined strategy or process for Email Marketing
Defined strategy and processes exist for Email Marketing in uncoordinated pockets in the organization
Defined, integrated strategy and processes exist for Email Marketing across the Enterprise
Integrated, Enterprise-wide strategy for Email Marketing exists; Campaigns are tracked by engagement & revenue
Leadership
One-dimensional view of Email Marketing as push/broadcast strategy
Sees need for email nurturing campaigns, optimizing for mobile devices and engaging subscribers via Social Media
Long-term commitment to Email Marketing integrated with other cross-channel activities and eCommerce
Focused on creating compelling content and personalized messaging; Analytics with lifecycle strategy & execution tools
Tools & Platforms
Relies on no/low cost Email Marketing platform with predesigned templates for newsletter or email promotions
Platform with A/B split testing & auto responders exists; Trigger workflows, form submissions & social sharing
Platform is integrated with CRM, MA, social experience and eCommerce platforms (i.e. shopping carts)
Comprehensive, end-to- end system with tight integration to Enterprise CRM, MA, social and eCommerce platforms
Lead
Generation
Sporadic; Primary contact through newsletter or blog; No list growth strategy
Connected; Growing subscriber lists for Email Marketing; Social Media integration
Engaged; Convergence of emails, social and mobile content to drive leads from web, marketing campaigns and events
Personalized, localized content, with real-time deliver; Uses analytics and insights to maximize performance of email
Content
Marketing
One-dimensional view of Content Marketing as website & Email Marketing
Sees need for rich content for emails; Experimenting, testing and evaluating applications and tools
Long-term commitment to rich content, personalized email messaging & targeted list segmentation to optimize integration
Platform with CMS, lead scoring, activity tracking & social lead gen; eCommerce, CRM, MA & Enterprise system integration
Cross-Channel Marketing (Web, Social, Mobile)
No defined cross-channel support for Email Marketing; May have social sharing
Coordinated Email Marketing for Sales, Marketing, blogs, web traffic and social channels with usage & response tracking
Connects Email Marketing to Advertising (promos, online events, registrations, etc.) via landing pages, auto responders, social media, coupons & mobile delivery
Email, social & content integrated with MA & metrics that include CMS, deliverability, reputability, reporting with segmentation & mobile optimization
Budget & Staff
Budgets for website and Email Marketing; Staff is contracted or Coordinator role
Budget allocated, defined roles & tasks for Email Marketing; Campaigns typically outsourced to agency or consultant.
Budget with business case to justify spend; Dedicated roles for Email Marketing; In-house & outsourcing
Budget connected to goals; Aligned for max impact of integrated Digital Marketing; Experienced, in-house staff
Metrics
No formal measurements in place
Analytics to monitor & track usage & response (open & delivery rates, CTRs)
Dashboard monitors key email usage and conversion; Metrics track opens, clicks, forwards, purchases, registers, etc.
Enterprise–wide dashboard monitors content & personalization; intelligence for competition, delivery optimization, etc.
Email Marketing Maturity Model