It’s been almost exactly one year since I returned from Nepal and hiking to Everest Base Camp and the email landscape is a lot like the hiking trails to EBC. Along the way there were many trekkers who were going it alone without the help of a guide or Sherpa. The Sherpas are there for a reason, they know which route to avoid and which ones offer the easiest path. Our Sherpa “Nima” was making his 85th trek to EBC so we felt very confident that whatever obstacle we found ourselves faced with, that he would help us to successfully navigate our way to EBC.
When it comes to making the transition from one ESP to another, you should ensure that the new ESP knows the route to success. Having a team of ESP savvy marketers along with an experienced project manager is a must. You should ensure that your assigned ESP project manager has “walked the hills” with previous implementations. Like trekking, an inexperience project manager often doesn’t have the on mountain experience to navigate the issues that will invariably arise during the transition.
Transitioning from solution to another can be a daunting task, just think about the last software implementation you were involved with, it was probably behind schedule impacted your day and cost more than budgeted. A Sherpa who has been down the path many times can help to navigate the path to success, and he / she can avoid the potential challenges and pitfalls that arise during any implementation.
Skip O'Neill - Email Marketing Guide 