Net Atlantic

Net Atlantic is an email service provider from Massachusetts that sends newsletters and marketing campaigns for publishers, agencies, political senders, lead-capture programs and high-volume mailers. Its home page sets out the pitch in one line: "More Than an ESP: A True Deliverability Partner for High-Volume Senders". The company says it helps experienced email senders solve deliverability problems and get better results "through expert support and proven technology", and sums up the relationship as "We're partners, not vendors." It was founded in 1995, and its corporate office today is at Cummings Center in Beverly, Massachusetts.

Two editions: ListManager and NextMail

Net Atlantic sells two email marketing platforms and invites buyers to compare the editions side by side. ListManager is "Our flagship service proven over many years", built "for expert delivery, inboxing and engagement", with high-volume sending named as a specialty. Its roots show in the company's history: the Our Story page says Net Atlantic moved from desktop sending software to a server-based program called Lyris ListManager in its early years, running mail servers in data centers to deliver and manage campaigns. NextMail is the other edition, described as "A completely new, next-generation modern approach to email marketing" that is easy to use and "packed with enterprise features".

Around the two editions the services menu lists SmartStart, Dedicated Email Servers and a Pricing and Order page. For a buyer unsure which edition fits, the home page offers a downloadable 21-question Email Marketing Self-Assessment tool, framed as a way to see how your program compares.

Deliverability and high-volume sending

Deliverability is the thread through every page. The home page lists what a customer gets: high-volume sending as "a specialty and core competency", deliverability expertise to help mail reach the inbox, real human support from experts who know the account, migration assistance ("We handle the heavy lifting for you"), integration and automation help to connect systems, strategic guidance based on real experience, and a stable, proven platform. The High Volume Senders section names the work involved: "Warming up, ramping, IP addresses, authentication, SPF, DKIM, more."

A paragraph headed "The Net Atlantic Advantage" spells out the service promise: the team will take phone calls, respond promptly to emails, discuss strategy, give honest feedback, "ensure great delivery" and provide "deep, insightful actionable reporting". The home page also states that Net Atlantic's delivery rates "consistently outperform other ESP's", citing Return Path as the source.

Add-on services and partner programs

Much of what Net Atlantic sells sits beside the software. The add-on menu lists Email Deliverability Monitoring & Resolution, Email Marketing Campaign Deployments, Email Campaign Intelligence & Data Services, Integration & Technical Services, a Quick Start Training Program, Custom Email Template Design and Email Deliverability Partner Tools. The list runs from monitoring and fixing deliverability problems to template design, data services and training.

For companies that serve other businesses there are referral, reseller and agency programs and a program for franchise email marketing, along with technology and integration partner pages. The Ad Agencies section says: "We help you achieve your goals, so you can help your clients achieve theirs."

Who Net Atlantic serves

The home page names the industries it works with every day. The Publishers section promises help getting the most return on investment from email marketing. Political senders get a direct offer: "We'll help you navigate the special challenges inherent with all political email. We're your ally on this." Lead-capture programs are told email works well for them "providing that campaigns are managed properly". High-volume senders and ad agencies have their own sections, and an Others entry says the company has served all kinds of senders with all kinds of messages. The Our Story page widens the list to marketers, religious organizations, retailers and hobbyists, and says the company chooses clients whose mail gives subscribers positive, compelling and helpful information.

Featured articles follow the same audiences: "Exposing Bias in the Treatment of Political Email", "Winning in the 3D Chess Game of Email Marketing" and "Straight Talk on Email Marketing to the Generations", on marketing to Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z. The resources menu adds white papers, case studies, video tutorials, user guides, an email marketing glossary and a blog.

The company

Andrew Lutts founded Net Atlantic in 1995 in Salem, Massachusetts, first building web pages. A newsletter he wrote grew to over 5,000 subscribers in about a year, and when a publishing client asked for help sending its newsletters by email to save on postage, the company began offering full-service email marketing. In 1997 it sent mail with a desktop program called Broadcast Email, then moved to server-based software because the desktop tool handled bounces, retries and unsubscribes poorly. The story calls Net Atlantic one of the first ESPs of that time and says it made the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in 2013.

The company describes itself as private, with no outside investors, and as customer-focused first. The home page counts 125 M+ worldwide system users, 30+ years in business, 85 B+ emails deployed and 800+ positive ratings. The location page says Net Atlantic operates two data centers in the Boston area alongside the Beverly business office.

Support and getting started

Support is a large part of the offer. The Our Story page promises "a full-time, 100% USA-based customer service and technical support teams" and describes a golden rule of treating customers "with kindness, professionalism and a friendly nature", down to asking about the weather or a caller's sports team during a support call. The contact page gives separate phone lines and email addresses for technical support (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST), billing (Monday to Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST) and sales (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST), plus a feedback address and a feature request form.

A buyer can start through Order Now, the Pricing page, Request Demo, Request Info or Request Quote, or book a call through a form after which an email specialist gets in touch about switching to Net Atlantic.

Who it suits

Net Atlantic suits senders for whom inbox placement is the main worry: publishers, political senders, lead-generation programs and agencies sending for clients. The combination of dedicated servers, help with IP warm-up and authentication, managed campaign deployment and a US-based support team reachable by phone fits an organization that wants people it can call rather than a help center. Agencies and franchises have partner programs built for them, and the 21-question self-assessment gives a new customer a structured way to start.

A solo creator who wants to sign up, pick a template and send the same afternoon may find the offer weighted toward consultation and service. The site presents the two editions briefly, so a team comparing features line by line will get the most from the Compare Editions page and a demo.