Each marketing project has unique requirements, and so you need a competent guide to what tools are out there, who they're made for, and just they can do. At my startup Outro, we tested a bunch to see what worked best for us. Here are the leading contenders; see which are best suited for your marketing needs.

1. GetResponse

This is a multipurpose email marketing platform for the small and mid-sized businesses. It works best with list sizes in the mid-tens of thousands down to a thousand or fewer recipients. With a staunch reputation in the marketing industry, GetResponse offers a wide array of features such as AB testing, responsive templates, email segmentation and even landing page creation.

2. MailChimp.

For the new marketer MailChimp offers help like 'forever free' listings under five-hundred subscribers. As a newbie, that should be plenty. So if you're hesitant about spending on autoresponders give MailChimp a try. The best set of training wheels a beginning marketer can find. You'll also find dozens of email marketing features to carry out a successful email marketing campaign.

3. AWeber.

When you're managing a smaller list, maybe hundreds or thousands, or the low tens, and you're focused on internet leads, then AWeber is a good choice. They don't work for adding leads from offline sources, but for an online list they give you the premier deliverability rates in the market. Your cyber messages will get delivered fast, opened quickly, and clicked on regularly.

4. Constant Contact.

This software is excellent for graphical or HTML emails. So if that's where you're at, use them. They are geared mostly for the smaller marketer who is working off of lists in the hundreds or thousands or low to mid tens.

5. SmartMail

SmartMail is a triggered email automation solution that tracks behavioural and lifecycle markers. It helps personalize individual customer experiences to win back and onboard customers and grow average revenue per visitor using predictive automation. The platform helps companies identify potential customers in rea time and re-market to them with personalized product recommendations.

6. InfusionSoft.

If you work off a list of more than 50-thousand subscribers and your online business runs into six figures or more, this probably is just what you're looking for. They meld shopping cart with email marketing strategy to facilitate schemes like segregating your buyers from subscribers, or setting up specific mailing sequences to particular people. You can do physical postcards as well. But they aren't cheap. Their setup fee is in the four figures. As you can guess, they are geared for successful companies that want to continue to boost the bottom line even further.

7. 1ShoppingCart.

A one-size-fits-all solution combining payment processing and email marketing, 1ShoppingCart can integrate your cyber messaging with your shopping cart -- but at a lower price than, say, InfusionSoft. You can still segregate lists and send emails strictly to buyers, or else your entire list. They have a solid reputation, but don't expect the spectacular deliverability rates of a dedicated email marketing program. It's true you'll save time and money with just one shopping cart instead of shopping cart AND an autoresponder, but there are inevitable trade-offs.

8. Autoresponse Plus (ARP).

This is the one to use if you're doing co-registration. The software also works for standard email marketing, too. But if you're purchasing leads and need them to be mailed immediately, Autoresponse Plus is the go-to guy in the industry.

9. Campaign Monitor.

This is for data-driven businesses of any size. If you are obsessive about data collection and interpretation, this is the company for you. They'll give you everything; including clicks and open rate tracking. They have an interface that is capable of Google Analytics work. They perform splendidly at split test emails and micro-tracking trends and topics.

10. Office Autopilot.

This service lets you add a layer of sophistication to your standard autoresponder solution. It's almost programmable for 'if-then' tasks of various kinds.

In actually, you can program it to respond when certain situations occur; such as when a client places an order the program will send a message to whatever fulfillment house you are using to complete the order. Or when a customer leaves prematurely, Office Autopilot will send them a special last minute offer. Basically all you do is select the trigger that sets in motion the action you want, when you want it, and what list it should use. Plans start at a little more than two-hundred a month.

So . . . after reviewing these ten leading services, which one(s) look right for your business marketing? With a platform like GetResponse or MailChimp you can get everything from basic functions to super duper intricate analytics, and shopping cart amalgamation, whereas smaller and more dedicated tools like ARP or 1CS can be your best bet for smaller projects. As always, the choice depends on where you're at now and where you want to go.