LISTSERV as Software or in the Cloud:
See the Key Advantages of Each Option

By L-Soft Staff

IT professionals who want to run email lists have the choice of either licensing LISTSERV and running the software in-house on their own servers or hosting their email lists in the cloud on L-Soft's servers. Both options have their respective advantages, and the right choice depends almost entirely on your unique requirements and circumstances.

Benefits of LISTSERV as Software

With the software option, LISTSERV and its related email marketing and analytics solution, LISTSERV Maestro, are installed in-house, and you are responsible for maintaining both the software and the servers that it runs on. This is usually the most cost-effective option for organizations with IT resources and staff, large workloads or other specialized requirements, such as the need to integrate LISTSERV with their in-house databases or LDAP servers. With the software option, you only pay the cost of the license and an optional but recommended fee for a full year of technical support. You can create as many email lists as your license type allows and send as many messages as you want without any delivery charges.

Key advantages:

• More Economical Long-Term: Licensing the software is usually more cost-effective in the long run, although the upfront cost of a license is higher. You can create as many lists and send as many messages as you want without additional delivery fees.
• Maximum Flexibility: The software option allows you to configure your LISTSERV site to meet your organization's exact needs. L-Soft's technical support, training and consulting teams are always available for help if you need it.
• Full Control: Running the software in-house gives you complete control of your operations, including the operating system and software environment. This is especially vital for organizations with complex change management policies.
• Database Integration: An in-house setup makes it easier for you to take advantage of existing databases for dynamic and personalized mailings. You can also use databases and LDAP servers for authenticating credentials and user logins, which is especially helpful within large and complex organizations.
• High Security: If you're operating in a high-security environment, keeping LISTSERV on site, together with your existing databases, LDAP and Active Directory servers, makes it easier to ensure that your entire email communication system and data are secure.

Benefits of LISTSERV in the Cloud

With the cloud solutions (known as ListPlex and ListPlex Maestro respectively), LISTSERV and LISTSERV Maestro are hosted on L-Soft's servers, and L-Soft takes care of running the service and delivering your mail. You can have your own dedicated domain name as if you were running LISTSERV in-house. Hosting is usually the more cost-effective option for organizations with limited IT resources, smaller workloads and few specialized requirements. You pay a one-time setup charge, an annual service fee and delivery charges based on how many email messages you send. Full technical support is always included in the cloud service.

Key advantages:

• Lower Upfront Costs: The cloud service and your email lists are quick to set up, and the upfront costs are lower. However, hosting can be less cost-effective in the long run, especially if you have a large workload and send a lot of messages.
• Fewer Resources Required: There's no need for any special hardware, IT staff, installation or setup. L-Soft's professional technical support services are always available for help and advice to keep your email lists running smoothly.
• Minimal Learning Curve: L-Soft configures the service and creates all of the lists for you based on your requirements, so you don't need to spend time learning how to properly configure your server and set up your email lists.
• Automatic Upgrades: Hosting servers are automatically upgraded whenever new versions are released so you can be sure that you're always running the newest versions of LISTSERV and LISTSERV Maestro and benefiting from the latest features and fixes.
• High Performance: L-Soft's hosting servers are engineered for maximum uptime, reliability and scalability. Your email is delivered from dedicated servers, especially tuned for this purpose, using the latest email deliverability and authentication standards.

Next Steps

Whichever option you choose, know that your email lists can always be migrated from L-Soft's servers and taken in-house or vice-versa with minimal effort and disruption if your circumstances and requirements were to change. The highest investment protection is guaranteed with either the software or the cloud option.