API stands for application programming interface, and it is hosted on a cloud email delivery service to connect a platform, software, or app to an email service provider or email marketing platform. In simple terms, an API enables two or more applications to interact with one another. Developers can access the data and features of an ESP or email marketing platform using an email API.
An email API provides access to features like:
- Creating and sending email campaigns.
- Bulk email sending.
- Personalisation.
- Analysing email marketing metrics.
- Incoming email parsing.
- Deliverability and spam management.
- Managing email templates and lists.
- Setting up domain authentication.
- Scheduled email sending.
- Webhook creation for sending real-time email event data.
An API is the reason developers or other applications can programmatically access all these features on an ESP. People use APIs to integrate email services into their websites and applications via codes.
Also, they can operate at scale because an API will prevent email clients like Gmail and Outlook from seeing their activities as spamming, even when sending bulk emails. This is because an API call goes through cloud servers and has layers of authentication.
How Does an Email API Work?
An email API acts as an intermediary between an application and a server; it allows users to use HTTP POST requests to send emails from their app or website. Users can interact with the application using a graphical user interface (GUI). Some applications can also interact with the API using programming languages with API calls.
Types of APIs
Transactional Email APIs
Transactional email APIs are used to design and send automated emails which are triggered by specific actions or events. They are mainly used for order confirmations, password reset, receipts, etc. These APIs are very reliable and time-sensitive.
Contextual Email APIs
These are APIs used for email marketing messages and notifications with dynamic email content and personalisation based on the user’s contextual information or behaviour. You can use these APIs to create targeted and engaging email marketing campaigns, and the contents will be generated dynamically when it is time for email rendering.
Email Marketing APIs
These APIs allow developers to integrate email marketing features into apps, programs, etc. It enables interaction with email marketing platforms and provides access to their features via codes rather than a GUI. Some of these features include:
- Campaign list retrieval.
- Contact management.
- HTML template email sending.
- Email marketing campaign management.
- Email list management and segmentation.
- Contact campaign list retrieval.
- And more.