Open up most email marketing tools today, and you’ll see it:

A bloated dashboard, clunky templates, and a workflow that feels like it hasn’t evolved in over a decade.

And that’s because it hasn’t.

The tech world has moved on. We now have AI co-pilots, no-code builders, mobile-first design, and real-time analytics everywhere else in our stack.

But somehow, email, still one of the highest ROI channels in marketing, is stuck in the 2010s.

If you’ve ever thought:

“Why does this take so long?”
“Why does this feel so hard?”
“Why can’t this just… work?”

You’re not wrong.

You’re just using a tool that was built for a different era.

Let’s break down exactly where things went wrong and what needs to change.

1. Tech Has Changed. ESPs Haven’t.

In the last 5 years, the way we build and grow businesses has completely changed:

  • No-code tools let anyone automate workflows, launch products, or build internal tools without writing a line of code.
  • AI generates content, analyzes behavior, and more and more every day.
  • Mobile-first is table stakes and if your tool doesn’t work in motion, it doesn’t work.


Meanwhile, most email platforms still look like they did in 2010:

  • You build every email from scratch.
  • You click through 6 layers of menus to find the right segment.
  • You switch tabs between analytics, content, and performance like it’s a full-time job.


Even their “AI features” are often bolted on and not baked in.

Email marketing platforms didn’t just fail to keep up with the pace of technology.

They failed to rethink what email should be in a post-AI, post-mobile, post-2020 world.

2. The “DIY Everything” Model Is Breaking

When legacy platforms were built, they assumed you had a team and the time.

Time to create the email.
Time to create the segment.
Time to test, tweak, and interpret metrics.

That assumption no longer holds.

Most modern marketers wear five hats. They’re responsible for growth, creativity, data, and customer success.

But ESPs still operate like the expectation is:
“Here’s a blank canvas. Now go be a high-converting copywriter, designer, strategist, and data analyst.”

The result?

  • Burnout.
  • Half-sent campaigns.
  • Missed revenue.


The DIY model was fine when it was the only option.

Today, it just creates friction, especially when smarter systems are everywhere else.

3. Modern Marketers Need Tools That Adapt — Not Overwhelm

Here’s what the modern marketer needs:

  • Fewer decisions. Not more drop-downs.
  • Suggestions. Not a blank template. But a fully ready email to be reviewed and sent.
  • Clarity. Not dashboards with 14 metrics and no context.
  • One tap execution. Not 19 steps to schedule launch campaigns or create segments.


The new expectation isn’t “give me more tools.”

It’s: “Give me tools that understand what I’m trying to do and help me do it faster.”

Think about it:

  • Canva doesn’t start with a blank PSD it offers smart templates.
  • Notion AI suggests summaries, next steps, even database properties.
  • Shopify auto-generates product descriptions, predicts inventory, and alerts you when things break.


Email tools, by contrast, still treat you like a junior marketing intern building their first Mailchimp campaign in 2011.

It’s not acceptable anymore, especially when email ROI is still among the highest of any channel.

4. The Real Shift: Your Expectations Changed. The Tools Didn’t.

Here’s the truth:

You didn’t become less patient. You became more efficient.

You’ve used tools that learn from you, that speed you up, that nudge you toward better outcomes.

Now you expect that everywhere. Including email marketing.

But legacy ESPs? They still expect you to:

  • Manually select segments.
  • Write from scratch.
  • Guess what’s working.
  • Fix performance issues with no help.


You outgrew your tools.

They didn’t grow with you.

And that’s the gap everyone’s feeling right now, the intuition that something isn’t working, even if you can’t fully articulate why.

5. What Comes Next: Rebuilding Email Marketing for 2025

Email isn’t dying. But the way we do email has to.

The next generation of email marketing platforms won’t just be faster or prettier. They’ll be:

✅ AI-native. Not AI-powered.
Campaigns will pre-draft themselves based on your store, product, and audience data.

✅ Mobile-first. Truly.
You’ll review, edit, and approve email campaigns on your phone, just like Instagram stories or Slack messages.

✅ Context-aware.
The platform knows what kind of campaign you’re sending, what stage your customer is in, and what worked last time.

✅ Autonomous, not just automated.
“Set it and forget it” will finally be real, with monitoring, testing, and optimization happening behind the scenes.

✅ Human + Machine, not Human vs Machine.
It won’t replace your creativity. It will protect your time and sharpen your impact.

That’s what needs to come next.

Because the goal isn’t just better email marketing tools.

The goal is more effective email marketers and with less effort, less guesswork, and more clarity.

6. Enter Mailberry: Built for the Modern Era

At Mailberry, we didn’t start with an old product and try to layer AI on top.

We started with a blank slate and asked one question:

“What would an email marketing platform look like if it was invented in 2025?”

The result is Mailberry, a platform purpose-built to replace the legacy ESP model with something radically better.

Here’s how we’re different:


🔷 1. A Sharp, Focused UI/UX

Most ESPs have clunky navigation menus. We remove the clutter…

  • Clean, UI interface with chat
  • Clear workflows from ideas to emails to reports
  • No chaos. No confusion. No overwhelm.


🔷 2. ESP 2.0: Built to Make Experts Unstoppable

Most platforms slow experienced marketers down with cluttered UIs, fragmented workflows, and “smart” features that just get in the way.

Mailberry is different.

We’re not dumbing things down, we’re speeding them up.

We designed ESP 2.0 to make even the most advanced marketers faster, sharper, and more efficient by:

  • Eliminating repetitive tasks with AI-driven automation
  • Offering email ideas and suggestions based on performance data
  • Streamlining workflows to go from idea to launched in minutes
  • Baking deliverability best practices directly into the system

Built for email marketers who’ve outgrown the noise and want to move faster, smarter, and cleaner.

ESP 1.0 gave you tools.

ESP 2.0 gives you leverage.


🔷 3. A Clear Workflow Built Around Real Problems

Most platforms start with a black slate.

We start with your goals: “What are you trying to accomplish?”

Whether it’s recovering abandoned carts, launching a new product, or re-engaging dormant leads, etc. Mailberry walks you through what works, why it works, and handles the heavy lifting.


🔷 4. AI as the Engine — Not the Add-on

Mailberry isn’t a legacy platform with ChatGPT bolted on.

AI is the core of everything:

  • It generates your content based on brand voice, products, and past performance.
  • It segments your audience based on behavior and intent.
  • It optimizes send times, subject lines, and sequences automatically.
  • It recommends your next best campaign, before you even ask.

We believe marketers should spend more time thinking about their customers and not formatting templates.

The Future of Email Is Outcome-Driven, AI-Powered, and Human-Centric.

Mailberry is here to own that future.