12. Email Marketing Tools
There are a lot of email marketing apps and tools on the market. Some offer a simpler dashboard with a limited number of options, which are a great solution for small companies, personal blogs, etc. For e-commerce websites and larger companies, more advanced options are necessary, in which case you should consider an advanced email marketing solution. A lot of tools offer the most basic options for free, while advanced settings are a part of a payment plan. Limitations, and thus distinctions between plans, are usually displayed through the number of emails you can send per month and the number of email addresses you can add to the mailing list managed through the software. Again, these factors are something that will determine the solution you are going to choose.
TinyLetter
This software is known for its simplicity. It is perfect for sending newsletter emails, updates and similar emails, which is something smaller blogs would benefit from. This is not a solution for businesses that want to go ahead with email marketing because advanced customization and settings are not included. The software offers a custom background and a few options for branding and customization. There are no templates or advanced settings.
With TinyLetter you can send unlimited number of emails per month to a list of 5000 email addresses. The tool is free and there is no possibility to upgrade to a paid plan. In case you want to upgrade, you can do so by signing up for one of the MailChimp’s plans, as the same company owns both tools. The contacts are directly transferred from TinyLetter account when you upgrade.
MailChimp
MailChimp is one of the most popular email marketing platforms. It offers a variety of tools, suitable for both small companies to big websites. It is particularly useful for online stores, because of e-commerce integrations, targeted campaigns, etc. Other features include campaign tracking, segmentation, A/B testing, automation, integrations with WordPress, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Advanced analytics is also available, with data about email deliverability and the option to integrate Google Analytics and campaign URL tracking for even more insights. The platform itself is quite straightforward with drag-and-drop features that help you design your own email. Ready-made templates are also available making the email design quite quick and easy, using the existing elements, as well as your own visual content, such as images, CTAs, graphics, etc. to completely customized your email campaign.
The “New Business” plan is the basic plan perfect for new businesses. This plan is free and it comes with the limit of 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. This is everything you need to get started and learn more about the platform. This way you can make sure that this particular tool is something you will benefit from before you decide to go for a premium version. If your business goes beyond these limits, you can choose “Growing Business” plan (starting at $10 per month) or go for “Pro Marketer” plan (starting at $25 per month and additional $199 for pro subscription).
GetResponse
GetResponse is an all-in-one platform, which combines email marketing features, with landing page design and marketing automation. This kind of combination of tools makes it a great starting point for businesses looking for ways to grow and expand their reach. The most important features in terms of email marketing include email templates, auto-responders, advanced segmentation and analytic, A/B testing, etc. List building program helps with growing a mailing list with web forms and import feature. When it comes to email design, a drag-and-drop method is used, apart from which, you also get access to the image editor, landing page templates, etc. Real-time activity tracking, subscription statistics, goal tracking and other stats will help you understand your subscribers and the success of your email campaigns.
There are four pricing options, starting from the basic one with 1,000 subscribers, email marketing and marketing automation basic features and 1 user for $15 per month. “Pro” plan comes with 5,000 subscribers and additional automation features for $49 per month. If your business needs are even larger, choose “Max” plan, with 10,000 subscribers and advanced features for $165 per month, or “Enterprise “option, starting from $799 per month, with all the available features, 100,000+ subscribers and 10 users. There is a one-month free trial.
Campayn
Campayn is an email marketing solution for small businesses. The software comes with email design features, follow-up emails, detailed reporting with the ability to track responses and clicks, sign-up forms to be embedded on your website, etc. The main reason why this is a small business tool is because it lacks advanced tracking, segmentation, and analysis, which are essential for large companies.
All of the features the tool offers are available with each pricing option, starting from the free account, with a limit of 500 contacts and 20,000 emails, with one follow-up email and basic reporting. The price of the software is determined by a number of contacts. Multi-user is also available as a paid option, otherwise, the tool comes with a single user account.
SendLoop
SendLoop is a digital marketing platform combining email marketing, marketing automation and email gateway in a simple-to-use platform. The most important features include email templates and builder, email delivery infrastructure, reporting, mobile solution, marketing automation, integrations, list management, etc.
There are multiple payment plans available with unlimited email delivery for each plan. The price starts from $9 for 500 subscribers and it goes up as the number of subscribers increases.
FreshMail
Here is another tool that comes with a free limited account. This kind of tool is very useful for newsletters, with its templates, auto-responders, and campaign scheduling. It also comes with opportunities for A/B testing, transactional emails, etc. The combination of these features allows you to grow your business through the interaction with subscribers. Email marketing automation, Google Analytics integration, targeting, segmentation and personalization are also features that make this tool quite handy in your everyday business.
For frequent senders, payment is based on the number of subscribers, with 500 subscribers and 2000 email per month being a limit for the free membership. Paid membership starts at $14 per month with up to 1000 subscribers and unlimited sending. There is also a payment option where you pay as you go, meaning you only pay when you send emails, which is suitable for those that do not send emails on a regular basis. These plans start from $30 for 5000 emails.
Campaign Monitor
Creating custom and yet effective email campaigns is an essential part of email marketing, and with Campaign Monitor you get access to hundreds of pre-designed templates, as well as a drag-and-drop builder to customize them. Signup forms for your website are also available. When it comes to analytics, you get access to real-time, interactive data for each campaign, which allows you to evaluate their performance. Integrations with major e-commerce platforms, CRM and websites are available.
Payment plans are generally divided into three groups, basic, unlimited and premier, starting at $9 for 2,500 email limit and 500 contacts. However, each plan offers an opportunity to expand the number of contacts you are reaching out to, which is additionally charged. It is free to signup for the service and to design a campaign, you only pay once you decide to send your first email, which is a great opportunity to test the tool and see if it would be a good addition to your business strategy.
Marketo
Here is another all-in-one marketing software, offering applications for marketing automation, account-based marketing, email, mobile, social, digital ads, web, marketing analytics and predictive content. Having such a tool that combines all the most important marketing tasks is really helpful and makes the job a lot easier. Besides managing an email marketing campaign, a set of all the features Marketo offers allows an opportunity to create and manage a complex business strategy.
The packages are divided into bundles and the email marketing bundle includes email and landing page creator, intelligent nurturing, A/B testing, audience segmentation, forms and progressive profiling, automated workflow, etc. Unlike some other more simplified versions of email marketing software, this one is surely enough to provide even the most experienced marketers with a platform where they can explore the full potential of their business. There is no clear pricing for the email marketing bundle, but it is based on the number of contacts in your database. To learn more about the packaging and about the pricing, you will have to contact their sales department.
Sendicate
Sendicate represents another simplified version of an email app, but it is quite enough for regular email campaign. Along with the possibility to track results, manage and segment the database of subscribers, this tool provides enough options for campaign management. The interface is easy to use with a few predesigned templates, as well as a full set of tools to create your own custom email layouts.
All of the features with 500 subscriber limit are available with a free account. This account also comes with 1000 monthly limit for the number of sent emails. If you choose one of the paid accounts, starting from $9 per month, you get unlimited number of emails per month, and the number of subscribers increases with each plan.
Litmus
Litmus is a web application that integrates with email providers such as MailChimp, Campaign Monitor, etc. The purpose of this tool is to design, optimize and test emails using advanced options. You get access to a code editor built for email, which basically allows you to create your own custom email from scratch. Other features include checklists to monitor performance, spam testing with major spam filters, email analytics, and community. With instant email preview, you get to see a preview of the design across more than 50 apps, which helps with optimizing email in a better way.
There are four payment plans, starting from “Freelancer” plan priced at $79 per month. Each plan comes with a 7-day free trial and 200 email previews available during the trial period.
Hubspot
This platform is perhaps the most advanced tool of them all, as it comes with an impressive list of features and tools that are particularly designed to help marketers in the management of their tasks. When it comes to email marketing, you will need Hubspot’s marketing software which includes features like content optimization, email marketing, custom workflow, goal-based nurturing, marketing automation, A/B testing for CTAs and emails, event-based segmentation, predictive lead scoring, etc. These kinds of features can really help you take your business to a next level. Hubspot is generally recommended for medium to large business, due to the type of features the platform offers, as well as due to the costs.
There are three payment plans, starting with “Basic”, available at $200 per month. All Hubspot plans are billed annually and all include onboarding fee, starting at $600 for the “Basic” plan.
There are many more email marketing tools you can find online, and it is worth exploring them, the features they offer and how your business can benefit from those features. The bottom line is: a tool is something you use to assist your marketing efforts. It does not need to be advanced or pricy if that is not what you need. You should adapt the tool to your business needs. Then define the goals and the features you need an email marketing app to have for you to achieve those goals. In the end, you could test the tool by watching a demo or a review, or you could even sign up for a free trial if the platform offers this as a part of their service.