When it comes to building a real connection with your target audiences, email marketing remains one of the most effective strategies. According to recent statistics, 87% of brands state that email marketing is a crucial part of their overall success. It also has the potential to achieve a high ROI, with businesses earning an average of $36 per dollar spent on these campaigns. email marketing software must then be utilized.
Selecting the right email marketing software is one of the best ways to get the most from your email marketing efforts. In this blog, our Email Marketing Manager, Joel Staniszewski, will go over some of the best software for email marketing and how to find the right tools for your business.
My Expert Opinion on Email Marketing Software
With developments like artificial intelligence and machine learning making automation easier than ever, businesses can effectively streamline email campaigns and other marketing efforts.
With billions of people still using email on a daily basis, there’s no reason not to use email as part of your strategy. The right approach can ensure your brand stands out and that your marketing materials truly resonate with your target audience.
Email can ultimately serve as a vital component of a holistic marketing strategy, connecting with people at every stage of the buyer’s journey, from initial contact to repeat sales.
Plenty of tools out there can help meet your goals, with solutions that can automate drip emails, keep your content dynamic based on your audience segments, provide in-depth analytics and reports, and more.
What is an Email Marketing Software?
Email marketing software aids in email delivery and email marketing strategy. They serve a variety of purposes, and some are more robust than others.
Most will help you create emails and templates, grow subscriber lists, and set auto-responses. Key features include A/B testing and some sort of conversion tracking.
Others take it a step further with social media integration, Javascript capabilities, and full automation sequences.
Today’s innovations also include AI-driven automation, integrations with Google Analytics and other analytics tools, and more sustainable solutions.
When choosing an email service provider for your business, you’ll first need to evaluate your goals and what you want to get out of it.
To get started, you can go with a free option like Mailchimp, which has a free plan that’s great for beginners just getting into email marketing. Sender also has a very generous free plan with up to 15,000 emails per month.
Often, you’ll find it’s really a matter of personal preference. Many of the software below offers the same (or similar) features and functionality; it ultimately comes down to which you like interacting with the most. You’ll know pretty quickly as you navigate around the site whether you like the interface and find using it pretty intuitive.
Why Email Marketing Is Essential for Businesses
Although many perceive email as an old-school marketing channel, it’s just as relevant as it’s ever been, with 64% of small businesses using it. In fact, it’s become increasingly important in developing strong targeted marketing campaigns that resonate with audiences.
Targeted emails will get the right people to convert where other channels might struggle, keeping people moving along the customer journey toward a sale and encouraging repeat purchases beyond that first conversion.
At the same time, it’s important for email campaigns to utilize automation and personalization, ensuring emails go to recipients as soon as they complete a desired action and keeping brands top-of-mind while speaking directly to audiences.
How to Choose the Best Email Marketing Software for Your Business
When deciding on the best software for email marketing, there are some critical factors to consider.
These include:
- Business Goals: Define your email marketing objectives—brand awareness, website traffic, lead generation, sales, or customer engagement—then find a solution that aligns with your goals.
- Features: Choose software with features that support your goals, such as automation, CRM integration, and templates for targeted audience engagement.
- Budget: Consider what you can afford and aim for the best ROI. Free tools are available, with paid upgrades worth considering as your business grows.
- Scalability: Select a solution that grows with your business, offering flexible plans and capabilities for evolving campaign needs.
- Team Size & Expertise: Match the software to your team’s skill level. Beginners may need user-friendly tools, while experienced teams can leverage advanced features.
Features to Look for in Marketing Tools
In your email marketing software comparisons, be sure to select a software with the right features, which could include:
- Automation Tools: Almost 90% of B2C businesses use automation and email marketing as part of their content marketing strategy. Use email marketing automation to nurture leads with segmented, personalized drip emails triggered upon sign-up.
- CRM Integration: Connect your email marketing software with platforms like Salesforce or HubSpot to streamline customer management and enhance the buyer’s journey.
- Ecommerce Features: Leverage software that integrates with your online store, offering product recommendations, abandoned cart reminders, discount codes, and more to drive sales.
- SMS Marketing: Extend your reach with SMS marketing, sending abandoned cart reminders and limited-time offers directly to customers’ mobile devices. Take advantage of the fact that almost half of all email opens (46%) occur on mobile devices!
- Cost-Effectiveness: Free tools exist but may be limited. Investing in a paid solution can enhance profitability by providing essential features for long-term success.
Comprehensive Reviews of Top Email Marketing Software
In addition to email service providers, there is a variety of email marketing software to choose from. These platforms will make your life easier while creating attractive emails that your audience will want to read.
Check out our email marketing software comparison below:
MailChimp
Pros:
- Easy to navigate
- Easy to learn for beginners
- Built-in help features
Cons:
- Limited automation tools
- Limited customization options
Pricing: MailChimp sets its prices based on the number of contacts on your email list. They offer a free account for up to 500 contacts. In addition to their free account, they have 3 more levels of pricing – essentials, standard, and premium.
The free plan allows for up to 1,000 emails per month and a daily limit of 500, plus the ability to manage up to 500 contacts, one audience, one seat with Owner permissions, basic reporting, email templates, an abandoned cart email, and one-click automated welcome emails.
Klaviyo
Pros:
- Offers SMS packages
- Excellent customer service
Cons:
- Can get expensive
- Can be difficult to edit and customize
Pricing: Packages range from free to $3,870 for large-scale SMS and email packages. Features included with the free version include 500 monthly emails, 150 free monthly SMS/MMS credits, and email support for the first 60 days.
HubSpot
If you’re in the market for a free option that’s easy to use and integrates with a CRM, turn to HubSpot.
Pros:
- Excellent customer service
- Highly respected in the world of digital marketing
- Free trial
Cons:
- So robust it can be overwhelming
- Can be expensive, depending on the tools you select
- Some plans require a year-long contract
Pricing: HubSpot offers many free tools, including email marketing. Their other services start at $45 per month and go up to $1,200 per month for enterprise packages.
Constant Contact
If you want something a bit simpler and beginner-friendly than Mailchimp, consider Constant Contact, which features a more intuitive interface. It’s great for basic email campaigns.
Pros:
- Easy to navigate
- Newly added SMS and social media marketing features
- Full reporting and analytics
Cons:
- Limited automation tools
- Limited customization options
- Marketing automation tools cost significantly extra each month
Pricing: Constant Contact offers tiered pricing based on the number of contacts. Their most affordable plan starts at $12 a month. Their additional marketing automation feature is on the Premium plan, which starts at $80 a month.
Braze
Trusted by top brands like Dominos, Mercari, Intuit, and Etsy, Braze is a quality email service provider for many ecommerce retailers.
Pros:
- Offers cross-channel delivery including email, SMS, and in-app messaging
- Depends on data and analytics to improve open and click-through rates
- Optimizes campaigns based on behavior automation and A/B testing
Cons:
- Does not offer a free trial plan
- Could be overwhelming for a new marketer
Pricing: Braze does not supply pricing up-front. All pricing is customized.
Campaign Monitor
This solution offers plenty of benefits, with solutions for segmentation and personalization, marketing automation, integration and reporting, and GDPR compliance.
Pros:
- User friendly
- Offers suite of analytics
Cons:
- Limited customer support
- No available photo library
Pricing: Packages start at $12 per month with customized quotes for high-volume senders. A free 30-day trial is also available.
Salesforce
Salesforce is another robust CRM email marketing software, offering tools for building and sending emails, content creation, and personalization, among other aspects.
Pros:
- Super customizable
- Works with analytics and data
Cons:
- Expensive
- Overly complicated
Pricing: Packages start at $1,250 per month and go up to $15,000 per month.
Active Campaign
Active Campaign helps with both segmentation and automation with a user-friendly interface and advanced segmentation features. It’s among the best email marketing software for ecommerce brands.
Pros:
- Sends broadcast, triggered, and targeted emails
- Works with a CRM system
- Drag and drop customization
Cons:
- Transactional emails are a different package
- Requires a year-long contract
Pricing:Active Campaign offers a free 14-day trial. Packages start at $29 a month. They also offer enterprise packages. Transactional email option packages start at $10 per month.
Kit
Kit, formerly ConvertKit, offers superior ease of use, with an emphasis on audience engagement and segmentation, with reliable automation features and various integrations to optimize campaigns.
Pros:
- Offers a 14-day free trial
- Sends automated emails
Cons:
- Difficult customer service
- A lot of technical jargon
Pricing: Packages range from $9 per month to much more with custom pricing, depending on the number of contacts you have. A free 14-day trial is also available.. Discounts are offered for year-long contracts.
1Point Interactive
You get a lot of appealing features that set 1Point Interactive apart from competitors, including unlimited users, sub users, and storage.
Pros:
- Spam checks
- Integrates with Google Analytics
- Incredibly user friendly
Cons:
- Does not integrate with Zapier or certain CRMs
Pricing: Packages range from $49 to $399 a month.
BombBomb
What makes BombBomb unique is its use of video in automated emails to connect with audiences, allowing you to create high-quality visuals that really help your emails stand out.
Pros:
- Features video messaging
- Integrated with gmail, Chrome, and Mobile
Cons:
- Can only send video messages
- Does not send automated emails
Pricing: Packages start at $33 a month, with discounts and customized quotes for enterprise accounts. You can also get started with a 14-day free trial.
SendLoop
Create mobile-friendly emails, get access to real-time analytics, and integrate with various third-party services using SendLoop, which is one of the more cost-effective tools.
Pros:
- Offers free account and free trial
- Exceptional customer service
Cons:
- Slightly dated interface
- Reporting is not always accurate
Pricing: Free for storing unlimited subscribers, costing $0.01 per email sent, with other packages costing up to $235 per month.
The free version gives you access to unlimited lists, custom fields, a drag-and-drop email builder, email-based support, and more.
Drip
Easily build your emails, get top-tier support, and experience up to a 99% delivery rate with Drip.
Pros:
- Visually appealing
- Drag and drop customization
Cons:
- Higher beginning price point
- No free version
Pricing: Packages start at $39 per month. Pricing for enterprises vary. You can also get started with a 14-day free trial.
MailGun
Some standout features of MailGun include dedicated IP addresses, email verification, spam complaint handling, and bounce rate management.
Pros:
- API-based
- Offers free one-month trial
Cons:
- Built for developers
- Not specifically user-friendly for new marketers
Pricing: Packages start at $15 per month, with a free trial available.
iContact
This user-friendly solution is ideal for small businesses, with real-time analytics and social media management tools to help connect multi-channel campaigns.
Pros:
- Designed for small businesses
- Integrated with social media platforms
Cons:
- No free trial
- Low deliverability issues
Pricing: Packages start at $9 per month. A free 30-day trial is available.
Moosend
Moosend is a comprehensive platform that offers many competitive features, including automation, reporting, and integration with many platforms to help fully manage your campaigns.
Pros:
- Pro features are very affordable
- Helpful support
- Superior reporting capabilities
Cons:
- Not the best signup form and landing page templates
- No free plan
Pricing for Moosend begins at $7 per month with the annual plan, with pricing going up to considerably more with a custom plan for enterprises.
Omnisend
For another all-in-one email automation solution, consider Omnisend. This tool is particularly helpful for ecommerce businesses and connects with the biggest platforms.
Pros:
- Great for ecommerce brands for seamless third-party integration
- Free plan includes all critical features
- SMS marketing is included
Cons:
- Limited integrations with CRMs and analytics tools
- Requires more effort to maximize deliverability rates
Pricing begins with the free plan and goes up to much higher for high-volume campaigns. The free plan includes 250 contacts, 500 emails per month, 500 web push notifications per month, 50 published Shopify reviews, and $1 in free SMS messages.
Email Marketing Tools
Intercom allows you to add video content and messaging to your email marketing campaigns. The average email sent using Intercom sees a 42% open rate.
Intercom
Intercom allows you to add video content and messaging to your email marketing campaigns.
Pros:
- Easy to install
- User friendly
Cons:
- Expensive
- Ad blocks catches it often
Pricing: Packages start at $29 a month. Get started with a 14-day free trial.
Act-On
Act-On helps you combine marketing activities and programs.
Pros:
- Easy to use
- Excellent analytics and data
Cons:
- Expensive
- Locked into a contract
Pricing: Packages start at $900 a month.
Zapier
Zapier makes automation easier by connecting over 5,000 apps. Among these are schedule apps, Email by Zapier, and Mailgun integration to boost deliverability.
Pros:
- Easy to use
- Ties all of your apps together to streamline communications
- Offers free trial
Cons:
- No alert when there are errors
- Limited by other tools’ functionality
Pricing: Packages range from free to much higher with custom pricing.
Kickbox Email Verification
Kickbox improves your deliverability by verifying the legitimacy of your email lists. You can also discover how to increase deliverability with the help of Kickbox’s team of deliverability consultants.
Pros:
- Uses real-time API
- Works to keep your emails out of the spam folder
- No monthly contracts
Cons:
- Reports could be more granular
- Does not keep an internal database of every email
Pricing: All new users receive 100 free verifications. After that, Kickbox charges $5 per 500 verifications.
Stripo
Stripo is an email design tool that includes multiple appealing features, including pre-built modules, automatic email replacement, bulk editing, and translation.
Pros:
- User-friendly interface
- Extensive template library
- Ability to explore to multiple service providers
Cons:
- Limited free plan
- Advanced features can come with a learning curve
Pricing begins with a free account, with plans starting at $45 per month.
Start Building Your Email Campaigns With Ignite Visibility
Based on these email marketing software reviews, you can choose the right tools for your campaigns. However, it’s not enough to have top rated email marketing software behind your business if you don’t have the resources or skills to use it.
Enter Ignite Visibility, which can work with you to build high-quality email campaigns and much more to help you get the most from your email marketing strategy.
With our help, you can:
- Implement some of the best software for email marketing
- Use customer data to hyper-target your emails with segmentation and personalization
- Design appealing emails that attract and engage recipients
- Organically grow your email list
- Get access to detailed analytics and actionable insights
- And much more!
Sound good to you?
Reach out to our experts to get started with us today!
