Email marketing is alive and well in 2022! Forbes shows that email marketing services are still popular methods to reach targeted audiences and engage customers. Statista shows that 4 billion internet users sent emails in 2020, whereas nearly 306 million emails go back and forth regularly worldwide.
There’s no shortage of email marketing service providers, but this makes it difficult to choose the right platform for email automation. Before we look at some of the providers, let’s look at the benefits of email marketing first, in case you’re still deciding if it’s worth it.
The Benefits Of Email Marketing
Email marketing is often considered as an effective tool for reaching and engaging users whilst ensuring a higher, consistent ROI. Here’re a few additional benefits of resorting to email marketing campaigns:
- Lower costs/ higher ROI (cost per conversion)
- Sharable among customers/subscribers
- Easy to measure and track performance
- Personalised and subscriber-centred messages (subject lines, names etc.)
- Global audience reach
- Access to a highly targeted audience
- Drives higher sales revenue and subscriptions
- Quick to start and easy to create email automation campaigns
- Encourages immediate follow-through actions among customers
In short, the benefits mentioned above make email marketing platforms one of the best tools for businesses to reach their target audience, gain more customers, and increase sales. To learn more about the basics of email marketing, click here.
The Benefits Of Using Email Marketing Softwares
Now, onto the software. Countless businesses waste their digital marketing efforts by trying to curate messages manually and deliver them to each subscriber/customer.
But email marketing campaigns don’t have to require so much effort. Simply choose the best email marketing platform for your business and initiate an effective email marketing strategy that involves automation of some sort. Here are a few benefits of turning to email marketing tools for your next (effective) email marketing campaign:
- Automated and scheduled sending
- Reduced manual input
- Time-saving – so you can focus on the areas that really matter
- Reduced operational costs overall
- Easy to manage personalisation
- Measurable/easy to track results
- Shareable content
- Easy to generate reports
- Global reach
- Increase customer loyalty
Now, Which Email Marketing Tools Are Best? Here Are Our Top Recommendations…
Our recommendations for the best email marketing tools are based on their pros, cons, pricing plans, and suitability for different users/companies. Here’re our top email marketing software choices for email automation.
1. Omnisend
A cloud-based email marketing tool that helps businesses and individual users curate the highest-quality and customised email messages.
Pros
- Above average user experience with email creation/marketing
- Better audience segmentation and tagging
- Integrated SMS integration and campaign booster for higher open and click rates
Cons
- Limited email design options
- Lack of customisable themes for holiday email marketing
- Slightly unresponsive customer support
Pricing Plan
Ø Free Plan – €0 per month
Ø Standard Plan – €16 per month
Ø Pro Plan – € 57 per month
Final Verdict
It’s one of the best email service providers out there that reduces workload through automation however and even has a free plan, however, it seems to be limited by lack of customised themes and design options – which subscribers will not find interesting enough to read/click-through in the long run.
2. Zoho Campaigns
One of the top-rated SaaS email automation tools in the market. It also serves as a social networking and campaigning tool worldwide.
Pros
- Elegant and pre-designed email templates
- User-friendly software interface
- Helpful reports on highly targeted audiences
Cons
- Relatively slower than other email marketing tools
- Complex email marketing features and options – may not be beginner friendly.
Pricing Plan
Check out the pricing plan of Zoho Campaigns below:
Ø Forever Free – €0
Ø Standard Plan- €3 per 500 contacts
Ø Professional Plan – €4 per 500 contacts
Final Verdict
Despite a fantastic range of pre-designed email templates and easy-to-use interface, it’s suitable for more advanced email marketers for effective email marketing campaigns.
3. Klaviyo
This email marketing platform offers easy target audience segmentation and cloud platform-assisted sharing to deliver many emails within a short time.
Pros
- Easy email template creation
- Extensive analytics features
- Efficient audience segmentation/tagging
Cons
- Can be expensive for those just starting out
- Difficult to learn the basics
- Clunky user interface
Pricing Plan
Check out the Klaviyo pricing plan below:
Ø Free Plan – €0 per month
Ø Email Plan – €44 per month
Ø Email and SMS Plan – €59 per month
Final Verdict
Klaviyo is highly suitable for advanced and experienced email marketing tool users on the web, marketers often upgrade to Klaviyo once they get the hang of email marketing in general but it can be quite pricey for those just starting.
4. Shopify
Shopify’s email marketing services are popular alongside its e-commerce store creation and optimisation features, especially for existing Shopify users.
Pros
- Integrated marketing features
- Quick template and dashboard load times
- Ready-made and mobile-friendly email templates
Cons
- Limited email template selection
- Selective email automation features
- Frequent updates/changing basic features
Pricing Plan
Check out Shopify pricing plans below:
Ø Shopify Lite – €9 per month
Ø Basic Shopify – €28 per month
Ø Shopify – €78 per month
Final Verdict
Shopify email is very accessible and every email marketer can use Shopify’s email automation features and pre-defined templates easily.
5. Sendinblue
A cloud-based marketing automation platform that enables email marketing through automated sending, pre-designed email templates, and additional features.
Pros
- Free trial versions (premium)
- Dedicated customer support team
- Easy to set up an admin account
Cons
- Difficult batch mailing
- Tricky spam filter
- Poor audience segmentation and tagging
Pricing Plan
Check out the Sendinblue pricing plans below:
Ø Free – €0 per month
Ø Lite – €25 per month
Ø Premium – €64 per month
Final Verdict
There’s an easy set-up process and lots of customer support, however, crucial components of email marketing like the spam filter issues and batch mailing are concerning.
6. Aweber
Lets you create mobile-friendly HTML email newsletters and segment/tag targeted audiences among subscribers.
Pros
- Sales tracking features
- Highly responsive customer support
- Hassle-free list management tools
Cons
- Relatively expensive compared to other marketing automation tools
- Lacks advanced features and controls
- Low deliverability rates
Pricing Plan
Check out the Aweber pricing plans below:
Ø AWeber Free – €0 per month
Ø AWeber Pro – €16 per month
Final Verdict
Suitable for beginners or those with moderate experience in email marketing automation thanks to its basic features and responsive customer support.
7. GetResponse
One of the best email marketing software that brings extensive marketing automation features to the table and helps you create high-converting email messages/newsletters.
Pros
- No set-up fee
- Integrates with other marketing platforms
- Quantifiable and detail-oriented reports
Cons
- Weak API
- Difficult for multiple account management
- Poor-quality drag-and-drop editor
Pricing Plan
Check out GetResponse pricing plans below:
Ø Free – €0 per month
Ø Basic – €19 per month
Ø Plus – €58 per month
Final Verdict
A good overall email marketing platform for advanced users who integrate multiple tools and features for complete automation.
8. MailChimp
MailChimp’s extensive range of features and speedy email auto-sending that’s beginner friendly.
Pros
- Generous free trial version and freemium plan
- Additional email automation features
- High-quality email template editor
Cons
- Lack of email scheduling on a free plan
- Expensive subscriptions
- Limited list management features
Pricing Plan
Check out MailChimp pricing plans below:
Ø Free – €0 per month
Ø Essentials – €11 per month
Ø Standard – €17 per month
Ø Premium – €293 per month
Final Verdict
Both beginners and experienced users can get started with MailChimp due to its high-quality template designs and extensive email automation features.
9. HubSpot
A popular email marketing platform that helps retain customers, gain leads, and ensure high conversion rates.
Pros
- Ideal email management features
- Extensive data analytics features
- Easy lead generation
Cons
- Scattered email workflows
- Poor customer support
- Clunky pre-designed templates
Pricing Plan
Check out HubSpot pricing plans below:
Ø Free – €0 per month
Ø Starter – €49 per month
Ø Pro – €873 per month
Final Verdict
Although the Pro Plan is pricey, the range of features, email sending speed, subscriber management, and detailed reports make it a top-tier email marketing platform.
10. Moosend
It includes a high-end online email editor to create personalised email messages/newsletters (subject line, name, etc.)
Pros
- No set-up fees
- Real-time analytics with robust report generation
- Easy to add visual content (images and videos) to email newsletters
Cons
- Absence of integration features
- Pricey subscription plans
- No free trial/poor customer support
Pricing Plan
Check out Moosend pricing plans below:
Ø Free Trial Version – €0 for 30 Days
Ø Pro – €9 per month
Ø Enterprise -(Custom Plan)
Final Verdict
It’s a relatively pricey option and moderately used by individuals at small to medium-sized businesses to automate email marketing on a limited scale.
11. MailerLite
Use MailerLite to automate email marketing, promotion, newsletters, and more. It also hosts web pages and email marketing features.
Pros
- Professional block editing options
- Unlimited email automation – even in the free plan
- Quick customer support and technical solutions
Cons
- Challenging API documentation
- Several clunky integrations
- Difficult to download detailed and comprehensive reports
Pricing Plan
Check out MailerLite pricing plans below:
Ø Forever Free Plan – €0 per month
Ø Growing – €10 per month
Ø Advanced – €21 per month
Final Verdict
MailerLite is among the fastest-growing email marketing services providers for small and large-scale businesses worldwide. It’s easy to use and the price plans are quite generous, especially for those just starting out.
Things To Remember Before You Start You Send Out Your First Marketing Emails Or Start Your Email Campaign…
- Include an unsubscribe link: It is important to include an unsubscribe link in every marketing email you send out. This will allow your recipients to opt out of receiving further communications from you if they wish to do so.
- Make sure your email list is up-to-date: Before you start sending out marketing emails, it is important to make sure that your email list is up-to-date. This means removing any invalid or old email addresses.
- Segment your email list: Segmenting your email list will allow you to send more targeted and relevant communications to your recipients. This, in turn, will lead to higher engagement rates.
- Test your emails before you send them: Always test your emails before you send them out to your entire list. This will allow you to catch any errors or issues that need to be corrected.
- Make sure your emails are optimised for mobile devices: Most people now read their emails on their mobile devices. As such, it is important to make sure that your emails are optimised for these devices or they won’t read them!
Final Thoughts
Email marketing is just as popular as social media marketing, if not more. At Picnic Accelerator, we are currently working with MailerLite and are enjoying the features so far and its easy-to-use interface.
But with so many choices out there, be sure to compare each email automation tool or email service provider, and choose the one that’s best for you!
