Email Marketing Software Comparison for 2015
So, you’re looking for email software that does what YOU need and want it to, easily and at a good price. ย If you’re like me you want to research before laying down any dough, or investing in the time and effort of learning how to use itย only to find out NO, it’s not what you thought; it’s not really what you need. ย That’s a royal pain in the “you know what”!
ย Every website owner or internet marketer needs at some level, anย automated email marketing software system added to their arsenalย to bolster their marketing efforts, or to simply make their daily tasks easier.
The majority of people won’t need every single feature offered by many of these companies. ย In fact most only really need the basics, but done well. ย Extra’s can be added in time if warranted and is always easy enough to do.
Some Things You Need to Think About
How many subscribers do you have.
… and how many do you think you may have in the future?
Pricing is figured on the number of subscribers and/or the number of emails you send.
How are the graphic abilities of each email program. ย Some focus on the visual side, while othersย are more technical and management driven.
Along with researching the different popular email platforms,
I performed a questionnaireย of sorts on what others use for their email and why.
The results are in!
Most Popular Email Solutions
AWEBER
I found that most folks I’ve seen that start with Aweber stay with Aweber, and will recommend it to others as well.ย It’s a good company that many affiliate marketers use and promote. ย As a matter of fact, it seems to be the #1 choice with GetResponse right behind them!
“Iโve been with aweber for over 10 years. I can make all sorts of email optin pages. I have used other email providers but I always come back to aweber. Their support team is excellent…not perfect but my questions and concerns are answered in a timely manner. They are not the cheapest but cheap is NOT always better!” ย … Paul
There are lots of die-hard supporters of Aweber in the affiliate community.
Aweber got the most votes!
Read more about Aweber here at APR, or head on over to Aweber’s Main Site.
GetResponse
Free trial period along with a very competitive pricing structure, GetResponse has gained more and more of the email services market. ย They are easy to learn andย implement.
GetResponse seems to be a real winnerย andย is a favorite of many users ย for sure.
The most often seen comment about GetResponse, is it’s fantastic support it gives its users.ย That’s pretty rare it seems nowadays, that support is given an A+ and is personal – trust me, it’s rare!ย They even phone you up occasionally to see how you’re doing and if you need help!
Most people mentioned how simple it is to use.
It has a great (and easy to use) drag-and-drop email creator. You can design your own branded newsletters with ease that look down-right awesomeย –ย professional with Style!
GetResponse also has some amazing training available – another winning point.ย With it’s 30 day free trial period, there’s really nothing to lose in trying it (no credit card required) – a lot of email companies do not offer a free trial. ย
GetResponse has some nifty features like Time Travel which sends the emails at a specific local time – very cool.
- Gives you the option to create surveys.
- You can see what newsletters will look like in different devices.
- You can also create special emails based on different actions the reader takes.ย Once you get going, this will be very helpful to monetize your emails to their fullest.
- Offers both single and double op-tin subscriptions.
- Getresponse also offer a landing page creator – this is an added cost.
- great price – great value
The only negative I heard was the reporting might be just a bit better. ย Oh well
and like the great Mick Jaggar sings:
You can’t always get what you want
But if you try sometime you find
You get what you need
… and GetResponse seems to give people what they need.
Read a little more about GetResponseย here at APR, or head on over to theย GetResponse Main Site.
MAILCHIMP
Mailchimp wins on “deliverability”. Even famous marketers sending hundreds of thousands of emails find their delivery rate at 100% (or close to it)!
How can you ignore that!ย 100% in the inbox, with no bounces or re-routes to the spam folder!
Mailchimp is also pretty easy to integrate any API’s and branding.ย A big plus.
Another top choice, but with one caveat. ย Often difficult to import existing email addresses so some contacts may be lost or emails marked as spam and trashed – not a good thing and a common complaint. ย Other than that it gets a very good score, especially with its free account.
CONSTANT CONTACT
I always thought Constant Contact was a pretty good little email platform.
Simple to use and it gets the job done effortlessly.
TOP PICKS
Aweber
- 500 Subscribers
GetResponse
- 1000 Subscribers
MailChimp
- 500 Subscribers
Constant Contact
- 500 Subscribers
There are countless numbers of different email platforms online, some of them are listed below along with many of their features.
All of the different choicesย have good things going for them.
There is no “right” or “best” email marketing solution.
The service that has the options you need in a format you like will be what’s best for you and your business.ย
determine your needs first,
then choose the one that will serve you best!
7 Top Email Solutions for Business
AWeber | GetResponse | MailChimp | Constant Contact | Verticalย Response | Campaigner | iContact | |
Cost | ย $19/500 $29/2500 |
ย $15/1000 $25/2500 |
$10/500 (plus other options) |
ย $20/500 | $11/500 $22/1000 (plus other options) |
ย $19.95/1000 | ย $14/500 |
Free Account | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | |
Free Trial | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ||
Guarantee | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | |
Email Templates | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ||
Unlimited Emails | ย | ย | ย | ย | |||
Image Library | ย | ย | ย | ย | |||
Tracking | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ||
A/B Testing | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | |
Phone Support | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | |
Chat Support | ย | ย | ย | ย | |||
Social Media Marketing | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | ย | |
What email solution do you use and why?
… I’d love to hear your comments – Thanks!
APR's #1 Pick for Affiliate Marketing Success
Loaded with a ton of awesome features and benefits,
this program offers the best training and the most supportive environment
I have come across online yet!
I’ve been struggling to purchase email marketing software because I just can’t make my mind up. LOL
Your comparison between the different email autoresponders has helped to simplify the process for me. ๐
Personally, for me I think GetResponse has to be the best software for me needs, especially $15/month for 1,000 subscribers.
Thanks for the guidance, Joanne
Neil
This is an excellent comparison of email marketing software. I use Aweber and I’m very happy with it.
I tried MailChimp and ConstantContact and found them confusing. That was back in the day when I really didn’t know a bit from a byte, so my confusion was probably because of my own inexperience.
The reason I chose Aweber was only because I stumbled on an easy to understand video course that showed me step by step how to use it.
Aweber’s a good choice.
I personally like video tutorials or instruction myself too. MailChimp (although the price is right) has drawbacks with it’s dislike of affiliate use, and also involves a learning scale.
Hi there.
These are great recommendations.
This is a fine review of the two services for email marketing methods.
I know, that eventually i would like to create some sort of email marking system if my advice and services prove to be valuable, so its good to start being familiar with the available options.
For a new online entrepreneur, this information is great. Thanks
Hi its Alexey –
You’ve provided here great information about email marketing. Although I’m still not there yet – it’s good to know which programs to use and their prices.
Email marketing is a very powerful tool once you have many subscribers within your network. I hope I will get to that someday..
Thanks ๐
This is a great review on different types of email marketing software. I know that a lot of people are going bonkers for Aweber and I also see that they are more expensive than the others.
I tried Mailchimp before because they have packet that gives a specific amount of subscribers for free. I do not know if it is still the case.
Hi Joanne
That’s a good review post on varieties of e-mail software/online tools available to do bulk email marketing.
May be to ask, how would one intend to send bulk emails and yet not end up spamming people? Many people buy lots of email addresses so as to send bulk emails to them and forcefully introduce their products?
Yeah – that’s something Boniface you NEVER want to do in my opinion. You do that and people will be dropping you pretty quickly – no one likes spam, and that’s exactly what that is.
You must get permission! … that’s why people “opt-in” to receive your emails. Never buy and send to bulk lists. Send email to people who want to hear from you, not the other way around.
The purpose is to help these folks, not trying to make a profit off of them – that comes naturally.
Greetings Joanne!
I found this comparison article you’ve written quite helpful as I’m currently trying to decide which one to use for my own website. I have heard great things about Aweber but hadn’t’ heard much about the others that you discussed. Which one of them is your favorite and why? After reading your comparison, I’m having trouble deciding between Aweber and GetResponse. Thanks!
Hi Josh!
… thanks for stopping by.
Hope it helped a little.
You are not the only one who has trouble choosing between between Aweber and GetResponse. These two appear to have large followings, but in the end I think it’s more of a personal preference choice vs what each offers. For me the simpler the better, and for me the visual presentation and easy application puts GetResponse slightly ahead – but both are great!
I’ve only ever used MailChimp. I used it for the newsletter in my day job. It works really well. I really like it. The only problem is, MailChimp would be no good for affiliate marketing. They specifically state that it should not be used for affiliate marketing.
I have heard that Aweber is the best one for affiliate marketing. It seems to be the industry standard for email marketing. I have yet to try it though, but I hear they offer the first month for free, which is a great way to try it out.
Have you tried Aweber?
Hey Marcus!
There’s positives to all the email platforms I checked out, but for affiliate marketing I agree with you on MailChimp. It’s not the best choice – not only that but they don’t offer an affiliate program themselves – hmmm.
The more I see others opinions on this, Aweber is for sure is at the top; at least for this type of online business. The last thing you want is for your emails not to get delivered because of affiliate promotions – that’s our business!
Yeah – and because there is a free trial like you said, there’s nothing to lose with Aweber.
I like it !!!
Dear Joanne,
Wow, what an informative and very interesting Post you have written. ๐ I enjoyed it very much as this was something I was curious about but forget to get deep into. ๐ Upon reading this, you refreshed my memory to investigate more further.
I have heard of MailChimp and recently GetResponse.
Do you know if these E-mail Marketing Software have Affiliate Programs from which one may promote their services onto their Website?
I think if I remember correctly GetResponse does, and I learned about it through FlexOffers.
Are you familiar with FlexOffers by chance?
Thanking you in advance for answering my questions and wishing you all the best with your online business,
~Angel
Hi Angel
Thanks so much for your comment!
To answer your questions, Aweber, GetResponse, and Constant Contact all have affiliate programs you can join; MailChimp does not. … but when it comes to choosing one to use yourself I wouldn’t let that influence your decision. You want an email program that fits you and your objectives, and you can always promote the others as well anyway.
I am familiar with FlexOffers – it seems pretty good but because it’s focus companies are more in the European countries and not in the US I use others instead.
Thanks for breaking down the email options! I’m like the others who head toward the free accounts, so it’s nice to see what the others offer. ๐
I do the exact same thing Kendy – I think it’s very wise to do that too.
But sooner or later as your business grows you will have to “bite the bullet” and begin to purchase things that will help you catapult your site and in the end, obtain more faithful followers and more sales!
But to start, free is definitely the way to go.
Thanks for stopping by Kendy!
Really good post on email marketing software comparison which has definitely given me something to think about. The only one I’ve used free is mailchimp on your list and I really like it. I’ve used Interspire as a paid version and wasn’t impressed and now seems very outdated. Good to hear about the others too as it is a minefield out there for things like this. Thanks for the insight.
Hi Sophie
Hahaha – had not heard a whole lot about Interspire. One thing email software (or any software for that matter) and platforms can’t be is outdated! Sticking with companies that keep themselves current is hugely important; both in usage, performance and security.
If you’re happy with Mailchimp then you should definitely stick with what works best for you! – that’s the bottom line in my opinion.
Thanks for stopping by!
Hey! I was just wondering about email marketing, i did a lot of things online but never tried this kind of software. Does this also store your emails? How do you collect e-mails? Is this way effective for getting referrals or sell stuff?
Thanks for sharing this post, very nice info.
Cheers and good luck
Hahaha – yes to all of the above!
Email marketing can add a lot to your bottom line as an affiliate marketer (or any online marketing for that matter). If you’re interested in learning more about it and how to do it RIGHT, you might want to check out some good training.
There are right ways and wrong ways to do this, so I highly suggest you do your homework for the most lucrative methods that are on the “up-and-up”. You always want to keep the subscribers interests and welfare in mind – this is all about helping the readers – that is the top priority! The money will follow.
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Joanne
Thanks for this comparison of email systems to use. I have been using mailchimp for about 3 years but I am finding it a bit hard to get my newsletters to look good. Of course I am not very good at that sort of thing so it is probably just me!
I have been hearing about Aweber all over the place lately so I will probably give their trial month a go soon.
What system do you use personally and why?
Kind Regards
Lynne
Hi Lynne!
I’ve heard concerns about Mailchimp for some time now. I think a lot of folks choose Mailchimp for the free account they give – and I like the fact that they do that! But there are things not only with appearance as you noted, but other issues with affiliate links as well. Mailchimp views them as spam of sorts. Not good for affiliate marketers!
After a lot of thinking and research, GetResponse is my choice although Aweber stood on equal ground. They have a free trial and their prices are good. They also have an easy to use email creator and great support – can’t go wrong with that!
… thanks for stopping by Lynne!