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Email marketing is a powerful tool for small businesses to reach and engage with their target audience. It not only helps businesses to promote their products or services but also builds strong relationships with customers.
We know just how overwhelming it can be to choose the right email marketing service for your small business, especially with all of the options out there. To help you out, we’ve compiled a list of the 5 best email marketing services for small businesses. From platform-specific standout features to plans and pricing, we’ve got you covered.
So, whether you’re looking to grow your business or just in need of a reliable email marketing tool to send newsletters. We’ll provide you with everything you need to make the best decision for your small business, and consequently help you and your team reach your email marketing goals. Let’s get started…
Why is Email Marketing Important?
You may be wondering whether email marketing is still relevant in 2024. And the answer is yes, absolutely. A simple email is still considered one of the most effective ways to get your audience’s attention. As a communication channel, email marketing allows you to directly connect with hundreds, if not thousands, of new prospects as well as the opportunity to reconnect with your existing customers.
And with complete email marketing solutions available for businesses of all sizes, anyone can now create, optimize and send an attractive email newsletter. And of course, like always, we’d love to walk you through the process of creating a newsletter, but first, you’ll need to decide which email marketing service is the right for you.
You can come back to this part later, in fact, here’s a video to help:
Email has been an indispensable marketing and communications tool for businesses for decades. It builds brand awareness, fosters relationships, generates leads, and even propels growth, all without much cost to the company. In fact, the return on investment is really high for email marketing (4400%!).
The Best Email Marketing Services at a Glance
To help you narrow the field to a reasonable number of candidates, we’ve listed our top five in a bit of an email marketing cage match. Let’s see who comes out on top:
The Top 5 Email Marketing Services for Small Businesses
| EMAIL MARKETING SERVICE | PRICING | COMMENTS |
|
1,000 contacts: $0/mo
2,500: $25/mo 5,000: $39/mo 10,000: $73/mo 15,000: $109/mo |
Pros
Cons
|
|
1,000.: $39/mo
2,500: $61/mo 5,000: $99/mo 10,000: $174/mo 50,000: $484/mo |
Pros
Cons
|
|
1,000 cont: $19/mo
2,500: $29/mo 5,000: $54/mo 10,000: $79/mo 50,000: $299/mo |
Pros
Cons
|
|
300 emails/day: $0/mo
20,000 emails: $25/mo 40,000 emails: $35/mo 60,000: $49/mo 100,000: $115/mo |
Pros
Cons
|
|
500 contacts: $13/mo
2,500: $45/mo 10,000: $110/mo 30,000: $300/mo 50,000: $385/mo |
Pros
Cons
|
1. Mailerlite
MailerLite has been gaining popularity over the years for their combination of affordability and advanced features, making it a perfect email marketing platform for small businesses. Despite its low cost, it offers a wealth of tools such as landing pages, marketing automation, and advanced segmentation. The user-friendly interface and the option for a free plan with up to 1,000 subscribers only add to its appeal.
Mailerlite pricing:
- Free for up to 1,000 subscribers with a limit of 12,000 emails
- $32 per month for up to 5,000 subscribers with unlimited emails
- $54 per month for up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited emails
Money saving tip: They offer 15% discount for annual payments.
Pros of using MailerLite:
- Affordable pricing, including a free option for up to 1,000 subscribers
- User-friendly interface
- Good deliverability, segmentation, and reports
- Includes a landing page editor with modern templates
- Perfect for small businesses
Cons of using MailerLite:
- Basic autoresponders
- Limited template range, none available on the free plan
- No spam or design testing features
- Requires external testing for spam and design features
2. ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign is a comprehensive platform ideal for small businesses that are looking for an advanced email marketing tool. The platform includes a built-in CRM, landing page builder, SMS messaging, and the ability to dive into personalization with Facebook ads and site messages. This provider is a great choice for small businesses with a dynamic email marketing strategy.
ActiveCampaign Pricing:
- $39 per month for up to 1,000 contacts
- $99 per month for up to 5,000 contacts
- $174 per month for up to 10,000 contacts
Pros of using ActiveCampaign:
- A wide range of automation options available
- Advanced segmentation features
- Excellent reports, including options for deal, automation, and contact trends
- Good email deliverability performance
Cons of using ActiveCampaign:
- Complex features that may be slightly intimidating to beginners
- Higher pricing compared to competitors
3. GetResponse
GetResponse is an all-inclusive email marketing service that caters to the needs of small businesses. It offers very useful and advanced features such as triggered campaigns, automated segments, dynamic content, and tagging. Additionally, it comes with additional tools such as landing pages, a CRM, and a webinar feature.
GetResponse Pricing:
- 500 subscribers: Free
- 1,000 subscribers: $19 per month
- 5,000 subscribers: $54 per month
- 10,000 subscribers: $79 per month
Pros of using GetResponse:
- Advanced marketing automation
- Good selection of third-party integrations
- Sales funnel creator
- Innovative AI product recommendations based on subscriber behavior and preferences
Cons of using GetResponse
- Marketing automation features are only available on higher plans
- More affordable automation software options available.
4. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue)
Brevo is a powerful email marketing tool that offers a wide range of features at highly competitive prices. It includes automation, transactional emails, SMS, landing pages, and dynamic email segmentations. The platform also has a generous free version with limited features and a daily email limit of 300.
Brevo Pricing
$0 for up to 9,000 emails per month $25 for up to 20,000 emails per month $49 per month for up to 60,000 emails per month $115/mo per month for up to 100,000 emails
Pros of using Brevo:
- The lowest plan starts at $25/month for up to 20,000 emails, making it a great value for the features that they offer.
- Comprehensive feature set with the ability to send transactional emails, track website visitors, as well as the offering of advanced automation options
- Offers a handy plugin for WordPress.
Cons of using Brevo:
- Delivery rates not very consistent according to EmailTooltester.
- You are limited to one user account unless you upgrade to their business or enterprise plan.
5. Mailchimp
Mailchimp is a well-known and popular newsletter tool that many small businesses are already using. It offers useful features like automated emails, landing pages, A/B testing, and advanced reporting. The pricing options include a monthly plan, pay-as-you-go credits, and a free forever plan.
Mailchimp Pricing
- $13 per month for 500 contacts
- $45 per month for 2,500 contacts
- $110 per month for 10,000 contacts
- $385 per month for 30,000 contacts
Pros of using Mailchimp:
- The easy-to-use editor and modern-looking templates
- Strong automation options for ecommerce businesses, e.g. abandoned cart and purchase confirmation emails.
- Deep reporting on social media and conversions.
- Hundreds of integrations available
- Website and ecommerce builder and appointment booking software now available.
Cons of using Mailchimp:
- List management can be challenging, with duplicates not being removed and lists kept separate
- One of the strictest acceptable use policies, may not be suitable for businesses dealing with affiliate marketing, healthcare products, real estate, or novelty products.
- Not the cheapest email marketing provider, could be more affordable
- Gmail promotions folder: Emails from Mailchimp tend to go to Gmail’s Promotions folder.
Choosing the Right Email Marketing Software for Your Small Business
The list of email marketing apps and services continues to grow, and the chances are there is one specific email marketing software that suits the needs of your small business to a tee. If you are interested in exploring more email marketing services, you can head to EmailTooltester to explore the top email marketing providers, here you can find information on plans and pricing, and more importantly, read in-depth product reviews.
With a solid email marketing strategy in place, you are already on the right track, why not make it easier with an email tool and plan that meets the needs, budget, and goals of your business? First, identify the features that best suit your needs, then choose a plan, ideally one that you can test, and then make a list of the features that you found most useful, and finally, try to decide on an email provider that will help you to reach your email marketing goals.
Best Email Marketing Software: Final Thoughts
Whether you want to automate your email marketing and use it as a powerful acquisition tool or just send occasional newsletters, there is an email marketing service out there for you and your business. Consider the marketing budget and the features you need, and compare the different tools.
If you don’t have a budget, there are plenty of free email marketing software options available. With the right email service, your email marketing strategy and execution can be simple, secure, and effective.
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16 Jan 2024 – Mailchimp price increases
04 Oct 2023 – Smaller updates for Brevo and GetResponse
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