If you are in the process of selecting a drip email marketing service for your business, this article is for you. We will provide an overview of 8 popular drip email marketing services. This will include a brief description of each service as well as the pros and cons of each.
All of these marketing automation tools are compatible with Rention.com. Retention.com identifies anonymous users’ email address, name, and physical address. We have seen about a 5% match rate. We’ve seen some amazing results from utilizing this tool effectively. This service deserves a whole article in and of itself (link coming soon).
ActiveCampaign
(Best price per features)
ActiveCampaign is an all-in-one marketing platform that includes drip email marketing as well as other features such as automation, CRM, and analytics. ActiveCampaign’s strength lies in its ability to segment users and create personalized content. While there are entry level plans starting at $15/mo, (we’re not counting the free plan because it does not allow automations) the cost can rise fairly quickly. However, with the extensive features of ActiveCampaign, it is one of if not the most robust marketing automation tools for the cost.
MailChimp
(Free basic option)
MailChimp is one of the most popular email marketing platforms and offers a wide range of features including automation, landing pages, and abandoned cart emails. One downside of MailChimp is that it doesn’t offer as many integrations as some of the other platforms on this list. Another downside is that MailChimp’s free plan only allows you to send 2,500 emails per month and have 500 contacts. Nonetheless, the free plan allows people to get started slowly and the price goes up very reasonably. Lastly, MailChimp lacks the features of many of the other CRMs on this list.
HubSpot
(Most robust for SMBs but a cost creep)
HubSpot is another all-in-one marketing platform that offers drip email marketing as well as other features such as sales CRM and live chat. HubSpot is known for its ease of use and extensive integration options. However, HubSpot can be expensive for small businesses, with prices starting at $50 per month and skyrocketing from there. HubSpot is a tool that we often find business owners don’t understand how to utilize. It has any and every feature that you could ask for and if you’re going to use all the features, it can be worth it. However, we find that most companies do not need this many features and therefor the pricing isn’t competitive. Don’t let their free CRM marketing fool you. HubSpot is notorious for their cost creep. It gets very expensive very quickly – every time you need a feature that another platform offers, the price jumps and sometimes as much as 5-10X.
Salesforce
(Best for medium to large corporations)
Salesforce’s drip email offering is part of its Marketing Cloud product. Salesforce Marketing Cloud also includes features such as social media monitoring and analytics. One downside of using Salesforce for drip email marketing is that it can be complex to use and requires a significant investment if you want to access all the features.
EmailOctopus
(MailChimp alternative)
EmailOctopus is a great option for businesses on a budget. It’s one of the most affordable drip email marketing services on the market, and it offers a wide range of features, including automated welcome emails, RSS-to-email drips, and email course drips. Deliverability can be an issue with EmailOctopus; some customers have reported that their emails end up in spam folders more often than with other providers. EmailOctopus also lacks some advanced features that other drip email marketing services offer, such as A/B testing and automated lead nurturing.
Benchmark Email
($13/mo for unlimited emails)
Benchmark Email is a good option for businesses that are looking for more advanced features than what EmailOctopus offers. In addition to all of the features that EmailOctopus offers, Benchmark Email also includes A/B testing, behavioral targeting, and autoresponders. However, these additional features come at a price; Benchmark Email is one of the more expensive drip email marketing services on the market. Additionally, some customers have complained about deliverability issues with Benchmark Email.
MailerLite
(MailChimp alternative)
MailerLite is a great option for businesses that want all of the features of Benchmark Email but don’t want to pay as much. MailerLite includes all of the same features as Benchmark Email—A/B testing, behavioral targeting, autoresponders—but it’s priced at just $10/month for up to 1,000 subscribers. Deliverability is not an issue with MailerLite; customers have reported high rates of inbox placement for their emails.
Constant Contact
(Lowest monthly cost)
Constant Contact offers a user-friendly drip email platform with a wide range of features such as customizable templates and A/B testing. Constant Contact does not offer the free plan anymore (check out MailChimp and ActiveCampaign for free options). Constant Contact and ActiveCampaign have very similar features for the price point. Constant Contact rounds out our list as one of the best drip email marketing services available today. While their platform isn’t as robust as some of the others on this list—you won’t find things like landing pages or lead capture forms here—it more than makes up for it with its ease of use and board feature set.
There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing a drip email marketing service for your business. It’s important to consider your needs and budget when making your decision. We hope this blog post has given you a better idea of the different options available so that you can make the best choice for your business.
