Best Email Marketing Software For Small Business

If you’re new to email marketing and looking for the best email marketing software to help grow your email list quickly and send beautiful, easy-to-create newsletters and email campaigns to your audience, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we will discuss some of the best tools out there that can help you achieve your small business email marketing goals.

These platforms for email marketing are easy to use and can help you create beautiful email newsletters that will capture the attention of your subscribers.

The Importance of Email Marketing

Email marketing is a critical component of any small business marketing strategy. It allows you to reach a large audience of potential customers with your marketing message. Email marketing also gives you the ability to track your results and measure your success.

Email marketing isn’t just for big business. In fact, email marketing is one of the most effective marketing tools for small businesses, solopreneurs, and creative entrepreneurs.

Small businesses can use email marketing to reach their audience directly, and this allows them to build trust with their audience and sell their products and services. Email marketing is an extremely cost-effective way for small businesses to reach their target market and has higher conversion rates than any social media platform.

Why You Must Use an Email Software Service

When you’re looking to build your email list and create email campaigns and newsletters for your audience, you must use an email software service. You can’t expect your email marketing efforts to pay off if you bulk email out of your Outlook or Gmail. It’s actually illegal.

The CAN-SPAM Act is a federal law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for sending email messages, and gives recipients the right to stop email from being sent to them. Any email message that is sent to a recipient without their consent is considered spam.

A small business email marketing software service will help ensure that your email messages are not considered spam and will help you avoid any penalties associated with the CAN-SPAM Act. You don’t want to end up in the spam folder.

RELATED: Best Email Marketing Practices that WORK!

A good email marketing software service will also provide you with pre-made templates, designs, and tools to help you create beautiful email newsletters that will entice and engage your followers.

So what are you waiting for?

The best email marketing software for small business

Check out these email marketing software platforms and start using these tools today and see how they can help improve your email marketing results!

How to Choose the Best Email Marketing Software

There are many platforms for email marketing out there, but how do you choose the best one for your business?

Here are some things to consider when choosing the right small business email marketing solution:

Price: email marketing software can be expensive, but there are many affordable options. Make sure to find a service that fits your budget.

Features: different services offer different features. Make sure the service you choose has all the features you need.

Ease of use: make sure the software is easy to use. You don’t want to spend time learning how to use a complicated program.

Customer support: if you have any questions or problems, make sure the email marketing software provider has good customer support.

Templates and Pre-built Funnels: if you’re not a pro at design or email marketing strategy, it’s a good idea to check out the pre-built market campaigns, sales funnels, email sequences, and pre-made email templates that the service provides.

Future Goals: even if you just want to use an email marketing software right now, check out the other features of each software to see if you can use them to help reach your marketing goals. It’s better to use one software for multiple things than to try and duct tape them all together as time goes on.

RELATED: 13 Free Canva Lead Magnet Template

Where do you start?

With so many email marketing tool options available, it can be hard to know where to start.

But, if you keep these things in mind, you’ll be able to find the best email marketing software for your business. Let’s go over several solid email marketing software options for any beginning email marketer (hey, that’s you!)

If you have any questions about finding the email marketing services for small business let me know if the comments.

Some of the best email marketing software for small business out there include:

• Constant Contact
• MailChimp
• Kartra
• AWeber
• GetResponse
• Active Campaign
• VerticalResponse

Each of these tools offers different features that can help you grow your email list quickly and effectively.

So let’s dive into each of these top email marketing platforms.

Constant Contact

Constant Contact is a comprehensive email marketing tool with features such as integrating social media accounts, automated emails, drag-and-drop editing, and real-time reporting. It’s a bulk email marketing software created for small business clients.

While it specializes in email marketing services for small businesses, it also offers services relating to website management, including a website builder, eCommerce tools, and logo design assistance.

It offers a wide range of email templates that you can use to create beautiful email newsletters. Their interface is easy for beginners to use, which makes it a go-to in the email marketing space.

Email Marketing Features

• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop editor
• Email Reporting and Analytics
• Email Templates
• Marketing Automation
• Customer List Management
• Website Email Sign Up Forms
• Text to Join
• Lead Generation Landing Pages
• Surveys, Polls, and Event RSVP
• Integrations
• Great Email Deliverability

Pros of Constant Contact:

• Wide range of email templates
• Easy to use
• Good list segmentation

Cons of Constant Contact

• Can be a bit pricey
• Reporting can be confusing

Constant Contact Pricing

Starts at $9.99

Free Trial Available -> Get Constant Contact Free Trial

Constant Contact Reviews

Constant Contact Average Rating – 4.3 at GetApp

MailChimp

Mailchimp is a marketing platform that’s designed for small businesses. Mailchimp assists businesses to grow quicker with its fleet of small business marketing tools.

Mailchimp wants to be the center of customer interactions with AI-powered user-friendly tools. Mailchimp is intended to put the audience first so its users can send marketing emails and automated messages, create targeted ad campaigns, build landing pages, send postcards, facilitate reporting and analytics, and even sell online.

MailChimp is a great tool for email marketing beginners. They also offer a free plan for those who are just starting out with email marketing. They have an easy-to-use interface, and you can create beautiful email newsletters with ease.

Their drag and drop email builder is easy for beginners to use, which makes them another go-to in the email marketing space. It’s a great free email marketing service to get you started with email marketing.

Email Marketing Features of Mail Chimp

• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop editor
• Dynamic content
• Ability to test dynamic content
• Landing page builder
• Mobile optimization
• Email deliverability reporting
• List management
• Triggered drip sequences
• Email Campaigns

Pros of Mail Chimp:

• Free plan available
• Wide range of email templates
• Easy to use

Cons of Mail Chimp:

• Limited features on the free plan
• Complex pricing structure
• Email Support is lacking

MailChimp Pricing

Starts at $10

Free and Paid Plans Available -> Get Mail Chimp Free Plan

MailChimp Reviews

MailChimp Average Rating – 4.5 at GetApp

Kartra

Kartra truly is your all-in-one marketing platform and one of the best email marketing tools out there. Your online small business requires a lot of different solutions that need to be duct-taped together, almost always leading to frustrating results. If you’ve been there you know!

You know the pain: your checkout page won’t add your customers to your subscriber list, or your help desk won’t connect with your customer database, or your membership site won’t revoke access when a user payment doesn’t go through.

It’s completely frustrating and a huge waste of time, money, patience…until now!

All the individual tools in Kartra are woven together so they seamlessly “work” together without having to configure any new integrations whatsoever, really. No more marketing duct tape.

Kartra is another great small business marketing tool that offers a wide range of email marketing features, including the ability to create beautiful email newsletters, email automation, and more. And best part, you can cancel so many other software subscriptions just by getting this one. I cancelled Clickfunnels, Leadpages, Calendy, Teachable, and more. And stopped relying on Zapier to “tape” it all together. Everything just works.

SEE MY KARTRA REVIEW

Email Marketing Features of Kartra

• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop editor
• Automated Email Sequence Builder
• Pre-made Email Templates
• Lead Generation
• Landing page builder
• Triggered drip campaigns
• Integrations
• Email Campaigns
• Checkout pages
• Sales Funnel
• Helpdesk
• Appointment Scheduling
• Membership Site Builder
• Customer relationship management
• Affiliate Management

Pros of Kartra:

• Wide range of email marketing features
• Trial Available
• A suite of marketing tools to grow into
• Advanced features

Cons of Kartra:

• Some features can be complex to use
• Not as widely known as some of the other email marketing tools, so it may not have as much support.
• Can be buggy

Kartra Pricing

Starts at $79 a month

$1 Trial -> Get 30 day Kartra trial for $1

Kartra Reviews

Kartra Average Rating – 4.5 at GetApp

AWeber

AWeber is a provider of small business email marketing, automation, and landing page/opt-in page solutions. They help you build know, like and trust with your email marketing and web push notifications that are tailored to your customer’s interests.

AWeber is another tool that provides a wide range of email marketing features, including the ability to create beautiful email newsletters, landing pages, autoresponders, and more. They also offer a free plan for those who are just starting out.

Email Marketing Features of AWeber

• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop email editor
• Dynamic content
• Landing page builder
• A/B testing
• Mobile optimization
• Email deliverability reporting
• List management
• Triggered drip campaigns
• Integrated with Canva
• Subscriber segmentation
• AMP for Email support
• Email authentication (custom DKIM and SPF)
• Web Push Notifications
• Automatic Intelligent Email Template Builder

Pros of AWeber:

• Free plan up to 500 email subscribers
• Wide range of email marketing features
• Wide range of email templates
• Advanced features

Cons of AWeber:

• Can be a learning curve for beginners
• Can be expensive for those with a large email list
• Can be buggy

AWeber Pricing

Starts at $16.50 per month

Free Plan and Paid Plans -> Get AWeber Free Plan

AWeber Reviews

AWeber Average Rating – 4.4 at GetApp

GetResponse

GetResponse is an online marketing platform optimized for small businesses. It provides tools for email marketing campaigns, auto-funnels, landing pages, marketing automation, webinars, autoresponders, and enterprise marketing needs. Its key email marketing features allow users to send email newsletters, campaigns, online surveys, and follow-up autoresponders.

GetResponse is created as an all-in-one online marketing tool that unifies email marketing and online campaign management tools for managing sales, maximizing ROI, and using online marketing effectively.

GetResponse is another email marketing software that offers a wide range of email marketing features, including the ability to create beautiful email newsletters, automated emails, landing pages, and more. A great free plan is available for those who are just starting out.

Email Marketing Features of GetResponse

• Email marketing
• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop email editor
• Website builder
• Connect a domain
• Landing pages
• Signup and contact forms
• Marketing automation
• List segmentation
• Sales funnels
• Webinars
• Live chats
• Web push notifications
• Ecommerce features

Pros of GetResponse:

• Wide range of email marketing features
• Free and paid plans are available

Cons of GetResponse:

• Some features can be complex to use
• Limited integrations with other platforms
• Inaccurate Reporting

GetResponse Pricing

Starts at $10.50 a month

Free plan available -> Get GetResponse Free Plan

GetResponse Reviews

GetResponse Average Rating – 4.2 at GetApp

Active Campaign

ActiveCampaign has 500+ pre-built automation templates. This makes it easy for customers to instantly create and run campaigns across all of their marketing channels. They have completely free customer service, with a live chat and phone support, an extensive self-help knowledge base, and complementary data migration.

Combined with the ActiveCampaign Customer Success Commitment—a set of fourteen promises pledging that customers will always be able to get what they need when they need it—they aim to deliver value to all customers regardless of size.

ActiveCampaign integrates email marketing, marketing automation, sales automation, and CRM software into a single platform designed for any small business.

Email Marketing Features of Active Campaign

• WYSIWYG email editor
• Drag and Drop email editor
• Ecommerce
• Landing Pages
• Email Marketing
• Email Segmentation
• Subscription Forms
• Site Tracking
• Deliverability
• Marketing Automation
• Messaging & Text (SMS)
• Dynamic Content
• Event Tracking
• CRM & Sales Automation
• Contact & Lead Scoring
• Pipelines
• Sales Engagement Automation
• Conversations & Chat
• Split Testing
• Predictive Sending
• Predictive Content

Pros of Active Campaign

• Great list segmentation
• Automated email series
• Integration with WordPress and Elementor

Cons of Active Campaign

• Can be slow
• Buggy at times
• Automations could be more clear

Active Campaign Pricing:

Starts at $9/month

Free Trial: 14 days free trial available -> Try Active Campaign for Free Today!

Active Campaign Reviews

Active Campaign Average Rating – 4.6 at GetApp

VerticalResponse

VerticalResponse is a full-service platforms for email marketing. In addition to providing email marketing tools, VerticalResponse offers fully managed email marketing services from campaign launch and management to reporting and analysis.

VerticalResponse is another tool that offers a wide range of email marketing features, including the ability to create beautiful email newsletters, autoresponders, and more. A great free email marketing service for those who are just starting out.

Email Marketing Features of VerticalResponse

• Easy-to-use editor
• Automated follow-up emails
• Autoresponders & email series
• Advanced reporting
• Landing page builder
• A/B testing
• Test kits
• Surveys
• Pop-ups
• Codeless integrations
• Form builders
• Custom-branded emails
• Contact management
• HTML editor
• Scheduling
• Publish-to-web
• Preference center for contacts
• Email deliverability

Pros of VerticalResponse:

• Wide range of email marketing features
• Free trial available

Cons of VerticalResponse:

• Some features can be complex to use
• Limited Templates

VerticalResponse Pricing

Starts at $11 a month

Free trial available -> Get VerticalResponse Free Trial

VerticalResponse Reviews

VerticalResponse Average Rating – 3.9 at GetApp

So which email marketing tool is right for you?

It really depends on your needs and what you’re looking for in an email marketing tool.

If you’re looking for an all-in-one email marketing software with more advanced features, you can grow into Kartra may be a good option. Looking for free email marketing software to jump into? Mail Chimp or GetResponse may be great options.

Overall, there are a wide range of email marketing tools available that can help you achieve your small business email marketing goals. These tools are easy to use and can help you create beautiful email newsletters quickly and easily.

However, each tool has its own set of pros and cons, so it’s important to choose the tool that best suits your needs. When looking for the best email marketing solutions for small business think about:

Email Software Pricing

Pricing for email marketing tools can vary depending on the size of your email list and the features you need. However, there are many affordable options out there that can provide you with the features you need to run a successful email marketing campaign and create time-saving marketing automation.

Free Trial?

It’s important to choose a tool that offers a free trial or discounted trial so that you can try the email marketing software out before committing to a paid plan.

This will allow you to see if the tool is a good fit for your business and help you find the best email marketing software to reach your goals.

And remember, you don’t need crazy tech skills, buckets of cash, or dedicated staff to market your business. You don’t even need a lot of time.

What you need is to be SMART. And email marketing is one of the smartest strategies you can use for your small business.

So what are you waiting for?
Try out one or two of these email marketing software platforms mentioned in this blog post today and see how they can help improve your email marketing results!

As always, if you have any questions on choosing the best email marketing software let me know in the comments.

Email Marketing FAQ

Q: What is email marketing?

A: Email marketing is the process of sending commercial messages to a group of people via email. It uses an email marketing provider to deliver the messages. These can be a newsletter, transactional emails, marketing campaigns, automated sequence, or sales automation messages.

Q: What are the benefits of email marketing?

A: Some benefits of email marketing for small business owners include increased brand awareness, loyalty, and customer satisfaction. Additionally, email campaigns can also lead to more website visits, increased sales, and higher conversion rates.

Q: What are the different types of email marketing?

A: There are three main types of email marketing: commercial email, permission-based email marketing, and transactional emails. Commercial email is unsolicited email that is sent to a group of people with the intent of promoting a product or service. Permission-based email marketing is email that is sent to people who have specifically given their consent to receive messages from the sender. Transactional email is email that is sent as a result of an action taken by the recipient, such as completing a purchase or registering for a webinar.

Q: What are the best practices for email marketing?

A: Some best practices for email marketing include segmenting your email list, personalizing your email messages, and providing value to your subscribers. Additionally, it’s important to have a strong call-to-action and to avoid coming across as spammy.

Q: What are some common email marketing mistakes?

A: Some common email marketing mistakes include not having a clear goal, not personalizing email messages, and using too many images. Additionally, it’s important to test your email campaigns before sending them out to ensure that they look good and are functioning properly.

Q: What is the best way to measure the success of an email marketing campaign?

A: The best way to measure the success of an email marketing campaign is to track the number of clicks and conversions that it generates. Additionally, you can also measure the overall open and click-through rates for your email campaigns.

Q: What should I do if my email marketing messages are being marked as spam?

A: If your email marketing messages are being marked as spam, you may need to tweak your email content or design in order to make them look more legitimate. Additionally, it’s important to ensure that you have permission from your subscribers before sending them any commercial messages.

Q: What is the best software for email marketing?

A: Some popular email marketing services include MailChimp, Constant Contact, and AWeber. Additionally, there are a number of other email marketing platforms that you can use in order to create and send your email campaigns. Ultimately, the right email marketing service will depend on your specific needs and preferences.

Q: How often should I send email marketing messages?

A: The frequency at which you send email marketing messages will depend on the type of campaign that you’re running. If you’re running a new product promotion, it might be best to send email marketing messages more frequently. However, if you’re simply sending out monthly newsletters, you can probably send email marketing messages less frequently.

Q: What is the best time of day to send email marketing messages?

A: The best time of day to send email marketing messages will vary depending on your target audience. If you’re targeting busy professionals, it might be best to send email marketing messages in the morning. However, if you’re targeting stay-at-home moms, it might be best to send email marketing messages in the evening.

Q: What is the difference between email marketing and social media marketing?

A: Email marketing and social media marketing are two different types of online marketing strategies. Email marketing involves sending email messages to promote your product or service. Social media marketing involves using social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, to promote your product or service.

Q: What are some email marketing tips for beginners?

A: Some email marketing tips for beginners include building a permission-based email list, crafting compelling email subject lines, and designing email newsletters that are visually appealing. Additionally, it’s important to test your email campaigns before sending them out and to track the results in order to gauge their effectiveness.

Q: How can I improve my email marketing open rates?

A: Some tips for improving email marketing open rates include using descriptive subject lines, personalizing email messages, and sending email marketing messages at the right time of day. Additionally, you can also use email list segmentation to target specific groups of subscribers.

Q: What types of email should you send?

Broadcast emails

When you need to talk to everyone at once. Send one-time broadcast email campaigns to anyone on your list.

Targeted emails

Make sure the right message gets sent to the right person. Group your audience into segments based on any factor.

Triggered emails

Trigger emails based on purchase, site visits, or engagement. Automatically send emails right when your subscribers are most interested.

Email autoresponders

Get in touch right away with your subscribers. Send welcome emails, a welcome series, or deliver your lead magnets automatically. The best email automation software will include this.

Scheduled emails

Schedule emails for a specific time and date. Perfect for events, holidays, birthdays, and sales promotions.

Email funnels

Sell more with email and sales funnels. Set up email automation that turns your subscribers from interested contacts to paying customers.

Q: Do any email marketing services offer unlimited contacts?

A: Most platforms for email marketing will not allow you to store unlimited contacts; they generally charge by the number of subscribers you have (active or not). You can always export your customer data outside of the platform to archive it as needed for your business. This can help you keep your costs down.

Q: What is an email opt-in form?

A: An opt-in email form is a web form that allows website visitors to subscribe to your email list. Email opt-in forms typically include fields for the subscriber’s email address and name. Additionally, they may also include other fields, such as an opt-in checkbox or a drop-down menu.

Q: How can I use email marketing to increase sales?

A: You can use email marketing to increase sales by promoting your products or services in email messages. Additionally, you can also use email marketing to drive traffic to your website or blog. You can also use email marketing to build relationships with your customers and subscribers.

Q: Why is automation important in email marketing?

A: Automation is key to email marketing success because it allows you to send targeted, timely, and personalized messages to your customers without lifting a finger. By automating your email marketing, you can free up time to focus on other important tasks while still maintaining (or even increasing) your customer engagement.

Have any other Email Marketing questions? Let me know!

Want to Learn more about Email Marketing?

I have an amazing email marketing course that will teach you the step-by-step process to identify exactly who you want to attract to your business, how to put in place all the pieces needed to get those people subscribed (on autopilot), and how to leverage your email list to supercharge your success.