Contents
What Is an Email Marketing Automation Platform?
7 Things to Look for In an Email Automation Platform
Top 16 Email Automation Platforms
16 Best Email Marketing Automation Platforms to Grow Your Business in 2023
An email automation platform allows you to streamline targeted, timely, personalized, and relevant emails. According to 49% companies, the biggest benefit of email automation is that it saves your time and resources. Discover the best email automation platforms for your business in this article.
"Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.” - David Newman
Businesses can now elevate their email marketing strategy with the help of an email marketing automation platform. They need to spend a lot of time traversing through each email automation platform. Instead, they can use our article as a guide to picking the right email marketing automation platform for their business.
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Table of Contents
What Is an Email Marketing Automation Platform?
As the term suggests, an email marketing automation platform allows you to automate emails. The emails get triggered based on the actions of your users, and subscribers. For instance, you can set up automated emails for users who have not completed a purchase on your website, set up a campaign designed to enquire and nurture users that are slipping away, and bring them back into the fold.
7 Things to Look for In an Email Automation Platform
Every business has its own distinct email marketing needs. However, the fundamentals of any competent email automation platform remain the same. Let’s look at what to look for in an email automation platform.
1. Seamless Integration
Your email marketing automation platform should fit in seamlessly with your marketing tools. For instance, Show’s email marketing tool provides a seamless experience by integrating email marketing with video hosting, lead generation, video analytics, and more. The email marketing tool that you pick should not cause any hindrance to your other marketing tools.
2. Email Analytics
All your hard work will be worthwhile if you measure its performance. Your business needs to know whether your automated email marketing campaigns are hitting the nail on the head. Therefore, you need quantifiable data that provide insights about your automated email campaigns.
An email automation platform should be able to present information on the open rate, bounce rate, unique open rate, and more.
3. Triggered Emails
Emails sent according to specific actions of users and subscribers are known as triggered emails. All the competent email automation platforms offer the feature to set triggered emails. Setting up targeted emails using email automation software can generate 18 times more revenue than sending irrelevant emails. For instance, emails get triggered when there are sign-ups, abandoned carts, and more.
4. Workflow Automation
The best email automation platforms allow you to set up workflow automation. You can set up a series of emails to subscribers. You can do that to encourage your customers to make more purchases or to nurture leads. You can set the intervals at which your email automation platform will send emails to your recipients.
5. Auto-Scheduler
Triggered emails, workflow automation, and auto-scheduler are the hallmarks of email automation platforms worth their salt. It enables you to conditionally schedule emails with ease.
6. Email Templates
Preset email templates in an email automation platform are a must-have feature. Businesses need not waste time building templates from scratch. Instead, they can use the predesigned templates by the platform to start running their email campaigns.
The templates should be mobile-optimized. 61.9% of emails today are opened on mobiles. The platform should allow you to test the templates’ responsiveness on mobiles.
7. Contact Management and Segmentation
Contact management and segmentation are the mainstays of any email automation platform. Your contacts can be your leads, prospects, and customers. They can be segmented according to their actions. A sound platform will allow you to export and import your contacts. Maintaining and segmenting your contacts is a key feature of an email automation platform. The most potent strategy for email marketing campaigns is subscriber segmentation (78%)
Now that we have looked at the key features you should seek in an email marketing automation platform for your business. Let’s have a look at the top email automation platforms.
Top 16 Email Automation Platforms
Note: We have listed the pricing plans of email marketing automation platforms in a table to make it easy for you. However, some plans have complicated and layered pricing.
Show redefined marketing automation with video as a linchpin with a video-first marketing approach. It brought video hosting, video analytics, lead generation, and omniscript tracking under one roof. It has now decided to take it a step further. Its email marketing automation platform suits its marketing automation juggernaut to the T.
Show’s email marketing tool checks the boxes to stand tall. The platform is comprehensive. It offers predefined templates, email analytics, UTM tracking, contact management, auto-scheduler, and more.
Show’s email platform’s user experience is easy-to-use and intuitive. The email marketing solution integrates seamlessly with Show’s video platform. You get a holistic marketing automation experience with Show as it has brought everything into one place. From lead generation to lead nurturing, the platform has managed to make it a fluid experience.
Show has now introduced a new email generator tool powered by artificial intelligence. It would not be wrong to label it as ChatGpt for emails. 38% of marketers have already started using AI to write emails. All you have to do is enter your prompt, and you will be offered a lot of emails on your plate to serve you. Like its other tools, Show’s email generator tool - askShow does an exemplary job.
Show has nailed the holistic marketing automation field with this tool. The platform provides a complete automation experience.
Show’s email automation platform has something up its sleeve for everyone. It caters to sales teams, marketing teams, customer success teams, customer support teams, human resource teams, and more. The best part is that it provides value for money.
Pros
- Businesses get an all-in-one email automation platform
- The learning curve is small
- The tool is easy to use.
- Businesses can track the full journey of their users
- The platform is affordable
- The artificial intelligence email generator tool is top-notch
- It provides a great email analytics platform
- It provides customized email templates
- Contact list management and segmentation are simple and easy to use
Cons
- Not as experienced as its competitors
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Price |
Free | 500 Contacts | $0 |
Starter | 2000 Contacts | $23/month |
Pro | 5000 Contacts | $79/month |
After making its mark as an email marketing platform, SendInBlue is now Brevo. Brevo aims to go beyond being exclusive to email marketing. It is trying to spread itself to SMS, chat, and more.
Brevo offers over 40+ predesigned templates. It also has predefined workflow automation to help its customers. It also has integrations with WordPress, Shopify, and Zapier to help your business.
Brevo is a good option for businesses trying to get started with email automation. It is a reliable email automation platform.
Pros
- Predesigned templates
- Offers a forever-free plan
- Offers great automation workflows
- Unlimited contacts in all plans
Cons
- Sketchy layout
- The plugins fall a little short in their performances
- Pricing is based on the number of emails sent
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 900 emails/month | $0 |
Starter | 20K emails/month | $25/month |
Business | 20K emails/month+extra features | $65/month |
Constant Contact was founded in 1995. It has managed to reinvent itself and stand the test of time. It has now proven to be a competent email automation platform for businesses. The platform provides you the run of the mill email automation features such as auto-responder, templates, and more.
The email marketing solution also has event marketing tools. It is great for businesses that look for a simple email automation tool alongside an event management solution.
Pros
- Provides pre-designed templates.
- Provides event marketing tools
- Good customer support
Cons
- It does not have a forever-free plan
- Lack of design options
- The branding “Constant Contact” appears at the end of its emails
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Lite | 500 Contacts | $12/month |
Standard | 1500 Contacts | $35/month |
Premium | 5000 Contacts | $80/month |
Mailerlite is still a new entrant in the email automation domain. It provides an easy-to-use drag-and-drop email editor. An adequate number of predesigned templates are helpful.
The platform is made for businesses that are looking to test the waters with an email automation platform.
Pros
- Simple to use interface
- Provides a forever-free plan
- Provides email support
- Provides an array of email templates to choose from
Cons
- Does not offer enough integrations
- Does not provide contact list segmentation
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 1000 Contacts/12000 monthly emails | $0 |
Starter | 2500 Contacts | $17/month |
Pro | 5000 Contacts | $32/month |
ActiveCampaign has established itself as a potent email marketing automation platform. The platform facilitates email automation with predesigned templates and automation workflows. The segmentation offered by this email automation platform is quite nuanced.
ActiveCampaign is the right email automation tool if building collaborative teams across your organization is your priority.
Pros
- Effective email automation
- Great customer support
- Offers over 850 integrations
Cons
- The learning curve is steep
- The plans are expensive
- It does not offer a forever-free plan
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Plus | 3 Users | $49/month |
Professional | 5 Users | $149/month |
GetResponse is a global email automation platform in the truest sense of the term. It is available to businesses in 20 languages. It offers an advanced contact management system with a flexible automation builder. The platform has an easy-to-use interface with a drag-and-drop editor.
It is a great automation tool for businesses looking to make their mark in different languages.
Pros
- It offers a forever-free version
- The interface is easy-to-use
- It is reasonably priced
Cons
- The landing page builder is a little sketchy
- The drag-and-drop needs improvement
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 500 Contacts | $0 |
Email Marketing | 1000 Contacts | $19/month |
E-Commerce Marketing | 1000 Contacts + more features | $119/month |
Drip’s email marketing automation platform has no qualms about positioning itself as a tool for e-commerce platforms. The platform provides workflow automation for actions such as abandoned carts, post-purchases, welcome emails, and more. In addition, it offers advanced segmentation.
The email automation platform is great for businesses looking to establish or consolidate e-commerce stores.
Pros
- Easy to set up drip campaigns
- Sophisticated contact list segmentation
Cons
- Not many integrations
- Does not offer a drag-and-drop editor
- No forever-free plan
Pricing
Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
2,500 Contacts | $39/month |
10,000 Contacts | $154/month |
170,000 Contacts | $1,899/month |
Kudos to the founders of Omnisend for getting its branding right. Omnisend’s email automation platform targets multiple channels. A business can reach out to people via email marketing, SMS, and automation.
Omnisend is a delight for businesses that look to automate their outreach through different platforms such as email marketing, SMS, and automation.
Pros
- The automation is simple
- Enables you to target multiple channels simultaneously
- Provides a free-forever plan
- Generates actionable insights through Facebook ads
Cons
- It has a steep learning curve
- Needs improvement in the colors scheme
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free Plan | 500 Emails/250 Contacts | $0 |
Standard | 6000 Emails/500 Contacts | $16/month |
Pro | Unlimited emails/500 Contacts | $59/month |
We just shuffled the list so that we do not make it obvious. MailChimp was an obvious choice for this list. It is an old-timer in email marketing. It has proved to be an effective email automation platform. It has features like auto-scheduling, A/B testing, email analytics, and contact segmentation.
MailChimp is a dynamic tool that offers quality email automation to businesses of all sizes.
Pros
- It offers a forever-free plan
- Easy-to-use interface
- In-depth email analytics
- Offers integrations
Cons
- Quite expensive for advanced plans
- Not optimized enough for mobile use
- Does not support holistic marketing
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 1,000 Emails | $0 |
Essentials | 5,000 Emails | $9.36/month |
Standard | 6,000 Emails | $13.98/month |
Premium | 1,50,000 Emails | $279.6/month |
Sendloop is one of the most effective email automation platforms. Its interface is quite easy-to-use. The drag-and-drop is simple to use. In addition, it offers about 80 predesigned templates for businesses. Sendloop alos offers user tracking.
It is great for businesses looking to run highly effective email marketing campaigns.
Pros
- Effective drag-and-drop feature
- Clear analytics
- Offers great technical support
- Offers forever-free plan
Cons
- Expensive
- Interface lacks nuance
- Lacks mobile-optimized emails
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | Unclear | $0 |
Pro | 15,000 Subscribers | $79/month |
Pro Marketer | 50,000 Subscribers | $235/month |
Emailsmart is an effective email automation platform. It offers advanced email analytics. The platform simplifies automation for businesses trying to venture into email marketing.
The platform mainly caters to small and medium-sized businesses.
Pros
- Offers a forever-free plan
- GDPR compliant for EU users
- Reasonable prices
- Good support team
Cons
- Lack of options for integrating
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 1,000 emails/month | $0 |
Essentials | 10,000 emails/month | $24/month |
Standard | 1,00,000 emails/month | $124/month |
Pro | 5,00,000 emails/month | $324/month |
EmailOctopus is a lean email automation platform. It gives the option to route your emails through Amazon SES(software email service). The platform integrates with Zapier, WordPress, and MailOptin.
It is a great option for businesses with developers looking for a simple email marketing automation platform.
Pros
- Simple and easy-to-use
- Effective for businesses that are not keen on email marketing
- Reasonably priced
- Provides a forever-free plan
- Great for developers dabbling into email marketing
Cons
- Does not provide enough for businesses looking to offer something more nuanced.
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free Starter | 1 user/2,500 Subscriber/10,000 emails/month | $0 |
Pro | Unlimited Users/5000 subscribers/50,000 emails/month | $24/month |
Benchmark Email is a basic email automation platform. There is no need for technical acumen to find your way around this platform. The drag-and-drop is efficient. In addition, it has a simple user interface and great customer support.
Benchmark email caters to businesses that are looking for an austere email marketing platform.
Pros
- Easy-to-use
- No need for prior technical knowledge
- Provides a forever-free plan
Cons
- Not for businesses that are looking for something more powerful
- Not mobile-friendly
Pricing
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Free | 3,500 emails/month | $0 |
Lite | 3,500 emails+more features/ month | $8/month |
Pro | 7,500 emails/month | $13/month |
Wishpond does not want to be confined to email marketing automation. It tries to be an all-in-one marketing platform. Wishpond’s email automation tool provides drip campaigns, customizing emails, real-time analytics, and integrations.
It gets the job done for businesses that are looking for an all-in-one marketing platform with a garnish of email automation.
Pros
- All-in-one marketing automation
- Drag-and-drop feature
- Provides good customer support
Cons
- Pricing is accessible only if you signup for a demo call
- Not a specialist in email marketing
Another marketing platform that is not limited to being an email marketing automation platform. However, it does do a decent job at email marketing. The platform provides ready-to-use email templates and workflow automation amongst other automation features.
It is great for businesses looking for an email marketing platform alongside a marketing automation platform.
Pros
- A well-rounded platform
- Provides a good feature set
- Smooth onboarding process
Cons
- The email builder is not up to the mark
- Has a steep learning curve
- Does not have a forever-free plan
- The pricing is on the higher side
Plan | Value Metric Limit | Pricing |
Pro | 1500 Contacts and 2 Users | $149/month |
Max | 2500 Contacts and 3 Users | $199/month |
The all-in-one business platform was obviously going to make it to the list. HubSpot has an email marketing automation platform in its arsenal. HubSpot’s email automation provides run-of-the-mill features. However, it turns into a different beast when combined with its other tools that provide social media marketing, CRM, and more.
Businesses looking for an all-in-one marketing automation platform should consider HubSpot. However, its email automation platform has a lot of room for improvement.
Conclusion
There is no absolute answer to picking the right email automation platform for your business. The abovementioned email automation platforms pack a punch in the right environment. This article aims to help you choose the platform that fits your business needs so that it can thrive.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- What are the different types of emails that can be automated?
The different types of emails that can be automated are
- Welcome emails
- Abandoned cart emails
- Post-Purchase emails
- Re-engagement emails
- Birthday Emails
- Special Occasions emails
- Festival emails
- Educational Emails
- Promotional Emails
- Drip Campaigns
2. What is the methodology behind picking these email automation platforms?
We carefully reviewed over 50 email automation platforms to ensure that we provide only the best email automation platforms to choose from. We have kept the diverse nature and needs of businesses before shortlisting the aforementioned platforms.
3. What type of businesses should look for an email automation platform?
All businesses can do with some email automation and email marketing. However, we have made a list to provide you with some examples.
- E-Commerce businesses
- Service-Based businesses
- Non-Profit organizations
- B2B businesses
- Small and Medium-Sized Businesses