In today’s marketplace it is almost mandatory that you have some sort of auto responder service if you wish to build your email list. Recently I did a blog on building your list and how vital it is to your business. In a recent survey done online there were several companies listed in the Top Ten for Auto Responders. Of course there are many others out there and research via the internet will help you decide which one is best for you.
To lighten your load, I’ve done a brief overview of the top ten auto responder companies and a more in-depth review of the three for which I had had experience.
#1 Aweber – Best deliverability in the marketplace
AWeber Rated #1
#2 MailChimp – Simple to use and free under 2000 subscribers for basic service
MailChimp Rated #2
#3 iContact – For small to medium business who do not import outside list
iContact Rated #3
#4 Constant Contact – Geared for HTML advocates and larger lists
#5 Infusionsoft – Serious marketers only – 50K lists and 6 figure incomes
InfusionSoft Rated #5
#6 Get Response – Great reputation in the small business arena of fewer than 10K
Get Response Rated #6
#7 1ShoppingCard – A low cost version of Infusionsoft – payment processing /email
Shopping Cart Rated #7
#8 AutoRespond Plus – For buying leads and importing
AutoRepond Plus Rate #8
#9 CampaignMonitor – Email marketing for data driven companies
Campaign Monitor Rated #9
#10 Office AutoPilot – Product purchase integration intricate sales funnel
Office Auto Pilot rated#10
I have chosen three of these to give more specifics. Two of them I work with every day. One of them I tried briefly but found in wanting for my needs.
Tom K. CEO and Founder
Sean C. Chief Operating Officer
Gene K. Chief Financial Officer
I use this auto responder daily in my business to respond to sign up requests and also for follow up emails and broadcasts.
Affiliate Program – Yes
The first month cost is $1 and after that the rates are as follows:
< 500 $19 month
< 2500 $29 month
<10000 $69 month
< 25000 $149 month
Customized prices after this point.
Products available on AWeber include
Email Newsletters
Follow up responders
Sign up Forms and Integration to numerous lists
Broadcasts customized to one or more list
Optimization of data for review and maintenance
Html email templates
RSS feed directly from your blog
Seminars and training ongoing basis
One on one personal help with set up or training. Available via phone 7 days a week
The one on one service provided by AWeber makes them stand out in the industry. If you have any type of problem they will walk you through it and help you configure it.
The only downside I have found is that their online instructions lack detail needed by the novice, however, their one on one help is phenomenal and they are only a phone call away.
They are constantly coming up with new innovations to make your job easier and enhance your business. If you are a beginner they are definitely your best bet.
Ben Chestnut Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Dan Kurzius Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer
Affiliate Program – Yes but not standard commissions
This is a tremendous tool for those just getting started and do not have any money to invest in an auto responder but would like to have the availability of a newsletter.
For those having a mailing of less than 2000 the cost is free for a monthly newsletter. I use MailChimp for one of my clients in the non-profit area to send out their monthly newsletter. If you are moderately adept on the computer this is a very easy program to follow for simple newsletters.
Unfortunately, the downside to MailChimp’s free service is that you get one opportunity for email support and no phone consultation is available. If you are familiar with Html and drag and drop processing MailChimp is easy to use.
If you are a beginner, it is a very difficult learning process without any help. Their newsletters turn out beautifully in most cases but again if you do not understand the process you will have difficulty with the free service.
The free service does not supply any auto responder email follow up program.
Rates on this one are:
Subscribers Emails Monthly
0 – 2,000 12,000 Free mailing no auto email setup*
1,001 – 1500 unlimited $20.00
1,501 – 2,000 unlimited $25.00
2,001 – 2,500 unlimited $30.00
2,501 – 2,600 unlimited $35.00
As you can see they have a small email base but good options to choose from. Larger databases are customized and they can handle up to $50,000 subscribers.
*A low cost option of $10 per month is available which provides some auto – responder emails with limited use and some customer service help via online chat.
Hanna Andrzejewska – Marketing Manager
I have used Get Response briefly with one of my affiliate marketers JVZoo. I found them a bit cumbersome but I’m not sure if it was because I had been using AWeber for so long that I was just unfamiliar. Their website itself is sometimes difficult to maneuver.
Affiliate Program: Yes
Here is a breakdown of their plans and pricing.
Beginner Program <1000 subscribers $15.00 Monthly – Basic Email
Pro Program* <5000 subscribers $49.00 Monthly – Add Landing Page/Webinar
Max Program <10000 subscribers $165 Monthly -all Pro +custom domain
Enerprise Program 100K > subscribers $999 -Large infrastructure only
The products are available with a quick check on Google by clicking on their link description. There you will find more details on exactly what each one offers.
Thanks for tuning in for another review. I hope to be able to provide these on a
regular basis as needs arise. Have a great week.
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Hi there, just read your post about auto-responders. I am new to the online marketing world and know that at some point I’m going to need one. I really appreciate your insights of what works and what doesn’t.
I’m not gonna lie…I’m a little afraid of learning yet another software component. You seem to think that Aweber is the best way to go. You seem to say that their help desk is actually “helpful”. Do you think that Aweber is truly good for a newbie or should a person start with, say, Mail Chimp to start and then progress?
Thanks!
Cherie
Hi Cherie
Thanks for checking in on this post. Here is my opinion on the auto-responders.
First of all, you shouldn’t wait to put a sign in form on your website and in facebook. You’ll want to collect emails as soon as you can. Of course to do this you will need an email provider such as I outlined in my blog. I use AWeber and MailChimp regularly. I prefer AWeber for a real newbie as you can just pick up the phone and call them for free. They will walk you through the entire setup of your account. They do have some online instructions but those can be confusing I’ve found.
As far as ease of use once your account has been set up I find MailChimp extremely easy for their drag and drop template use and placement within an email. AWeber templates can be confusing sometimes. The problem with MailChimp is that unless you pay $10 right out of the gate you do not get any help. Then the help is not a live person but a chat room. The free program offers you 1 message contact and that’s it. So if you really green about email providers they are not the way to go unless you select one of their paid programs.
The reason I recommend AWeber is that you can try it out for one month for $1 and get all the set up help you need. Then if you don’t like it you can cancel and more to another carrier.
Let me know if you have any other questions. I’d be glad to assist.
Sandy