Act-On Software vs. Sugar Market

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Act-On
Score 8.3 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Act-On is an adaptive marketing platform designed to drive personal and purposeful multi-channel marketing. Its foci are inbound and outbound marketing, for enabling a tighter alignment with sales and turning data into actionable insights.
$900
per month (starts at 2,500 active contacts)
Sugar Market
Score 2.2 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Sugar Market (formerly Salesfusion) is a marketing automation solution built to work for the user. With a curated toolset that includes intuitive campaign builders, automations and reporting, the vendor says they focus on what matters most to marketers -- streamlining campaign creation, understanding engagement, improving conversion, and driving more revenue. Salesfusion was acquired by SugarCRM May 2019.
$750
per month
Pricing
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Editions & Modules
Professional
$900
per month (starts at 2,500 active contacts)
Enterprise
$2,000
per month ( starts at 2,500 active contacts)
Core
$1,000
Database size
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Act-OnSugar Market
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesYes
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredRequired
Additional DetailsThe Professional package starts at 2,500 active contacts, 3 marketing users, 50 sales users and 30,000 API calls per day. The Enterprise package starts at 2,500 active contacts, 6 marketing users, 100 sales users and 30,000 API calls per day. Annual contract required.Prices listed are monthly subscription rates. Our packages include live support and training. Additional charges apply for contact databases above 10k, dedicated IPs, CRM integration and sandboxes. Please complete the form on our site to request a quote based on your specific needs.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Considered Both Products
Act-On
Chose Act-On Software
We were actually first leaning towards HubSpot, however they couldn't agree to our standard Code of Conduct (as a principle they never do) and since we have some strict purchasing routines that includes the supplier signing our CoC we were unable to go through with the deal. In …
Chose Act-On Software
The cost of ownership vs. functionality and ease of use is second to none, add in the speed of implementation and their customer success programs and nothing comes close.
Chose Act-On Software

Salesfusion was the best alternative to Act-On in my evaluation but there were a few things that ultimately had us side with Act-On. Integrations with Outlook, Customer Service, User Friendly Interface and Sales portal for our Sales Executives. These tools really made the …

Chose Act-On Software
It's been years since my product evaluation prior to selecting Act-On, but we do use Salesfusion, which is a marketing automation tool for SalesLogix. Act-On is much more intuitive and user friendly. The pieces tie in together better. I believe there may be more functionality …
Sugar Market

No answer on this topic

Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Email & Online Marketing
Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
7.8
113 Ratings
0% above category average
Sugar Market
4.4
4 Ratings
55% below category average
WYSIWYG email editor8.1112 Ratings3.03 Ratings
Dynamic content8.192 Ratings5.03 Ratings
Ability to test dynamic content7.292 Ratings4.02 Ratings
Landing pages8.1108 Ratings6.03 Ratings
A/B testing8.195 Ratings4.03 Ratings
Mobile optimization7.2103 Ratings1.03 Ratings
Email deliverability reporting8.1112 Ratings7.04 Ratings
List management8.1111 Ratings4.04 Ratings
Triggered drip sequences7.187 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Lead Management
Comparison of Lead Management features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
8.1
113 Ratings
5% above category average
Sugar Market
5.3
4 Ratings
37% below category average
Lead nurturing automation8.1104 Ratings6.04 Ratings
Lead scoring and grading8.1104 Ratings4.04 Ratings
Data quality management8.1102 Ratings5.04 Ratings
Automated sales alerts and tasks8.195 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Campaign Management
Comparison of Campaign Management features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
7.5
77 Ratings
2% below category average
Sugar Market
6.5
3 Ratings
16% below category average
Calendaring6.88 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Event/webinar marketing8.176 Ratings7.02 Ratings
Social Media Marketing
Comparison of Social Media Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
8.1
71 Ratings
8% above category average
Sugar Market
8.2
1 Ratings
9% above category average
Social sharing and campaigns8.169 Ratings8.21 Ratings
Social profile integration8.163 Ratings00 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
8.1
114 Ratings
8% above category average
Sugar Market
2.3
4 Ratings
106% below category average
Dashboards8.1109 Ratings5.04 Ratings
Standard reports8.1112 Ratings1.04 Ratings
Custom reports8.184 Ratings1.04 Ratings
Platform & Infrastructure
Comparison of Platform & Infrastructure features of Product A and Product B
Act-On Software
7.9
107 Ratings
4% above category average
Sugar Market
4.8
4 Ratings
45% below category average
API8.167 Ratings5.02 Ratings
Role-based workflow & approvals8.171 Ratings6.02 Ratings
Customizability8.189 Ratings3.02 Ratings
Integration with Salesforce.com8.165 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM8.136 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Integration with SugarCRM7.129 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Small Businesses
Vbout
Vbout
Score 9.4 out of 10
Vbout
Vbout
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
Enterprises
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
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User Ratings
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Likelihood to Recommend
8.1
(219 ratings)
3.0
(7 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.9
(112 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Usability
9.1
(32 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.1
(14 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.2
(13 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.3
(39 ratings)
8.2
(1 ratings)
In-Person Training
8.7
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
9.3
(16 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.6
(22 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
6.4
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.2
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.1
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Act-On SoftwareSugar Market
Likelihood to Recommend
Act-On
Act-On simplifies the creation of landing pages, web forms, email campaigns, and other types of marketing automation. Designing a customer journey using the workflow builder (a nurturing flow) is possible. It is used in various ways and in a variety of contexts. Tactical's knowledgeable support team helped us unlock Act-On's potential for complex integrations and marketing campaigns. In some areas, it would be beneficial to improve functionality.
Read full review
SugarCRM
Salesfusion is a marketing automation platform more appropriate for small companies considering the limited functionalities are limited. The email builder tool is easy to use and ideal for someone with no coding knowledge
Read full review
Pros
Act-On
  • Establishes a simple but very decisive way of how to perform specialized marketing work.
  • It includes the monitoring of advertising networks or account management on digital platforms and social networks.
  • The support is solid; it takes all the suggestions and doubts I have regarding the software.
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • It was easy to navigate.
  • I liked that I could click on a link to email a potential client and that it would track/link that email back to the Salesfusion profile.
  • I liked the reporting features so that I could see exactly how many cold calls resulted in appointments, with whom I last left voicemail or need to follow up with.
Read full review
Cons
Act-On
  • The designer tools, especially for emails, were often difficult to use. The formatting of the text would be all over the place and change / refuse to change at random. Moving boxes around was shifty and sometimes nearly impossible. It just wasn't customizeable enough. No "undo" functionality either.
  • The only way to collect information expansively over time (there's a term Act-On uses for it, I can't recall) where it adds questions to the form each time a user fills it out, is if the person were to fill out the same form multiple times. I know this does happen for some websites/resources, but as a company that wanted to collect new information each time someone filled out any form, regardless of the resource or the URL, that was simply not an option, and that doesn't really make a lot of sense. I know it's not really possible to track someone but if they filled out the first part of the form and then it added new questions to answer, and then they submitted and got through the gating, that would actually be helpful.
  • There was no "trash can" of sorts in case you deleted something by mistake. This could be so stress-inducing if it was a major project. My coworker did this once, contacted Act-On, they couldn't even recover it.
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • The user interface is somewhat cumbersome and not intuitive at times.
  • Additional user education available through downloads for existing customers rather than scheduled webinars would be helpful.
  • Custom reporting is complicated to set up.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Act-On
It's my single biggest asset in my current role. With limited resources, its enabled Anachron to punch well above our weight marketing wise and although we're still at the beginning of our journey I know the system can scale with us
Read full review
SugarCRM
We've been very happy with SalesFusion since day 1. We've also created a new website during the time period that we've had SF and everything carried over great to our new website!
Read full review
Usability
Act-On
It's good, but not quite brilliant. Some parts of the interface are still a bit outdated. The product has been evolving very fast, though, and I believe in a few months it will be up there with the best of them, interface wise as well.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
Act-On
I have always found them quick to respond to my query by web inquiry. In those instances when I call, I have always reached help quickly. They are conscientious and skilled in discussing my concern and finding a solution to my problem. Other tech organizations should use Act-On as a model for top-notch customer service.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Performance
Act-On
Great for the most part. Sometimes there are little lags, but that's likely because I'm requesting to see a lot of data at one time.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Act-On
Since we start using Act-on for ourselves and our clients, we have been supported very well. Often we need to integrate with legacy systems and we find the support team on our side during the whole endeavor. Always asking if they can help us further, always willing to do a better job. The support of Act-On is one of the main differentiators
Read full review
SugarCRM
The support team has always been helpful, friendly, prompt and knowledgeable. They follow-up on all my tickets promptly and when needed are available for screen sharing to illustrate solutions for more complex problems. The support department at Salesfusion is one of my favorite things about the platform.
Read full review
In-Person Training
Act-On
Dan D. was great. He took the time to understand how I needed the program to run, and was very flexible to our special CRM setup.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Online Training
Act-On
Act-On had a lot of resources, and their staff was great at answering any questions I had to make sure we got started on the right foot. Looking back, I would have preferred some additional training sessions since we didn't have any previous experience with Marketing Automation and best practices.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Act-On
What impressed me most is that Act-On showed full committment in making our implementation successful, even when it required additional support from their team. This gave me a lot of warm and fuzzy feelings. Most other software software vendors are not anywhere close to being this responsive and effective
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Act-On
Act-On is easier to use than Marketo, but not as visually appealing and user-friendly as HubSpot. It's much better than Pardot, as Pardot feel clunky every step of the way. SharpSpring is comparable because of its price point but surpasses Act-On in its tools and intuitive interface. We selected Act-On because of the pricing model and thought all things would be close to parity with other options. It depends on the team you have. If you have developers and a marketing team that knows some html/css, you can get by with Act-On.
Read full review
SugarCRM
I was using Net-Results and it seemed more geared for an experienced marketer who was familiar with HTML and didn't need as much training. I found the system frustrating and didn't have much success when I called in for training. I was brand new to automation marketing and needed more hand-holding than Net-Results was able to provide
Read full review
Scalability
Act-On
Before I feel like I need more features, the Act-On customer service reps are contacting me telling about new features as part of my account.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Act-On
  • With the Automated Series, we were able to put in place campaigns that generated revenue that took no time to continue running once set up. This was a positive feature allowing employees to work on another project while the campaign ran on their own.
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • Increased employee efficiency
  • Better customer service
  • The ability to send email campaigns from a specific user and not "from" the organization title. We use this funcationality a lot and it was not available with other software so this is huge.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Act-On Screenshots

Screenshot of List Segmentation - Segmentation using behavioral, demographic and/or firmographic dataScreenshot of the Quickstart PageScreenshot of Landing Page Composer - landing pages are designed with a drag and drop function