Likelihood to Recommend Small businesses with even smaller marketing budgets and no email marketing experience would be better off selecting a lower-end email marketing provider. However, Adestra will provide a growing company with every email marketing tool along the way.
Read full review Intercom is well suited to tie in a product that is available via the web AND in-app. We currently have it assigned to both, but do not have web functionality for our users, so as a web platform, it's not used as well as it can be. However, I would recommend it to others as an effective all-in-one solution for customer communication.
Read full review Pros Adestra's "dynamic" list allows users to consolidate multiple lists in combination with data filters and exclusion lists. This implements segmentation and is a powerful marketing tool. Adestra's MessageFocus API integration provides developer-tools for list, campaign or transactional automated requirements. Campaigns can be sorted into project folders. This allows marketers to group campaigns together for management or reporting requirements. Moving or copying campaigns from one project to another is a simple process. Data downloads via Reporting is available at every level, from overview to individual KPI. Creating "core" tables helps marketers develop lists with similar attributes. Whether a list has many fields or simply the one required email address field, a "core" table helps to quickly map data labels from spreadsheet to online database. Creating data labels on the fly is a simple process, as well. The "core" table also groups similar contacts into one core database. Any list can be quickly "emptied" for to manage refreshed data. The contacts within the "emptied" list would still be members of the "core" table and so the process does not negatively impact reporting. Unsubscribes can be managed in one list (as a default) or individual lists. Creating individual unsubscribe lists -- dependent on business requirements -- would allow for a preference center, whereby recipients could be given a choice as to which campaigns they receive. The Form tool creates signup forms, simple surveys and landing pages. These can be hosted via Adestra or otherwise on the web. The tool provides for branding and proprietary cascading stylesheets, with a number of actions available through a drag-and-drop interface. Read full review Intercom's ability to centralize customer communication is a game-changer. Intercom's automation features have saved us time and streamlined workflows. Help desk for users. Intercom seamlessly integrates with a variety of other tools and platforms, enhancing its functionality and making it a central part of our tech stack. Read full review Cons As of this writing, there are at least 3 different editors available (a drag-and-drop, a WYSIWYG and HTML). However, only a small template library is available if requested through support. Those expecting to find ready-built templates for re-branding would find them through the third-party EDM Designer drag-and-drop editor. Read full review The AI tools should have a make shorter option The research is difficult compared to other platforms such as Zendesk where it is easier to find stuff (accounts, emails, messages...) I know that you could integrate better AI tools! The chatbot is amazing, so I'm just missing more AI tools to increase productivity Read full review Likelihood to Renew We have been and will be continuing our journey with Intercom and nothing too concerning has happened that I have experienced or heard of that has us on the edge yet. If it ever happens it will be something along the lines of "Outgrowing" the use of need of the platform.
Read full review Usability I have been self-trained on different ESPs for over 10 years, so my experience isn't comparable to most users. However, I've trained people on various email marketing platforms, and with some training, clients have a positive user-experience with Adestra.
Read full review Overall, I find that Intercom has almost every feature on our wishlist. Sometimes, I find the location of admin settings a little bit clunky, but part of that may be that I'm newer to the tool. On the chat visitor side, I find Intercom to be flawless (as I've used it frequently as a chat visitor with other orgs).
Read full review Reliability and Availability always there
Read full review Performance works perfect
Read full review Support Rating I have had campaign related issues solved very quickly. When there are technical issues, that involve more than one departmental, it may involve a longer turn-around and management.
Read full review Intercom is the premier customer support/engagement model and it definitely has one of the top tier customer support teams as well. I don't think I have ever waited more than 5 minutes to get the information I need or get help with an issue. They are incredible and I aim to model our customer service department after them.
Read full review Online Training Easy to know the learning path
Read full review Implementation Rating The implementation was surprisingly easy but we are having to adapt from our old process to work well with Intercom.
Read full review Alternatives Considered For medium and large sized businesses, Adestra competes well with
dotMailer . While many of the functions are available through either provider, creating campaigns, managing lists and reviewing metrics are somewhat different. As of this writing,
dotMailer 's drag-and-drop editor dominates that platform and performs well for low-end users with little-to-no HTML experience. Even high-end users will appreciate how quickly campaigns can be built via the drag-and-drop editor. While Adestra utilizes the EDM Designer drag-and-drop, the third-party functionality is not completely cohesive and lack of a template library gives
dotMailer a bit of an advantage.
Read full review We prefer to use Intercom for communications in general since we can keep all in one place. However, we were using other features in CZ instead of intercom e.g journeys instead of series for onboarding since the ones created in Intercom didn't have great engagement
Read full review Return on Investment For companies that focus on goals and analytics, Adestra provides all the necessary tools. Read full review I like how easy it is to spot the user data needed to assist our members. Love how easy it is to link articles on the chat that will help both us and the customers. I like that the sales force or the tickets is already connected on the chat Read full review ScreenShots