Constant Contact vs. IBM App Connect

Constant Contact is an excellent tool for sending out flyers and newsletters. However, I feel the content's appearance is typically all the same. When I receive an email from Constant Contact, I can immediately identify it - the templates usually all look the same. When sending out communications with images, it is easy to use Constant Contact and link webpages. However, the email layout is always vertical and can get very lengthy. I prefer a more flip-book approach with options to flip the page.

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IBM App Connect Enterprise is well-suited for high-volume enterprise systems that demand robust scalability and high reliability. It excels at hybrid connectivity by easily integrating various on-premises systems using its extensive catalog of connectors. It is also ideal for workflows that require a balance between efficient low-code and the incorporation of complex, custom Java logic. On the other hand, the platform is less appropriate in scenarios requiring high development autonomy, as installation and configuration at the server level is excessively complex, creating a strong dependency on other infrastructure teams. It is also not ideal if detailed traceability and monitoring of workflows must be seamlessly managed within the tool itself, as this is difficult to manage directly in ACE. IBM App Connect Enterprise está bien adaptado para sistemas empresariales de alto volumen que exigen una escalabilidad robusta y alta confiabilidad. Sobresale en la conectividad híbrida al integrar fácilmente diversos sistemas locales (on-premises) utilizando su amplio catálogo de conectores. Además, es ideal para flujos que requieren un equilibrio entre el low-code eficiente y la incorporación de lógica Java compleja y personalizada. Por otro lado, la plataforma es menos apropiada en escenarios donde se requiere una alta autonomía de desarrollo, debido a que la instalación y configuración a nivel de servidor es excesivamente compleja , lo cual crea una fuerte dependencia de otros equipos de infraestructura. Tampoco es ideal si la trazabilidad detallada y el monitoreo de los flujos deben gestionarse sin problemas dentro de la propia herramienta, ya que esto resulta difícil de manejar directamente en ACE. Parts of this review were originally written in Spanish and have been translated into English using a third-party translation tool. While we strive for accuracy, some nuances or meanings may not be perfectly captured.

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• Market segmentation is great: my main segmentation is by region because that's how our sales team is divided.
• Lists: making customized email lists is easy and intuitive; the custom fields allow some flexibility in case our fields don't exactly line up with Constant Contact's.
• Campaigns: creating campaigns is quick and simple. I especially appreciate the 'resend to non-openers' option. I am constantly using this feature.
• Subject line generator: I like using the recommended subject lines. I'm able to plug in their recommended ideas, or sometimes, this feature helps me generate my own ideas.

• Just the ability to display and consume data through a single dashboard makes this a great application for our business purposes.
• With the ability to consume their exposed API, data validation and manipulation becomes a breeze.

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• It would be nice if we had more customizable options for emails - like moving around pictures and text boxes, rather than a set spot for everything to go.
• I would like it if multiple people could work on a document at one time. So if I'm in charge of graphics, I can get those updated while someone else is entering content, etc.

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• modernization made easy, when a modernized project is created by importing a java code.
• more pre-built connectors
• watsonx code assistance for ESQL capability.

There is no doubt that we are going to renew Constant Contact. We have not just invested a lot of time in learning and creating a great looking product but we have developed a strong database of information that allows us to track how we are doing for each newsletter. This supports our goals of creating products that residents desire and are excited to receive.

It is the best on-premise application to cloud integration in the market. I guess IBM is planning to integrate IBM App Connect with the IBM API Connect solution.

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There is always room for improvement. I don't know how they test their systems, but they should invite not-so computer savvy people to test it. If I, as an expert have problems, they need to think like the technophobe. Since I've used Constant Contact in the past as part of my former employment, I have not viewed any of the tutorials and just jumped in to work on my client's newsletter. With that said, I found some areas easy and some a bit cumbersome

You can do some really powerful things with this system. The overall design is an attempt to make configurable some of the routine tasks/common functionality, but allow for development/customization of the core of the application.

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No major problems in sending out the email campaigns and accessing the analytics

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The system seemed quite slow sometimes. Specifically, there was sometimes a delay in sends if it was during a high traffic period. There were time-outs when uploading new code for an email, and a lag in reporting analytics which was sometimes as long as 72 hours

I think the overall support for Constant Contact has always been incredible; I have nothing negative to say. Our customer support representative was attentive, easy to understand, and very knowledgeable. I never felt like I wasn't a priority of his and my issues, while very small, were fixed in a very short time frame.

Usually, the IBM Ops team provides a resolution or a response for 80% of defects raised in my project. There is one which has been open on their end for more than 3 months. With literally no response even after multiple follow-ups.

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Implementation is very easy for someone who wants to send out the “batch and blast” type newsletters. If you want to use their templates with no customizations, the product works fine. However, the more customizations you get into involving link color, etc, that’s where things can get tricky for someone who may not be familiar with coding

Constant Contact is much more intuitive for people who are not tech-savvy. Also, while sendgrid offered more options in it's drag and drop interface, it displayed differently across different email clients, which made it very cumbersome to use. It also took much longer to upload contact lists and it was harder to manage existing contacts. Performance in sendgrid was much slower as well, and the Preview feature was quite buggy. Our team initially chose sendgrid because of the integration options that it's API offered, but we ultimately switched to Constant Contact because it was much easier to build campaigns and better suited our requirements.

IBM App Connect started as MQSeries Integrator (MQSI) more than 20 years ago. In the IT environment, this is like an eternity. And this allowed a lot of customer experience and needs to be embedded in the product. Without it becoming a legacy application. The changes done in the latest version are preparing it for a Cloud/containers world without losing the previously learned knowledge.

Very reliable in sending email campaigns and controlling the recipients so that no contact is sent the same email more than once, even if they are on a resent list

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• I have had nothing but positive impacts from using Constant Contact.
• The church is large, and there are many subgroups and axillary groups within the church. Setting up specific groups based on responsibility, interest, member goals, and service needs allows me to send information quickly, saving valuable time for other tasks.
• Constant Contact allows leadership to stay personally engaged with the members I work with, without over-taxing my time. It feels so seamless.

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• We never implemented Cast Iron in production. When compared to five competing products in the iPaaS space it didn't make it past the first few test scenarios we threw at it.

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