TrustRadius: an HG Insights company

Save this comparison

Save this comparison

Add Product

Recommended Comparisons

    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Freshchat

    Score7.7 out of 10
    N/AA solution to engage customers with smarter conversations on any channel, designed so support, marketing, sales, and even bots to have conversations at scale with customers.

    $0

    per month free for up to 10 agents

    iContact

    Score6.8 out of 10
    N/AiContact is an email marketing solution that was acquired by Vocus in 2012. The product is integrated with Facebook and Twitter and is aimed at SMBs with unlimited sending as a key feature.

    $14

    per month

    Pricing
    FreshchatiContact
    Editions & Modules
    Growth
    $19
    per month (billed annually) per agent
    Pro
    $49
    per month (billed annually) per agent
    Enterprise
    $79
    per month (billed annually) per agent
    1500 Users
    $15.00
    per month
    2500 Users
    $25.00
    per month
    5000 Users
    $45.00
    per month
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    FreshchatiContact
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    FreshchatiContact
    Considered Both Products
    Freshworks Inc
    No answer on this topic
    iContact
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    95%
    Would buy again
    36 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    94%
    Delivers good value for the price
    33 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    95%
    Happy with the feature set
    36 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    96%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    24 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    35 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    FreshchatiContact
    Chat Analytics and Reports
    Comparison of Chat Analytics and Reports features of Freshchat and iContact
    Feature
    Freshchat
    7.4
    18 Ratings
    16% below category average
    iContact
    -
    Ratings
    Chat history and transcripts7.918 Ratings00 Ratings
    Chat reporting7.218 Ratings00 Ratings
    Chat and web analytics7.215 Ratings00 Ratings
    Email & Online Marketing
    Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of Freshchat and iContact
    Feature
    Freshchat
    -
    Ratings
    iContact
    6.6
    26 Ratings
    20% below category average
    WYSIWYG email editor00 Ratings7.024 Ratings
    Dynamic content00 Ratings7.021 Ratings
    Ability to test dynamic content00 Ratings5.021 Ratings
    Landing pages00 Ratings7.014 Ratings
    A/B testing00 Ratings5.017 Ratings
    Mobile optimization00 Ratings7.021 Ratings
    Email deliverability reporting00 Ratings7.025 Ratings
    List management00 Ratings8.025 Ratings
    Triggered drip sequences00 Ratings6.015 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Freshchat and iContact
    Feature
    Freshchat
    -
    Ratings
    iContact
    8.0
    26 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Dashboards00 Ratings8.026 Ratings
    Standard reports00 Ratings8.025 Ratings
    Custom reports00 Ratings8.015 Ratings
    Pre-Send Testing
    Comparison of Pre-Send Testing features of Freshchat and iContact
    Feature
    Freshchat
    -
    Ratings
    iContact
    7.0
    1 Ratings
    15% below category average
    URL Validation00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Link Tracking00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Image Validation00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Inbox Display00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Email Accessibility Tools00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Spelling and Grammar Check00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Spam Testing00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Email Previews00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    FreshchatiContact
    Small Businesses
    Olark
    Score10 out of 10
    Mad Mimi
    Score10 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Zoho SalesIQ
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Campaign Monitor by Marigold
    Score9 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Genesys DX (discontinued)
    Score10 out of 10
    Emma by Marigold
    Score8.5 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    FreshchatiContact
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (42 ratings)
    8.0
    (45 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.2
    (4 ratings)
    3.4
    (19 ratings)
    Usability
    8.2
    (18 ratings)
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    Availability
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    6.3
    (3 ratings)
    9.9
    (9 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    7.3
    (2 ratings)
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    Configurability
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    Professional Services
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    FreshchatiContact
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Freshworks Inc
    It is best suited for having 24-hour support, where customers can interact easily, even using their phones, to raise concerns or inquire about information. This makes it easier than going through the documents portal as a source of knowledge or sending emails for worries. However, it can be less appropriate for scenarios when you need more formal communication, like emails, and when proper documentation is necessary.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    I would only recommend it if someone was a small business. I think they are the best suited for companies who will send out a coupon or offer here and there. The most recent updates made it more complicated to use for more complicated processes. It is easy to train someone on the program, and so quick to learn. But I would also only stick to the simpler things. I also think the colorful templates are great, and show great creativity. But again, it is hard to justify recommending the program when it isn't WYSIWYG.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Freshworks Inc
    • Real time customer support. During busy times all our available agents can jump on and handle large volume of customer interactions.
    • Automations and canned response features. With automation we can greet our customers the moment a chat gets assigned to an agent letting customers know they are being attended to similarly canned response helps us use templates for generic and commonly asked questions.
    • Dashboards and analytics. Freshchat's ability to build customized dashboards and analyze performance in a granular level helps us monitor workload and manage performance effectively.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    • Contact management. iContact is really great for entering all your contact. You are able to put them onto different lists, and let them choose which lists they would like to be a part of as well. There are many data fields provided to fill in information.
    • Emailing. We use the email feature at least once a month. They are always improving and adding new features, which is very helpful in presenting content in a new and exciting way to our readers. There are many options with remade templates and themes, or you can add your own.
    • Insights. It is really helpful being able to have the data to see what is working and what isn't. It is nice to be able to go back and see how things went in the past compared to now. Opens, clicks, shares, etc.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Freshworks Inc
    • Freshchat is one of the best platforms, but still there are certain areas that require further improvement in order for the platform to become flawless.
    • I feel that the automated system in Freshchat is comparatively slow and due to this, it does not respond well according to all the requirements.
    • There are certain features in Freshchat which are not available for everyone and they can only be accessed by those who are paying the highest pricing tier.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    • We also would like to send transactional messages which don't require an opt-out, this is a challenge with iContact. (May be a feature with pro?)
    • The regular version of iContact doesn't support event management or logic flows for automated messaging.
    • Custom form fields have limited field type options (can't build a drop-down).
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Freshworks Inc
    Freshchat has met all our expectations and more. It has allowed our team to be more efficient with their time, field questions quickly, and escalate issues up the chain. We highly recommend freshchat as the perfect addition to anyone already using freshdesk or simply looking for a good solution for in app messaging.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    iContact has been a quick and easy way to send any announcements and news directly to email and social media subscribers. Its tracking and reporting capabilities turn a simple email into a marketing campaign that can be used as a tool to efficiently gauge reader response and customer satisfaction, and ultimately to reach potential customers. The consistency and excellent customer service is what makes this program a pleasant experience.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Freshworks Inc
    I give it an 8 due to its usability. Yes, I had a few issues to begin with and needed some assistance from Freshchat agents, but considering this is something that is completely new to me, to set up what feels like a professional chat handling system complete with autobot within a day is really saying something I feel.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    I rate iContact as an easy to use program due to its user friendly dashboard and user interface. Most companies of small to medium size do not have a dedicated marketer, therefore it is someone multitasking who may or may not have this kind of experience. iContact makes it relatively simple and can actually expand one's knowledge in the area of business promotion.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Freshworks Inc
    Freshchat has always been available when I needed to use it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    iContact is regularly up and running. Only once has it been unavailable for maintenance, which is to be expected and even desired for optimal performance when needed.
    Read full review
    Performance
    Freshworks Inc
    Freshchat always loads quickly and communication is quickly sent and received.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Freshworks Inc
    The experience we had in past for lets say 4-5 months with the support team and our TAM was really helpful. The changes in the bot flow has helped our bot to ensure we connect with customer easily.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    They have always been responsive to any issues or concerns that have arisen with our account. Our customer account manager participates in our monthly county-wide communicators meetings via telephone to ensure that we are getting the most from the service. He also analyzes our lists to help us weed out inactive contacts.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Freshworks Inc
    No answers on this topic
    iContact
    The templates are difficult to customize, and they don't render well in email platforms
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Freshworks Inc
    I hope to show new users data because this can save a lot of time
    Read full review
    iContact
    i wouldn't be using it if i wasn't satisfied. time is money
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Freshworks Inc
    Messaging across mediums - Freshchat integrates with majority of mainstream instant messaging apps. Like Facebook messenger, Telegram and WhatsApp . This makes it convenient for us to have a presence on the above-mentioned platforms and respond to messages from these platforms from a single Freshchat dashboard.its good app Freshdesk Messaging help me to contact the customer and contact the customer to inform my problem to solve it and is a good app and help full app and its easy to use uncomplicated and Freshdesk Helps me provide good quality to the customer and make customer feedback good for a company
    Read full review
    iContact
    I didn't have a say in the decision because I wasn't with the company at the time. I listed HubSpot here because I know we used it in conjunction with iContact for email automation, but HubSpot Email was only recently built-out to the point where it is today. Now, iContact and HubSpot are no longer integrated.
    Read full review
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    Freshworks Inc
    Did not help with the purchase
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    No answers on this topic
    Scalability
    Freshworks Inc
    We only implemented the product in 1 way so I cant speak to this.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    iContact stays the same with the number of users added or taken away. It certainly remains reliable despite increased usage, and so, can be considered scaleable in that aspect.
    Read full review
    Professional Services
    Freshworks Inc
    Did not use
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    iContact
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Freshworks Inc
    • From the positive effect of working on it, it helps employees to speed up their thinking and writing.
    • One of the positive effects of our clients is that their problems are solved easily and quickly.
    • Each employee knows how many of his chats have been resolved.
    • There is no negative effect in general.
    Read full review
    iContact
    • We have a template for webinars that we send every month. We just edit it and send. This couldn't be easier (once you know where to find it).
    • We like the breakdown of statistics in the dashboard. They're easy to read.
    • iContact isn't a comprehensive solution, so it is only one of a few products we use for marketing.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Freshchat Screenshots

    Screenshot of Channel Freedom: The interface to engage customers on the channel of their choiceScreenshot of Unified Agent Workspace: Equips agents to deliver personalization at scaleScreenshot of Admin and Analytics: These drive informed decisions to help business scale