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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    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

    InboundWriter

    Score8 out of 10
    N/AInboundWriter is a relatively focused content marketing tool containing predictive analytics, suggestions, and authoring guidelines for content optimization. InboundWriter has been backed by about $2.5 million in venture capital since its inception in 2011.N/A
    Pricing
    iContactInboundWriter
    Editions & Modules
    1500 Users
    $15.00
    per month
    2500 Users
    $25.00
    per month
    5000 Users
    $45.00
    per month
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    iContactInboundWriter
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    iContactInboundWriter
    Email & Online Marketing
    Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    6.6
    26 Ratings
    19% below category average
    InboundWriter
    -
    Ratings
    WYSIWYG email editor7.024 Ratings00 Ratings
    Dynamic content7.021 Ratings00 Ratings
    Ability to test dynamic content5.021 Ratings00 Ratings
    Landing pages7.014 Ratings00 Ratings
    A/B testing5.017 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile optimization7.021 Ratings00 Ratings
    Email deliverability reporting7.025 Ratings00 Ratings
    List management8.025 Ratings00 Ratings
    Triggered drip sequences6.015 Ratings00 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    8.0
    26 Ratings
    5% above category average
    InboundWriter
    -
    Ratings
    Dashboards8.026 Ratings00 Ratings
    Standard reports8.025 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom reports8.015 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pre-Send Testing
    Comparison of Pre-Send Testing features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    7.0
    1 Ratings
    15% below category average
    InboundWriter
    -
    Ratings
    URL Validation7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Link Tracking7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Image Validation7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Inbox Display7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Email Accessibility Tools7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Spelling and Grammar Check7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Spam Testing7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Email Previews7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Content Creation
    Comparison of Content Creation features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    -
    Ratings
    InboundWriter
    8.5
    1 Ratings
    8% above category average
    Ideation00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Approval workflows00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Content collaboration00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Content calendar00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Content Publishing
    Comparison of Content Publishing features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    -
    Ratings
    InboundWriter
    8.8
    1 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Content hub00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Forms / Gated content00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Embedded CTAs00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Content distribution00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Content promotion00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Content automation00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Content Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Content Reporting & Analytics features of iContact and InboundWriter
    Feature
    iContact
    -
    Ratings
    InboundWriter
    8.2
    1 Ratings
    11% above category average
    Audience profiling and targeting00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Closed-loop tracking and reporting00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Content performance analytics00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Campaign optimization dashboard00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Competitive analytics00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    iContactInboundWriter
    Small Businesses
    Mad Mimi
    Score10 out of 10
    Contently
    Score9.9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Campaign Monitor by Marigold
    Score9 out of 10
    CoSchedule Marketing Suite
    Score10 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Emma by Marigold
    Score8.5 out of 10
    PathFactory
    Score8.3 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    iContactInboundWriter
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (45 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    3.4
    (19 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Availability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.9
    (9 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Online Training
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    iContactInboundWriter
    Likelihood to Recommend
    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
    InboundWriter
    I think most users have found that InboundWriter is every bit worth what you pay for it. At a freemium model, it's affordable and helpful in analyzing your posts for SEO direction. It is particularly well suited for getting focused terms on specific topics, and less on more general terms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    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
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    InboundWriter
    • Very easy to use and follow direction.
    • The price is right for this freemium Wordpress plugin.
    • Helps discover what content and keywords are popular around your subject matter.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    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
    InboundWriter
    • Sometimes tough to decide what direction to follow without keyword stuffing your content.
    • Colleagues have complained about the Document Score being unreliable at times.
    • It's only as good as the information you put into it and lacks the ability to give you more high level though leadership terms/topics.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    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
    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    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
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    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Reliability and Availability
    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
    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    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
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    InboundWriter
    The InboundWriter support is certainly sufficient for the type of troubleshooting you may encounter when using the tool. There are chats and forums available with best practices or knowledge share. For bigger issues, even WordPress can serve as a support system for getting to the answer quickly. Luckily, you're more likely to find that it is a very intuitive tool that is easy to use.
    Incentivized
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    Online Training
    iContact
    The templates are difficult to customize, and they don't render well in email platforms
    Read full review
    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    iContact
    i wouldn't be using it if i wasn't satisfied. time is money
    Read full review
    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    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
    InboundWriter
    While Yoast is also very useful as a free WordPress plugin that helps up your SEO game, where it stops at just providing direction for your meta data, like titles and descriptions, InboundWriter takes your search engine reach a bit further and helps you create relevant content for your industry that targets the right keywords and topics.
    Incentivized
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    Scalability
    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
    InboundWriter
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    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
    InboundWriter
    • InboundWriter has helped us craft more SEO-driven content and balance our keyword usage.
    • InboundWriter has also helped us hone in on the specific topics we should be covering for our industry.
    • Overall, it has helped us achieve our goals of creating pillar content and driving more organic traffic.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots