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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

    Smaato

    Score7 out of 10
    N/ASmaato is a supply-side publisher platform (SSP) from the Verve Group since the 2021 acquisition.N/A
    Pricing
    iContactSmaato
    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
    iContactSmaato
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    iContactSmaato
    Email & Online Marketing
    Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of iContact and Smaato
    Feature
    iContact
    6.6
    26 Ratings
    20% below category average
    Smaato
    -
    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 Smaato
    Feature
    iContact
    8.0
    26 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Smaato
    -
    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 Smaato
    Feature
    iContact
    7.0
    1 Ratings
    15% below category average
    Smaato
    -
    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
    Best Alternatives
    iContactSmaato
    Small Businesses
    Mad Mimi
    Score10 out of 10
    AdRoll
    Score3.7 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Campaign Monitor by Marigold
    Score9 out of 10
    Criteo Commerce Growth
    Score8 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Emma by Marigold
    Score8.5 out of 10
    Criteo Commerce Growth
    Score8 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    iContactSmaato
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (45 ratings)
    7.0
    (2 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    3.4
    (19 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Availability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.9
    (9 ratings)
    7.0
    (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
    iContactSmaato
    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
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    Verve Group
    Smaato is very well suited for user acquisition and retargeting companies. Their overlap in terms of audiences and publishers with other exchanges is very limited, which makes it a great alternative when you need to scale a campaign and want to maintain your frequency cap. They work very well in branding campaigns as well as performance campaigns.
    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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    Verve Group
    • Fill - the ad requests we send to Smaato have seen a great requests-to-impression ration.
    • Revenue - We've seen a lift in overall revenue thanks to the high CPM bids we get from Smaato.
    • Payments are always on time and they have a responsive financial team that is helpful in answering any questions.
    • Customer service - They are very fast to respond to any issues. The set up was streamlined thanks to their professional customer service.
    Incentivized
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    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
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    Verve Group
    • Inventory can be a bit pricey in competitive markets like the US.
    • Reporting dashboard is limited, needs work.
    • They don't offer a lof of transparency about margins over media cost.
    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
    Verve Group
    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
    Read full review
    Verve Group
    Smaato has a UI where you can control your line items on the traffic you want to receive. That is a key unique selling point that other SSPs don't offer. Most of the items that you will need like reporting can be done on a self serve manner and that is a big plus, specifically for changes that need to happen really fast and you don't need to deal with account managers that may take some time to answer emails.
    Incentivized
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    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
    Verve Group
    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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    Verve Group
    Smaato's account management team is very professional. They are quite fast in terms of customer support, which is very helpful. One item that stands out is that they are willing to understand what you need for each campaign and what is the best way to move forward. They don't just jump quickly into trying to upsell more of Smaato's products (audiences, data) like other SSPs do.
    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
    Verve Group
    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
    Verve Group
    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
    Verve Group
    With over 20 demand partners in our stack, Smaato is in the top 5
    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
    Verve Group
    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
    Verve Group
    • Increased overall revenue
    • Strong demand pool
    • Easy reporting
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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