Mailchimp vs. VerticalResponse

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Mailchimp
Score 7.9 out of 10
N/A
Mailchimp is the email marketing and marketing automation platform. Most email marketing platforms tell you how your campaigns perform, but Mailchimp goes a step beyond and tells you why by analyzing the data from half a billion emails sent through the platform every day to offer personalized recommendations for improving content, targeting, automations, and driving revenue using emails
$0
per month
VerticalResponse
Score 10.0 out of 10
N/A
VerticalResponse is an email campaign management software and services platform from Deluxe. In addition to providing email marketing tools, VerticalResponse offers fully managed email marketing services from campaign launch and management to reporting and analysis.
$9
per month
Pricing
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Basic
$11.00
per month
Pro
$16.00
per month
Pro Plus
$196.00
per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Considered Both Products
Mailchimp
Chose Mailchimp
Mailchimp has a much better looking email design compared to HubSpot and Vertical Response. It seems to automatically optimize email sections for different devices and viewing/testing emails before they go out seems to be a much cleaner process for sending tests to team members …
Chose Mailchimp
The primary decision to choose Mailchimp is generally driven by the easy integration with WordPress and WordPress plugins. Secondary is cost effectiveness vs. other similar tools. The overall simplicity of the Mailchimp system offers an inviting environment for beginners to …
Chose Mailchimp
Mailchimp can compete with and often beat other similarly priced email marketing platforms. It's great for the average user and easy to learn.
Chose Mailchimp
Mailchimp is cost-competitive and the easiest to use tool among these alternatives. It has the simplest interface for design, is simplest to use for setting up automated regularly scheduled messages such as weekly blog roundups that are automatically created and sent out, and …
Chose Mailchimp
MailChimp is nice because it has everything in one place - different lists, campaigns, stats. We selected this software based on recommendation from our web coders. Vertical Response is a good program too, but I prefer the user interface of MailChimp more. MailChimp is also …
Chose Mailchimp
Hands down MailChimp over Vertical Response. The end result is more responsive, more modern-looking, and easier to read. The creation process is faster and involves less coding. The templates are more up-to-date. The analytics are much easier to interact with. The list …
Chose Mailchimp
For price-sensitive nonprofits with relatively simple needs, MailChimp is a reasonable choice. I tell people to simply decide which editor they like best and use that tool. Most people who use an email marketing tool spend most of their time in the editor, and so that's the big …
VerticalResponse
Chose VerticalResponse
Pardot is a good tool but with the cost you will get a better value from Vertical Response and easier design capabilities. MailChimp is a widely used tool but I found the list segmentation and general template at Vertical Response to be better.
Chose VerticalResponse
In addition to using Vertical Response personally I also manage email marketing for clients that already use Mailchimp, Robly and Constant Contact. While most of these platforms all offer similar features I choose Vertical Response first if the client does not have a platform …
Chose VerticalResponse
Vertical Response was already in use when I joined the organization. It was selected for affordability. In comparison to other email marketing platforms, it was harder to use for an end user, but we were able to hire a developer to create some custom templates, and that worked …
Chose VerticalResponse
VR, MailChimp and Constant Contact all provide similar experience and provide the same function. I use many different tools.
Chose VerticalResponse
ExactTarget, MailChimp. I liked VerticalResponse's integration with Salesforce. We used MailChimp before and it says on their website they have integration with Salesforce, but we were never able to find it on the Force.com website.

For ExactTarget, we used that in the past and …
Chose VerticalResponse
Constant Contact, MailChimp. Vertical Response covered our basic needs - contacts management, newsletter and marketing email activity analysis, templates/wizards, etc. and was free for non-profits up to 10,000 contacts/month.
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Email & Online Marketing
Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
8.0
475 Ratings
3% above category average
VerticalResponse
9.9
8 Ratings
20% above category average
WYSIWYG email editor8.1440 Ratings10.07 Ratings
Dynamic content7.8423 Ratings10.05 Ratings
Ability to test dynamic content7.9404 Ratings10.04 Ratings
Landing pages7.5327 Ratings10.04 Ratings
A/B testing8.0358 Ratings10.05 Ratings
Mobile optimization8.1434 Ratings10.05 Ratings
Email deliverability reporting8.5462 Ratings10.08 Ratings
List management8.1462 Ratings10.08 Ratings
Triggered drip sequences7.7319 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Lead Management
Comparison of Lead Management features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
9.1
2 Ratings
16% above category average
VerticalResponse
-
Ratings
Lead nurturing automation6.22 Ratings00 Ratings
Lead scoring and grading10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Data quality management10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Automated sales alerts and tasks10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Campaign Management
Comparison of Campaign Management features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
8.1
50 Ratings
6% above category average
VerticalResponse
-
Ratings
Calendaring8.445 Ratings00 Ratings
Event/webinar marketing7.836 Ratings00 Ratings
Social Media Marketing
Comparison of Social Media Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
8.2
44 Ratings
9% above category average
VerticalResponse
-
Ratings
Social sharing and campaigns8.342 Ratings00 Ratings
Social profile integration8.135 Ratings00 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
7.6
460 Ratings
1% above category average
VerticalResponse
10.0
9 Ratings
26% above category average
Dashboards7.7123 Ratings10.09 Ratings
Standard reports8.0458 Ratings10.09 Ratings
Custom reports7.250 Ratings10.06 Ratings
Platform & Infrastructure
Comparison of Platform & Infrastructure features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
7.4
44 Ratings
2% below category average
VerticalResponse
-
Ratings
API7.833 Ratings00 Ratings
Role-based workflow & approvals6.57 Ratings00 Ratings
Customizability5.62 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration with Salesforce.com8.421 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM7.618 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration with SugarCRM8.12 Ratings00 Ratings
Third-party software integrations7.639 Ratings00 Ratings
Pre-Send Testing
Comparison of Pre-Send Testing features of Product A and Product B
Mailchimp
-
Ratings
VerticalResponse
10.0
1 Ratings
16% above category average
URL Validation00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Link Tracking00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Image Validation00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Inbox Display00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Email Accessibility Tools00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Spelling and Grammar Check00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Spam Testing00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Email Previews00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Best Alternatives
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Small Businesses
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Score 9.5 out of 10
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Score 10.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
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Score 8.6 out of 10
Enterprises
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Score 9.3 out of 10
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User Ratings
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Likelihood to Recommend
8.0
(499 ratings)
10.0
(28 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.5
(51 ratings)
8.6
(19 ratings)
Usability
8.4
(373 ratings)
9.0
(5 ratings)
Availability
9.5
(6 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(7 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
7.9
(15 ratings)
8.0
(4 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
7.5
(22 ratings)
10.0
(4 ratings)
Configurability
10.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
8.0
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.5
(6 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
10.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
10.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
MailchimpVerticalResponse
Likelihood to Recommend
Mailchimp
With Mailchimp we are able to revive and enhance our personal connect with the customers. The easy-to-use tools allows us to personalize the email content, segregate and target important leads & send relevant messages. Also, it offers interactive analysis on the performance of a particular campaign. We can judge the effectiveness of our mailers in real time.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
For businesses requiring advanced email marketing features like sophisticated automation, in-depth analytics, and extensive customization, VerticalResponse might fall short due to its limited featuresVerticalResponse is ideal for small businesses or freelancers who need a simple, straightforward email marketing tool. Its ease of use and basic features make it suitable for those without extensive technical expertise in email marketing
Read full review
Pros
Mailchimp
  • Mailchimp allows you to manage your mailing list really well. You can subscribe people, unsubscribe people manage the mailing list directly into segments, and what not.
  • Mailchimp has features where you can create campaigns based on your mailing lists and send out newsletters to your subscribers based on a multitude of parameters that you can setup. Such as send email daily, weekly, monthly and they also have event based mails that you can send out.
  • Mailchimp also has a feature where you can design your emails. The look and aesthetics are very important when sending emails to your subscribers and all those needs are addressed here.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
  • I love the ease of list builder because we often times have a lot of data to import. It would be simply impossible without this tool, considering the amount of customer data we have for any one given email.
  • We really enjoy the ease of use of the HTML wizard as well. It helps even a novice be able to make a beautiful and attention grabbing email.
  • The dashboard is functional and easy to find when you need with a quick search.
Read full review
Cons
Mailchimp
  • The interface remains a cluttered, non-intuitive mess. That's true from the haphazard way features are organized to the actual email layout.
  • Analytics have never been a priority, and I don't see that changing with Intuit's new ownership. I'm very frustrated over the limited choices for reporting, even when using third-party solutions. If I needed that function, I would not use MailChimp.
  • I would love to develop a workflow screen that lets me focus on the things that I use all the time. Customizing the interface where the content actually goes into the software would help.
  • I never understood why we couldn't import a document into a MC template. At best, we're spending time copying-and-pasting from one app into MC.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
  • The type face is small. Not sure if this is to avoid overwhelming the reader, but I could see this being an issue with vision-impaired people or people who don't see small print well.
  • Sometimes I find it takes multiple clicks to make one simple change. I wish there was a search field at the top of the screen that allowed me to jump directly to a client's entry to update it there.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Mailchimp
We've had Mailchimp for about ten years, I want to say. I started with the company about four years ago, and I don't see us ever diverting to another source. It's easy for us to use, and we have all our clients already built into the database. I imagine we'll use them for as long as we have the company.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
Product is easy for both technical and non-technical people to use. A cost effective solution for sending out large number of messages. We can manage unsubscribes by individual accounts, so we can have multiple multiple accounts combined to maximize our buying power on credits. Effective API for sending/receiving data makes tool a valuable asset.
Read full review
Usability
Mailchimp
Our team use Mailchimp almost every week. Overall UI is simple for anyone to get started with it. The resource library around using particular features is also there, so we don't have to train our team on this product. We also used a lot of other features as well.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
I truly love this product. We are moving to an all-in-one system next year and my greatest fear in doing so is how much I will miss this platform. Although we are excited for things ahead, I will always keep Vertical Response in my back pocket incase I don't love the new platform as much
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Mailchimp
I have, in the 4+ years that I've used Mailchimp, never seen an issue that restricted the use of their software/tools. I don't know of a single time when they're system crashed or went down. I could be wrong, but I honestly haven't experienced any issues with outages, errors or unplanned downtime
Read full review
VerticalResponse
Never had an issue with uptime
Read full review
Performance
Mailchimp
I haven't noticed any slow speeds from Mailchimp or their tools. I think the landing pages load quickly and look nice. The email reports and editing operates smoothly and doesn't take time to load. Additionally, when I use Mailchimp in conjunction with Zapier + Hubspot I don't notice any drag between any of these tools
Read full review
VerticalResponse
No issues
Read full review
Support Rating
Mailchimp
Website tools were easy to use and understand so a novice can easily meet or exceed their client's expectations! Loved that we were able to totally customize so that the e-mail we created conveyed our client's overall messaging consistent with their branding! Client love that we can provide turnkey services to support their sales and marketing teams!
Read full review
VerticalResponse
At Vertical Response the help desk associates are courteous, knowledgeable and helpful. You can tell they enjoy what they do. And clearly, they are well trained because most times, the first point of contact is able to resolve any issue you may have. There have been very few times where an associate has needed to get back to me or escalate me to a supervisor
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Online Training
Mailchimp
No answers on this topic
VerticalResponse
Basic functions and online help...we used what was needed, at the time, and will continue to explore other online trainings as our functional needs expand
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Implementation Rating
Mailchimp
It's pretty easy to get up and running! There's a slight learning curve on a few things, but once you find where everything is located, you can import your list and send your first email. It really makes our clients feel great to see how quickly they can get that first email out.
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VerticalResponse
Salesforce integration never worked right. We had to abandon.
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Alternatives Considered
Mailchimp
Mailchimp is a means to an end and a way to stay within GDPR laws. We may not use it if this wasn't a requirement. Other platforms are better for design or management of contacts, but Mailchimp offers that secure storage of data that is required. I have not tried other bulk mail applications, so am unable to compare these.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
In addition to using Vertical Response personally I also manage email marketing for clients that already use Mailchimp, Robly and Constant Contact. While most of these platforms all offer similar features I choose Vertical Response first if the client does not have a platform in place. Typically I am also teaching the client how to use this tool and the Vertical Response visual interface is very easy for me to teach a client how to navigate and create their own campaigns.
Read full review
Scalability
Mailchimp
Mailchimp over the years I've used it has grown in leaps and bounds. They have added so many additional features than were previously available. They are truly an all-in-one marketing platform now. If you're a small operation and just want to add email to your marketing efforts, they're there for you. If you're a larger operation and want to start sending postcard advertisements, they can do that. If you'd good with that and want to kick up your marketing by going social, you can do that on their platform. They are truly able to be as small as you need, but also get quite large in whatever it is you'd like to do through their system.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Mailchimp
  • Mailchimp has allowed us to communicate effectively with thousands of customers with ease.
  • Mailchimp's use during our second year of business helped us expand our list of brands considerably (almost 30% YTD) because of regular interactions that we've launched.
  • Mailchimp ramp-up time is minimal for new users so I can turn things over to junior staff - saving me time and money.
Read full review
VerticalResponse
  • We were able to blast out promotions our company was having to customers which created an increase in business.
  • By blasting out any service issues, it keeps our customers informed so that they are not wondering what is going on.
  • Allows us to store unsubscribed emails so that we are not constantly pestering people who do not want to be emailed.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Mailchimp Screenshots

Screenshot of Mailchimp's advanced analytics and reporting tools. These are used to monitor trends, track performance, and get actionable insights that help users to create better campaigns and drive customer engagement.Screenshot of Mailchimp's precise audience segmentation. Its AI simplifies the workflow by generating complex customer segments for highly personalized campaigns.Screenshot of omnichannel marketing. Campaigns can be built across multiple channels, and then managed from one convenient place.Screenshot of marketing automations with the Customer Journey Builder. This is used to reach the right people with the right message at exactly the right time, which helps to drive more repeat business, increase customer retention, and see more orders.Screenshot of Mailchimp's SMS marketing. SMS can be integrated into email, automations, and social campaigns.Screenshot of Mailchimp's AI, used to deliver relevant content faster. It can generate professionally written, on-brand marketing emails with the press of a button. The user only needs to review, edit, and send.