Great Product - not such a great company any more
Updated July 03, 2023

Great Product - not such a great company any more

Mike Clayton | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

Small Business

Overall Satisfaction with ActiveCampaign

I use ActiveCampaign for two main purposes: to automate communication with prospects and customers who engage with my business. This allows me to deliver free and paid content and to inform them of offers and promotions. to send regular informational content to my community, to stay in touch. It is also a way to understand the level and type of engagement of customers who contact me directly.

Pros

  • Email Automation
  • Contact tracking
  • Tagging and segmenting contacts
  • Integration (via Zapier for me)

Cons

  • They need to listen to customer requests
  • Old email editor buggy - new one lacks at leas one key feature
  • Since the start of 2023: ethics - doubling the cost for legacy users
  • I built my business on a small number of SaaS platforms: AC is one of them
  • It connects me to customers and generates a chunk of my income
  • Their price doubling out of nowhere took a big chunk of cash out of my business with 1 month warning
ActiveCampaign is streaks ahead of Mailchimp on capabilities. But its user experience lags. I chose AS because of its sophisticated automation capabilities. I don't think I can think of anything I could want to do with email automation, that AC would not be able to handle. But, editing emails in AC is not a lot of fun. The old editor has very buggy undo that has meant I have lost work several times over the last 7 years. The new editor seems solid, but cannot save a color palette - which is a part of my workflow.

Do you think ActiveCampaign delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with ActiveCampaign's feature set?

Yes

Did ActiveCampaign live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of ActiveCampaign go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy ActiveCampaign again?

Yes

I recommend ActiveCampaign based on its capabilities. But, their business ethics took a big tumble in 2023. They have never been good at listening to customers with some simple user requests (like emailing out invoices) being unanswered for several years. But suddenly dropping a 2x price hike on long-term customers in early 2023 was a nasty move. I would say they are still the best service in terms of functionality and their price remains competitive. But I can no longer say I am happy that I am doing business with AC. It feels like they have taken advantage of their customer base who have been loyal for many years, in a grab for cash. So, if you want the best product for the money, go for ActiveCampaign. Their product is excellent and still, I suspect, the best for a business like mine. But do be prepared for minor niggles and concerns that won't get resolved. And, as 2023 has shown, live with the concern that there may be a sudden huge price-hike once you are deeply committed. Sorry AC. I want to love you, but you have hurt me badly. And your customer service people either didn't care or were briefed to pretend they don't see the issue. I can no longer recommend you.

ActiveCampaign Feature Ratings

7.6
WYSIWYG email editor
7
Dynamic content
8
Ability to test dynamic content
6
Landing pages
Not Rated
A/B testing
8
Mobile optimization
7
Email deliverability reporting
7
List management
9
Triggered drip sequences
9
Not Rated
Lead nurturing automation
Not Rated
Lead scoring and grading
Not Rated
Data quality management
Not Rated
Automated sales alerts and tasks
Not Rated
Not Rated
Calendaring
Not Rated
Event/webinar marketing
Not Rated
Not Rated
Social sharing and campaigns
Not Rated
Social profile integration
Not Rated
6.0
Dashboards
6
Standard reports
6
Custom reports
Not Rated
7.5
API
Not Rated
Role-based workflow & approvals
Not Rated
Customizability
7
Integration with Salesforce.com
Not Rated
Integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM
Not Rated
Integration with SugarCRM
Not Rated
Third-party software integrations
8

Using ActiveCampaign

1 - All - I am a sole practitioner
1 - I do everything I need, working from common sense and help files when I need them.
  • Automating contact after first touch from prospects
  • Automating delivery of marketing content
  • Weekly infomational emails
  • None
  • Don't know
I am committed at the moment.
Rebuilding the automations I have would be a huge time drain.
Plus the cost of learning a new system and the risk to deliverability of porting a 6,000 person list to a new platform.
Also, AC offers everything I need ast a reasonable (but a little high) price.
So, why not a 10?
Because, early 2023, AC dropped a massive 2x price hike on long-term customers.
They knew few would shift, so this feels like a cynical cash grab and left a bad taste,
If they do something like this again, this camel will have a broken back.

Evaluating ActiveCampaign and Competitors

  • Price
  • Product Features
  • Product Reputation
Recommended to me (and proved by research) as the most capable email automation platform in its price range - by far.
Prices have subsequently risen, however.
I'd keep the process and, as far as I know, it's likely AC would still come out on top.
But, would I add what I know now about the way they treated legacy customers in early 2023?
Frankly, I don't know.

ActiveCampaign Implementation

Be prepared to learn - don't think of this as a simple email program.
  • Implemented in-house
Change management was minimal - I started AC as a core plank of a start-up
  • Lot to learn (not an issue - a fact)
  • Buggy editor (inconvenience -not show-stopper)
  • Some date-based logic functions in automations take a lot of thinking - could be simplified, I think

ActiveCampaign Support

ProsCons
Knowledgeable team
Kept well informed
Problems left unsolved
Need to explain problems multiple times
Support doesn't seem to care
Not premium support
Yes - No - there was denial of the issue This related to the old editor's failure to undo and - more concerning - failure to store versions as it is designed to do.
No, I cannot think of any such occasion.
They respond within a day (but, like many US companies, do not keep global hours despite a global client base) Their responses seem formulaic rather than truly helpful. And, on sensitive issues, show little compassion.

Using ActiveCampaign

ProsCons
Like to use
Relatively simple
Technical support not required
Well integrated
Consistent
Convenient
Feel confident using
Slow to learn
Lots to learn
  • None - but this is NOT a criticism
  • Saving a brand color palette in the new editor (can't find a way and nor can support - so a feature gap, really)
This questions set is poor. ActiveCampaign is not easy to use. And NEITHER SHOULD IT BE. It is a sophisticated set of software tools with huge capability. I expected a long learning curve and that is what I experienced. Ease of use is not the right criteria if you need some of the tools that AC provides. Expect to spend time understanding what it can do and how it can do those things. Then, you will have a system that, if you can think through your business logic clearly, will be a huge asset. Could the UI be more pleasant and engaging? Yes. Could AC design a few ways to ease use a little? I expect so. But will a tool this capable ever be easy to use for a beginner? No - or at least not until beginners can describe complex processes accurately and precisely in plain language AND until AI can interpret that anguage 100% accurately. And I expect AI to be capable before beginners are in this regard! Can I use AC for everything I need? Yes (saving the odd minor feature that I wish they would add).

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