We’re drowning in a sea of email marketing and marketing automation tools, all of which do the same thing.
GetResponse is one of the names that comes up when discussing email marketing software.
It’s one of those tools that has been around for a long time but still delivers year after year.
In this GetResponse review, we’ll try to break down the tool into its features and discuss its main strengths and weaknesses.
Finally, you should be able to determine whether GetResponse is powerful enough for your business
What is GetResponse?
GetResponse has been around for quite some time. It all started in 1997 when SEO Simon Grabowski launched the first autoresponder.
This triggered a chain reaction, beginning with the registration of www.getresponse.com a year later.
Since then, GetResponse has been expanding its features and expanding its team globally. The tool has also received praise from publications such as Website Magazine, which named GetResponse the second-best email marketing provider in 2011.
But now, with much stiffer competition chock full of bells and whistles to the delight of users, how has GetResponse managed to stay on top of its game?
One of GetResponse’s best qualities is its constant growth and ability to change with the times. It hasn’t rested on its laurels, and it continues to provide users with the best email marketing features to help them grow their businesses.
GetResponse features
Instead of gushing about how great GetResponse is, it’s best to get deep into the weeds and see the tool in action.
The following are its main features and how they work together to help your business.
Email marketing
Its flagship service is still one of the best in the industry.
Using GetResponse, you can easily create beautiful emails that your subscribers will want to open.
Email creator
It all starts with selecting one of its pre-designed templates.
Instead of starting from scratch, simply choose a template for your email campaign. You can first preview the template to see if it matches the look and feel you want for your email.
To make it easier for you to find the right template, show only templates from the category that best fits your needs.
From here, select the blocks and sections you want to modify.
Its WYSIWYG editor allows you to make changes to the page as your subscribers will see it once you’re finished editing it.
You can also change the look of each block or section by adjusting its settings. Even if you don’t have any design skills, changing the color or resizing the font size is simple with a few clicks.
You can also add blocks and sections to the template by dragging and dropping them.
There’s also an Ecommerce section in the email editor where you can add the Product box and Recommended products blocks. However, you can only use these if you set up your store on GetResponse.
If you want to use the same email design for other campaigns, you can save the current one as a template. You can then access your custom design in the Design and Content section (just click on the My templates tab) for future use.
After you’ve completed the design and determined who will receive the email, you must schedule when it will be sent to them.
You can send it immediately or schedule a time for your recipients to see it.
Even better, enable Perfect Timing to ensure that subscribers receive the email at the optimal time based on when they opened previous emails from you.
Autoresponders
Assume you want to create an email or a series of emails that will be automatically sent to a group of subscribers. GetResponse’s Autoresponders feature makes it easier to send emails one at a time because it is impossible to send them one at a time.
Create your first autoresponder by determining when an email will be sent to a list subscriber.
For example, you can use autoresponders to welcome new subscribers by sending them a welcome email and links to pages on your website that they should visit to become acquainted with your company.
Once you’ve determined the autoresponder’s schedule, you can design and publish the email in the same manner as shown above.
While sending autoresponders is a great way to onboard new subscribers, this feature improves significantly when combined with the marketing automation feature, which we will discuss shortly.
To give you an example, you can automate your sales and engagement by using multiple autoresponders to create a drip-feed campaign!
Email analytics
To ensure the success of your email campaign, you must know how your subscribers received it.
Even if you believe you’ve created the best email campaign available, there’s a chance that not all of your subscribers feel the same way.
If anything, you need to understand how your campaign fared with your subscribers to understand what you did right and/or wrong and help you improve your next campaign.
To do so, examine the campaign’s analytics to determine the various metrics that influence its overall performance.
The dashboard displays an overview of how your list responded to one of your email campaigns.
It displays how many of the emails you sent were delivered to your subscribers, as well as the campaign’s open and click-through rates.
When you dig deeper, you can see more information about the campaign, such as the bounce and unsubscribe rates, as well as the number of complaints received.
Factoring all of these, you get a better idea of what made your campaign a hit or miss and what you can do to achieve better results.
If you want to analyze the growth of your list, the reports section will show you this in graph format on top of other variables (demographic, subscription methods, devices).
List management
When building a list, you want people who are engaged and active with your brand to join. However, you can only do so if you can send them emails encouraging them to participate and stay active.
GetResponse’s List Management feature assists you in accomplishing this by first segmenting and adding conditions to your subscribers.
For example, you can segment groups of people who signed up using a different form with a specific message on your website (more on this later).
Once you’ve created a segment for them, you can create a personalized campaign for them to receive from you.
This way, you can make your interactions with each of your segments more dynamic and personal, which will help increase engagement, if not conversions.
Adding conditions to each subscriber list is another way to help you manage it.
You can get granular with your subscribers by segmenting them based on conditions such as geolocations, contact actions, and others.
This way, you can group subscribers who meet certain criteria and create personalized email campaigns for each.
You can also profile each of your subscribers through List Management. Click on any of them to learn more about them.
You can see their most recent activity based on the emails you sent to each, add notes about each, and other details that could help you convert them into customers.
In some ways, GetResponse functions as a CRM. Using the information found here should assist you in profiling subscribers and providing context for each of them.
Transactional emails
You need more from your email marketing software than just collecting subscribers and sending emails if you run an e-commerce site.
You’ll need a tool that will send emails to people who forgot to check out their carts and receipts to customers for each transaction.
GetResponse’s Transactional Email feature allows you to connect to its API or SMTP and send transactional emails to customers.
By automating this system, you can focus on the big picture – the tool’s 99 percent email deliverability rate and dependable infrastructure ensure that you’re not letting yourself off the hook so easily.
You can analyze and review the performance of these emails to increase your sales opportunities.
Sign-up forms
Of course, you can’t launch an email campaign if you don’t have any subscribers to send it to.
Thankfully, GetResponse has you covered.
First, its sign-up form allows you to collect contact information for your list.
Making a form is simple. Choose from four ways to create forms and from a variety of templates organized into categories so you don’t have to start from scratch.
Similar to building an email, you can edit the existing fields and layout as well as add new ones if the need arises.
There are also options for creating the form from plain HTML (if you are comfortable with coding) or by utilizing integrations or plugins from popular platforms (WordPress, Drupal, Prestashop, etc.).
Landing pages
Instead of forms, you can use landing pages to convert visitors into subscribers or even customers.
You can make one by selecting one of the available templates, which are organized by type (promotion, download, sale, etc.).
Again, thanks to its simple drag-and-drop builder, creating a landing page is a breeze.
To run A/B testing on landing pages, click the + sign in the top bar of the page to create as many variants as you need.
This is crucial in determining which variant produces the highest conversions.
When you’re finished with your landing page, you’ll need to decide which domain you want to publish it on. GetResponse owns three pre-configured domains.
However, if you have a website, it is best to publish the landing page under your domain for branding purposes.
Webinars
If your resource guides aren’t increasing your company’s sales, you need to take things to the next level with webinars.
Hosting online presentations where your audience can join to learn more about a topic is also a great way to introduce them to your products and services.
The fact that they registered for your webinar indicates that they are interested in what you have to say and offer. As a result, expect to close more customers and clients with just one webinar session.
GetResponse is by far the only email marketing platform with built-in webinar capabilities. What’s more, it integrates well with its other features, making it far easier to set up webinars than using a third-party tool.
To create a webinar, you must first configure its details, such as the webinar page URL, date, duration, and so on.
You can also set up the webinar to collect registrants ahead of time and assign which email list they will be added to.
After you’ve saved the settings and moved on to the next step, you can create forms and landing pages that will allow your audience to pre-register for the webinar.
You can then set up autoresponders to remind them about the webinar and keep them up to date on any changes.
Using your existing list, you can promote your webinar in a newsletter so that they can sign up and be informed about it as well.
This is where the fun begins after the webinar has begun.
GetResponse provides more than enough tools to launch a capable webinar where you can take questions and engage with attendees in real time.
For those unable to attend the webinar, you can record it and send them the link so they can watch it whenever possible.
Marketing automation
If you want to generate more sales and revenue on autopilot, you should use GetResponse’s marketing automation features.
As previously stated, you can set up multiple autoresponders to create a drip-feed campaign. This allows you to put the software to use by automatically sending emails to a segment of your list.
To accomplish this, you must develop a workflow that is geared toward your goal.
While you have a choice to create the workflow by yourself, you can also choose from pre-made workflow templates with built-in elements.
The workflow builder visually displays the emails that your subscribers will receive.
You can customize and personalize the workflow by adding elements to the right side of the screen from the template.
The conditional logic component is what makes marketing automation tools so powerful.
The goal of any email campaign is to get people to the end of the campaign by letting the workflow do the work for you.
Thus, by incorporating conditional logic into the equation, you can generate personalized automated emails based on their actions.
For example, if recipients received the email but did not open it, they will receive a different email than those who did.
Once you’ve completed the workflow, click on each element to add the message you want subscribers to receive.
Click the Create new message button to open the drag-and-drop builder and compose your message.
Conversion funnel
The features listed above are just a sampling of what GetResponse can do for your company.
However, if you want to put everything together, its Conversion Funnel allows you to put the pieces together and create a high-converting funnel that is guaranteed to convert visitors into customers.
First, you must decide what your funnel’s goal is.
If you want to build a list, GetResponse has a selection of lead magnets you can use for your funnel. But if you have a magnet of your own, even better.
The following page, explains what else you need to do to finish the funnel.
Conversion Funnel removes the guesswork from creating high-converting campaigns comprised of signup forms, landing pages, and emails.
All you have to do is fill in the blanks and watch the conversions pour in!
Website builder
That’s right, GetResponse can now help you build entire websites.
You won’t get the same level of flexibility as you would with dedicated website builders, but for a bonus? Amazing.
If you need to build a simple website quickly, this is a great option. The AI builder automates the web design process by allowing you to select from a variety of templates based on your type of business.
Once your basic website is complete, you can further customize it using a drag-and-drop builder.
Ecommerce store
Do you want to sell digital or physical products? Yes, you can.
GetResponse provides this functionality as well, and it works in tandem with their Conversion Funnel tool.
This means you can create fully functional sales funnels without tying together a slew of different marketing tools.
What about integrations with payment providers? GetResponse integrates with Square, Stripe, PayPal, and other services.
GET RESPONSE PRICING
GetResponse provides a lifetime free account with up to 500 contacts and access to email marketing, a website builder (10 pages maximum), and a landing page builder.
Granted, some of these features have feature limitations, but paying will remove these restrictions. However, if you’re just getting started, that may be sufficient.
What about paid subscriptions? You have several options to choose from. All of them come with a 30-day free trial.
The higher the plan you choose, the more features you’ll have access to. In addition, if your subscriber count exceeds 1,000 contacts, the price for all plans rises.
To save money on your subscription, sign up for a 12- or 18-month plan, which will save you 18% and 30%, respectively, off the total price.
The various plans are detailed below.
Basic
GetResponse’s most basic plan costs $12.30 per month (paid annually – monthly and 2-year plans are also available). The following are the features that are included:
- Everything falls under the categories of email marketing, landing pages, forms/surveys, e-commerce tools, templates, website builders, and tracking/reporting.
- Automation features are limited (drip campaigns, click and open follow-ups, and contact tagging only).
- Create an unlimited number of lead funnels but only one (1) sales funnel.
- There are more than 150 integrations with third-party platforms.
- Basic customer service (live chat and email support 24 hours a day, seven days a week).
Plus
Perfect email marketing solution for affiliate marketers looking to grow their businesses. Prices start at $40.18/month (paid annually – monthly and 2-year plans are also available).
Aside from what is included in the Basic plan, the following are some of the additional features available in this plan:
- Everything falls under the automation feature, as well as the ability to create five (5) custom workflows.
- Host up to 100 webinar attendees, unlimited registrants, unlimited live webinars, and three (3) hours of recording storage.
- Create an unlimited number of lead funnels, as well as five (5) sales and webinar funnels.
- Include up to three (3) users (including yourself) in a single account.
Professional
This plan is recommended for established businesses that want to use GetResponse’s email marketing and webinar capabilities. Starting at $99 per month ($81.18 per month paid in 12 months and $69.30 per month paid in 18 months).
- Everything falls under the automation feature, as well as the ability to create an unlimited number of custom workflows.
- Up to 300 webinar attendees, unlimited registrants, unlimited live webinars, and six (6) hours of recording storage are available.
- Create an unlimited number of lead funnels, sales funnels, and webinar funnels.
- Include up to five (5) users (including yourself) in a single account.
- Access to web push notifications and on-demand webinars.
Max
This plan is designed for businesses that want to run their operations using GetResponse’s premium features. Sign up for a custom quote to get your price.
Aside from the features of the Professional Plan, the following are included in this plan:
- Up to 300 webinar attendees, an unlimited number of registrants, an unlimited number of live webinars, and six (6) hours of recording storage are all available.
- In a single account, you can have up to ten (10) users (including yourself).
- Get campaign and deliverability consulting for the best results.
- Transactional email access (paid add-ons)
- Provide dedicated customer support (24/7 live chat, email, phone, and Slack).
GetResponse pros and cons
Here’s a quick rundown of GetResponse’s advantages and disadvantages.
Pros
- There are many templates to choose from, allowing you to build almost anything on the platform.
- Nothing is left to chance – you can visualize your marketing automation workflows and funnels.
- The conversion funnel feature makes it extremely simple to create high-converting funnels.
- The webinar feature stands on its own and eliminates the need for a third-party webinar tool.
- A website builder and AI design tool allow you to create websites quickly.
Cons
- Building forms is more limited and less intuitive than building emails and landing pages.
- Only Max plan subscribers have access to dedicated customer service.
Frequently asked questions
Is GetResponse a CRM?
GetResponse is not solely a CRM tool. However, it enables you to profile and score your contacts to identify leads that are primed for conversion.
How much does GetResponse cost?
GetResponse costs at least $15 per month for a maximum of 1k contacts. The price rises as the number of contacts grow or if you select a more expensive plan.
Which is better: Aweber or GetResponse?
Aweber and GetResponse are both email marketing tools. GetResponse, on the other hand, is the more logical choice due to its lower price point, webinar capabilities, sales funnel builder and robust marketing automation features.
CONCLUSION
Let’s wrap up this GetResponse review.
Based on the features listed above, it’s easy to see why GetResponse is still one of the industry’s top dogs in email marketing.
It’s difficult to beat the automation and email marketing services it provides to users.
The abundance of templates for forms, emails, landing pages, workflows, and funnels adds to GetResponse’s ease of use.
Even if you have no idea how email marketing software like this works in general, the templates help you fill in the blanks so you can communicate your message more effectively.
You can also sell digital or physical products. You can even use it to create simple websites.
GetResponse is truly a full-stack marketing tool unlike any other we’ve tested. You have everything you need in one tool to build a profitable business without having to juggle 8+ different tools.
However, GetResponse isn’t for everyone. If you’re looking for a simple email marketing tool, its full feature set may appear to be overkill.
Nonetheless, GetResponse is one of the best options for engaging your audience and converting them into customers. At the very least, sign up for a 30-day free trial to get a feel for it.
