Best email marketing platform for nonprofits:
Email marketing is an essential tool for nonprofit organizations to connect with their supporters, donors, and volunteers. With so many email marketing platforms available, it can be challenging to find the right one for your nonprofit.
- In this article, we have researched and compiled a list of the best email marketing platforms for nonprofits, taking into consideration factors such as affordability, ease of use, and features tailored to nonprofit needs.
- By the end of this article, you will have a clear understanding of the top email marketing platforms that can help your nonprofit organization effectively reach its audience and achieve its goals.
Best email marketing platform for nonprofits
1. Mailchimp
Mailchimp is one of the most popular email marketing platforms in the world, with over 12 million users. It’s known for its easy-to-use interface, affordable pricing, and a wide range of features that make it an excellent choice for nonprofits.
One of the standout features of Mailchimp is its drag-and-drop email editor, which allows users to create professional-looking emails without any design experience. The editor provides a range of templates to choose from, or you can create your own templates to match your nonprofit’s brand.
Mailchimp also provides excellent segmentation and targeting options, making it easy to send targeted emails to specific segments of your email list. You can segment your list based on demographics, behavior, interests, and more, ensuring that your emails are relevant and engaging to your supporters.
Another great feature of Mailchimp is its automation options. With Mailchimp, you can set up automated email campaigns, such as welcome emails, event reminders, and donation thank-you messages. This saves you time and ensures that your supporters receive timely and relevant messages.
Mailchimp also provides excellent reporting and analytics features, allowing you to track the performance of your email campaigns. You can see metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates, and use this data to optimize your future email campaigns.
2. Constant Contact
Constant Contact is a popular email marketing platform that has been around since 1995. It’s known for its easy-to-use interface, customizable templates, and excellent customer support, making it a great choice for nonprofits.
One of the standout features of Constant Contact is its customizable templates. The platform provides over 100 professionally designed templates that can be customized to match your nonprofit’s branding. You can add your logo, change colors and fonts, and create custom templates to match your unique style.
Constant Contact also provides excellent segmentation and targeting options, allowing you to send targeted emails to specific segments of your email list. You can segment your list based on behavior, interests, and demographics, ensuring that your emails are relevant and engaging to your supporters.
Another great feature of Constant Contact is its automation options. With Constant Contact, you can set up automated email campaigns, such as welcome emails, event reminders, and donation thank-you messages. This saves you time and ensures that your supporters receive timely and relevant messages.
Constant Contact also provides excellent reporting and analytics features, allowing you to track the performance of your email campaigns. You can see metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates, and use this data to optimize your future email campaigns.
In addition to email marketing, Constant Contact provides additional marketing tools, such as social media marketing, event marketing, and online surveys. This makes it a great all-in-one marketing solution for nonprofits that want to streamline their marketing efforts.
Constant Contact’s pricing is affordable and provides a good balance between features and affordability. The platform offers a free trial and a variety of pricing plans based on the size of your email list, making it accessible to nonprofits of all sizes.
3. ConvertKit
ConvertKit is an email marketing platform designed for bloggers, course creators, and online creators. The platform was founded in 2013 by Nathan Barry, who was frustrated with the limitations of existing email marketing tools for his own business.
One of the key features of ConvertKit is its user-friendly interface, which makes it easy for even non-technical users to create and send email campaigns. ConvertKit also offers a range of customizable email templates, allowing users to create professional-looking emails without any design experience.
In addition to email marketing, ConvertKit offers a range of features to help online creators grow their businesses. These features include customizable opt-in forms, automated email sequences, and the ability to tag and segment subscribers based on their behavior and interests.
One of the unique features of ConvertKit is its focus on automation. With ConvertKit, users can create powerful automated email sequences that trigger based on subscriber behavior. For example, if a subscriber clicks on a link in an email, they can be automatically added to a specific sequence designed to convert them into a customer or client.
ConvertKit also offers integrations with a range of other tools and platforms, including WordPress, Shopify, and Teachable, making it easy to connect your email marketing with your other business tools.
When it comes to pricing, ConvertKit offers a range of plans to suit different business needs and budgets. The platform also offers a free plan for users with up to 1,000 subscribers, making it an affordable option for small businesses and bloggers.
4. Campaign Monitor
Campaign Monitor is an email marketing platform that is designed to help businesses and nonprofits create, send, and track professional-looking email campaigns. Founded in 2004, Campaign Monitor has grown to become a popular email marketing platform, serving over 2 million customers worldwide.
One of the key features of Campaign Monitor is its drag-and-drop email builder, which allows users to create custom emails without any coding experience. The platform offers a range of professionally designed templates to choose from, as well as the ability to create custom templates using HTML and CSS.
Campaign Monitor also offers advanced email automation features, including trigger-based emails, which allow you to send personalized emails based on specific actions or behaviors, such as opening an email or clicking on a link. The platform also provides a range of segmentation and personalization options, allowing you to create targeted campaigns that resonate with your audience.
In addition to its email marketing features, Campaign Monitor also offers a range of analytics and reporting tools. These tools provide insights into how your campaigns are performing, allowing you to track key metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversions. The platform also offers A/B testing, allowing you to test different elements of your campaigns to find out what works best.
Campaign Monitor’s customer support is also highly regarded. The platform offers 24/7 customer support, as well as a range of resources such as an extensive knowledge base, video tutorials, and webinars.
In terms of pricing, Campaign Monitor offers a range of plans to suit different budgets and needs. The platform offers a free trial, as well as a range of pricing options based on the number of subscribers you have and the features you need.
5. GetResponse
GetResponse is an email marketing platform that offers a range of features for small and large businesses, including nonprofits. The platform is designed to help businesses create and manage email marketing campaigns, automate their email marketing, and analyze their results.
Some of the key features of GetResponse include:
- Email design tools: GetResponse offers a range of customizable email templates and drag-and-drop editors that make it easy to create professional-looking emails without any design experience.
- Automation tools: GetResponse’s automation tools allow businesses to create targeted email campaigns based on subscriber behavior and other criteria. This can help improve the effectiveness of email marketing campaigns and save time.
- Landing page builder: GetResponse also offers a landing page builder that allows businesses to create customized landing pages to support their email marketing campaigns.
- A/B testing: GetResponse allows businesses to test different versions of their emails to see which ones perform best. This can help improve the effectiveness of email marketing campaigns over time.
- Analytics and reporting: GetResponse provides businesses with detailed analytics and reporting tools to help them track the performance of their email marketing campaigns and make data-driven decisions.
In addition to these features, GetResponse also offers integrations with a range of other tools, including CRM software, e-commerce platforms, and social media management tools. The platform also provides excellent customer support, with 24/7 support available via phone, email, and live chat.
6. Salsa Labs
Salsa Labs is a software company that provides solutions for nonprofit organizations. It offers a range of products and services to help nonprofits manage their operations, engage with supporters, and raise funds. Some of its key products include:
- Salsa Engage: This is a cloud-based CRM and marketing automation platform that allows nonprofits to manage their supporter data, create targeted email campaigns, and track their performance.
- Salsa CRM: This is a comprehensive donor management platform that helps nonprofits manage their fundraising operations, process donations, and track donor information.
- Salsa Advocacy: This is an online advocacy platform that allows nonprofits to create campaigns and petitions, engage with supporters, and track their impact.
- Salsa Peer-to-Peer: This is a fundraising platform that allows nonprofits to create and manage peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns, track donations, and engage with supporters.
Salsa Labs also provides a range of services to help nonprofits succeed, including training and support, consulting, and strategic planning. The company is based in the United States and has been in business since 2003.
7. AWeber
AWeber Communications is an email marketing platform that offers nonprofits a 25% discount on their services, as well as three months free to get started. This makes AWeber an affordable option for nonprofits that want to connect with their supporters, donors, and volunteers through email marketing.
AWeber offers a range of features that make it an excellent choice for nonprofits. One of its most powerful features is its autoresponder tool. With AWeber’s autoresponder, you can automate your email campaigns and remain in touch with your subscribers without having to manually send each email. This can save you time and help you stay organized, especially if you have a large email list.
In addition to its autoresponder, AWeber also offers a range of email templates to choose from. These templates are professionally designed and customizable, allowing you to choose the one that best represents your nonprofit’s brand and message. This can help you create engaging and effective emails that connect with your supporters and drive results.
Another useful feature provided by AWeber Communications is its reporting tool. This tool allows you to track the success of your email campaigns by providing information on how many people have opened and clicked on your emails. This can help you gauge the effectiveness of your campaigns and make adjustments as needed to improve your results.
8. Kindful
Kindful is a donor management and CRM software that offers email marketing capabilities through its Kindful BCC feature. This feature allows you to track all of your email correspondence with your contacts and donors, even if you use Gmail to send your emails. This can be a useful tool for nonprofits seeking to streamline their email marketing efforts and keep all communication with their supporters in one place.
However, it’s important to note that Kindful’s monthly cost starts at $100, which may not be feasible for smaller nonprofits with limited budgets. Additionally, while Kindful does allow you to connect with other email marketing providers, it’s not as robust in terms of features and customization options as some of the dedicated email marketing platforms mentioned earlier in this article.
Ultimately, the best email marketing platform for your nonprofit will depend on your specific needs and budget. While Kindful may be a good option for some organizations, others may find that a dedicated email marketing platform offers more features, flexibility, and affordability.
9. VerticalResponse
VerticalResponse is a unique email marketing platform that offers a range of incentives and discounts specifically for nonprofits. One of the most significant benefits is that nonprofits can get 10,000 free emails each month, which can be a significant cost savings for organizations with a limited budget. Additionally, VerticalResponse offers discounts of up to 15% on email campaigns, event planning, and survey creation for nonprofits.
Another advantage of VerticalResponse is that it offers a range of services beyond email marketing, such as website creation, social media advertising, and event planning. This can be particularly useful for nonprofits that are looking for an all-in-one solution to manage their marketing and outreach efforts.
Overall, VerticalResponse is an excellent option for nonprofits that are looking for a cost-effective email marketing platform with a range of additional features and incentives. It’s important to note, however, that while VerticalResponse may be a good fit for some nonprofits, it may not be the best option for every organization. It’s important to evaluate all of your options and consider factors such as pricing, features, and integrations before making a final decision.
10. Emma
Emma is another email marketing platform that can be a good fit for nonprofits, especially those who prioritize customization and segmentation. Emma offers a highly configurable user experience, allowing you to create attention-getting templates and tailor your email campaigns to your organization’s unique needs.
One of the standout features of Emma is its flexible segmentation lists, which allow you to pinpoint exactly the supporters, donors, and volunteers you want to contact. This can be particularly useful for nonprofits that have a diverse range of audiences with different interests and preferences.
In terms of pricing, Emma plans start at $89 per month, which may be a bit expensive for small nonprofits on a tight budget. However, the platform offers a variety of features, including real-time reporting and analytics, A/B content testing, and a variety of segmentation options, which can be beneficial for larger nonprofits with high-performance marketing strategies.
11. ActiveCampaign
Integrating your email marketing efforts with other marketing channels is a smart way to increase your nonprofit’s reach and engagement with your audience. By using multiple channels to communicate with your supporters, you can reach them where they are most active and tailor your messaging to their preferences.
For example, you might use social media to promote your email newsletter and encourage people to sign up. This can help you grow your email list and reach new supporters who are interested in your cause.
You could also use SMS marketing and push notifications to complement your email campaigns. For example, you might send an SMS message to donors to remind them of an upcoming event or fundraising campaign, or send a push notification to your mobile app users to alert them to a new urgent appeal.
ActiveCampaign’s all-in-one marketing suite is one platform that allows you to integrate multiple channels into your marketing efforts. This can help you streamline your communications and provide a more cohesive experience for your supporters.
By using one platform to manage all of your marketing efforts, you can also track your results more easily and make data-driven decisions about how to improve your campaigns.
12. Sendinblue
Personalizing email content is an effective technique to increase engagement and conversions in your email marketing campaigns. By tailoring your content to different stages of the contribution lifecycle process, you can provide more relevant and personalized content to your subscribers.
Using dynamic content functionality in email editors, such as Sendinblue’s, allows you to create customized email content that is exposed to different users based on specific parameters.
For example, you can include user information such as age, location, or previous behavior like whether they’ve donated before. By doing this, you can create a more targeted and personalized experience for your subscribers, which can help to increase engagement and conversions.
Additionally, personalization can help to build stronger relationships with your supporters and increase their loyalty to your organization. When subscribers receive relevant content that speaks directly to their interests and needs, they are more likely to continue engaging with your organization and take action, such as making a donation or volunteering.
Overall, personalizing content in your email marketing campaigns is a powerful technique that can help to improve engagement, conversions, and build stronger relationships with your supporters.
By using dynamic content functionality and tailoring your content to different stages of the contribution lifecycle process, you can create a more effective and personalized experience for your subscribers.
13. Zoho Campaigns
Understanding and managing your donor base is crucial for the success of your nonprofit organization. It’s essential to have accurate and up-to-date information on your donors, including their contact information, giving history, and communication preferences. This helps ensure that your organization can communicate with your donors effectively and provide them with the best possible service.
Zoho Campaigns is an email marketing platform that comes with a variety of contact management tools designed specifically for nonprofits. These tools allow you to manage your donor database effectively and ensure that you have all the necessary information at your fingertips.
With Zoho Campaigns, you can create custom fields to gather the specific information you need from your donors, such as their interests, giving history, and communication preferences. This information can be added to your sign-up forms and contact management functions, allowing you to keep all of your donor information in one place.
Zoho Campaigns also allows you to track your donor interactions and communication history. This helps ensure that your donors are only contacted by one person and that your organization provides superior service by keeping track of all previous interactions.
Overall, Zoho Campaigns is an excellent choice for nonprofits looking for a comprehensive email marketing platform that offers advanced contact management tools. By using Zoho Campaigns, you can manage your donor database more effectively and provide better service to your supporters, ultimately helping your organization achieve its fundraising and outreach goals.
14. Drip
Drip is a unique email marketing platform that takes a different approach to email template design. Unlike other platforms that offer a drag-and-drop template builder, Drip purposefully does not provide this feature.
Instead, it claims that using HTML plain text templates can result in a greater conversion rate. This approach may be appealing to nonprofits that want to focus on the content and message of their emails rather than spending time on design elements.
Drip does, however, provide a variety of templates that can be personalized to fit your organization’s brand and style. In addition, Drip’s automation technology is a powerful tool for nonprofits looking to streamline their email marketing efforts. With automations, you can add tags, send one-off emails or entire campaign sequences, and move subscribers in and out of campaigns.
Drip’s automation technology can also be used to apply tags, track conversions, send data to another app (such as a CRM system), and more. This makes it a versatile platform that can help nonprofits automate many aspects of their email marketing campaigns.
In addition to its automation capabilities, Drip also offers custom fields, lead tracking, email blasts for specific purposes, split testing, and performance tracking. These features can help nonprofits improve their email marketing campaigns and make data-driven decisions based on performance metrics.
Overall, Drip is a powerful email marketing platform that takes a unique approach to template design and offers a range of automation and customization features that can be useful for nonprofits.
15. Benchmark
It’s great to know that Benchmark Email offers a 25% discount for nonprofit organizations. This can help nonprofits save money and allocate more resources towards their programs and services. Additionally, having the option to choose from a variety of email themes or create custom ones can help nonprofits create professional-looking emails that reflect their brand and mission.
The strong autoresponder capabilities offered by Benchmark Email can also be very beneficial for nonprofits. Automating email campaigns can save time and resources, allowing nonprofits to focus on other important tasks. By setting up autoresponders, nonprofits can send targeted messages to subscribers based on their behavior, interests, and preferences.
However, it’s important to note that Benchmark Email does not offer split testing capabilities. Split testing, also known as A/B testing, involves testing different versions of an email campaign to see which one performs better. This can be a valuable tool for optimizing email campaigns and improving their effectiveness.
Nonetheless, Benchmark Email provides thorough reports on how subscribers react to email campaigns, which can help nonprofits track their email marketing performance and make data-driven decisions.
Frequently Asked Question about the best email marketing platform for nonprofits
is mailchimp the best email service provider?
Mailchimp is a popular and well-regarded email service provider that has been used by millions of businesses and organizations worldwide. It offers a range of features and tools that make it an excellent choice for many businesses, including nonprofits.
However, whether or not Mailchimp is the best email service provider for your particular needs depends on a number of factors, including the size of your email list, the complexity of your campaigns, your budget, and your specific goals and requirements.
What is the best alternative to Mailchimp?
- Moosend – Generous on features and emails.
- Sendinblue – Better automation and cheaper.
- ActiveCampaign – Better email automation.
- MailerLite – Same quality but cheaper.
- GetResponse – More features.
- Zoho – Myriad of automations.
- EngageBay – Excellent CRM features.
what is nonprofit crm?
Nonprofit CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is a type of software that helps nonprofits manage and build relationships with their constituents, such as donors, volunteers, members, and supporters. Nonprofit CRM software typically provides a centralized database that stores information about each constituent, including their contact information, giving history, engagement history, and other relevant data.
Conclusion
In conclusion, selecting the best email marketing platform for nonprofits is essential for organizations to effectively engage with their supporters and generate donations. With so many options available, it’s important to consider factors such as pricing, integration with other tools, customization options, and deliverability.
From our analysis, we recommend Mailchimp as the best email marketing platform for nonprofits. Mailchimp offers a range of features and tools specifically designed for nonprofits, such as discounts and customized templates. Its easy-to-use interface and powerful automation capabilities make it an excellent choice for nonprofits of all sizes.
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