There are many wrong perceptions people harbor towards email marketing. For some, they believe email marketing is expensive and can only be utilized by big corporations. Others believe that email marketing as a form of online marketing is ineffective and obsolete. But what many people are not aware of is the stunning statistics that surround email marketing. As of 2015, there were over 2.6 billion email users across the world. The figure is expected to grow in the next four years to as much as 2.8 billion. This means that by 2019, one in every three people will be an active email user.
These figures are stunning enough to make anyone re-assess their opinion of email marketing. Some researchers have concluded that emailing is a more effective means of generating revenue and is more efficient at getting new customers than social media.
Email marketing plugins for WordPress
Email marketing campaign does not necessarily have to be expensive. As a small business owner, you can implement an effective email marketing campaign and enjoy its full benefits. Below are 8 of the most popular email marketing plugins for WordPress users and WordPress web development company;
1. MailChimp
If you are an active WordPress user, then you must definitely know of MailChimp or have encountered it once before. MailChimp is by far the most popular email marketing plugin for WordPress users or WordPress web development company. Currently, there are more than 9 million people who trust MailChimp to help deliver their emails to their subscribers. MailChimp offers both premium (paid) and free versions. Despite being free, the WordPress plugin offers tremendous benefits to users.
MailChimp users can create customizable sign-up forms, track the status of their emails, set-up autoresponders, manage their email subscribers and design a redirect page that appreciates new subscribers.
MailChimp also works seamlessly with other relevant plugins, such as Contact Form 7 and Woocommerce. MailChimp notifies email subscribers automatically once there is a new update on the user’s website. This takes away the headache of having to compose and send emails every time there is something new on a site.
Lear more about MailChimp Marketing Plugin
2. FreshMail
After MailChimp, FreshMail is the next most popular and arguably most successful email plugin for WordPress users and WordPress web development company. It has won several awards for its features, performance and mostly for its high return on investment. With FreshMail, users can easily design and add customized signup forms and pop-ups to WordPress. The plugin integrates seamlessly with Google Analytics, allowing easy tracking of email performance. FreshMail also allows users to monitor subscribers registration, including the timing of their registration and from which form they registered. FreshMail is free for users who send 2000 emails or less per month.
3. Contact Form 7
Contact Form 7 is another highly popular newsletter plugin and contact form builder for WordPress users and WordPress web development company. Its popularity stems from its ease of use for both beginners and expert users. The appearance and form fields of the form can be customized according to the user’s preference. Contact Form 7 also allow for the creation of multiple contact forms which can be used on any WordPress post or page. Contact Form 7 also has multilingual features and possess Akismet spam filtering.
4. SumoMe
SumoMe prides itself on being the best email plugin that can convert website visitors into email subscribers through the use of very attractive lightbox that requests visitors email before they leave. This lightbox can be customized according to user’s preferences and are one of the few pop-ups plugins that are optimized for mobile devices. SumoMe also works seamlessly with other marketing services such as Active Campaign, Get Response and MailChimp.
The plugin is free to download and it comes with features that allow it to share WordPress content on social media channels. It also allows Google Analytics to be easily monitored directly from the site.
5. SendinBlue
Offers features similar in many ways to MailChimp. This plugin allows users and WordPress web development company to develop customizable subscription forms, break their contact into segments, and track the status of the email. The plugin allows real-time monitoring of the status of emails such as email bounce rates, the number of people who open emails, and the number of clicks.
If you have an account with SendinBlue then you can download this plugin for free. Also, if the emails you send in a month is less than 9,000, then you will be eligible for a free membership. The free membership, however, has lesser features as compared to other plans.
6. Opt-in Panda
The Opt-in Panda utilizes a very effective technique to convert website visitors and readers to email subscribers. This plugin allows users and WordPress web development company to share a small section of their content, like a teaser. If visitors or readers want the rest of the content they will have to supply their email address. Aside from hiding content, Opt-in Panda can also be used to offer readers exclusive in-content freebies. It also has analytical tool features that allow users to track results and have a knowledge of where their audience is coming from. By knowing the origin of the majority of your audience, you can invest more in improving this campaign.
Many people fear that their content may not be searchable by search robot, hence their ranking may fall. This is not true. The plugin does not affect your site ranking as the contents are searchable by web crawlers. The plugin also integrates properly with MailChimp, Sendin Blue and ActiveCampaign.
7. AOL EasyMail
This plugin makes use of the standard WordPress graphics user interface to send subscribers text and HTML newsletter. The plugin also allows users to select specific subscribers that they wish to send a newsletter to. One feature that sets ALO EasyMail Newsletter plugin apart is the fact that it automatically unsubscribes emails that get bounced. It also has multilingual features. Just like MailChimp and a few other top email plugins, ALO provides a report on the performance of email; how many subscribers open the email, how many didn’t, how many clicked internal links etc.
About The Author:
Melissa Crooks is Content Writer who writes for Hyperlink InfoSystem, one of the leading app development companies in New York, USA & India that holds the best team of skilled and expert app builders. She is a versatile tech writer and loves exploring latest technology trends, entrepreneur and startup column.