Constant Contact Overview
What is Constant Contact?
Constant Contact is an online marketing company based in Massachusetts with offices in Colorado and New York. They were founded in 1995 as a DIY email marketing company called Roving Software before taking their current name in 2004.
After becoming Constant Contact, they acquired other software companies such as 2eM systems in 2008, NutshellMail in 2010, and CardStar and SinglePlatform in 2012. They were brought by Endurance International in 2015 and are currently owned by ClearLake Investments.
The company was born out of an idea to try and create a marketing tool to help small businesses compete against larger, well-established rivals. Website design does seem to fit nicely into this core value that they started with the company 26 years ago.
Their website presents Constant Contact as a small, friendly company that prides itself in its customer support. They are best known for being an email marketing service. They also offer website design, online stores, and the tools and guidance to raise your profile on social media and boost sales with Google ads.
They offer an AI-powered website builder which creates a website within minutes. They also give you stock images to use if you wish to and even suggest the best content to include. However, you cannot opt out of the AI builder, so with that in mind, I’d say It appears to be aimed at customers who want a quick site set up with as little fuss as possible.
Their website claims that Constant Contact’s website builder and eCommerce platform is “the industry best.” This is a bold claim in today’s competitive market for accessible and professional-looking websites.
In this Constant Contact review, I shall take a deeper look into the interface, tools and pricing of Constant Contact’s website builder. Let’s see if their audacious claim does ring true.
Are you looking to create your website with a Website Builder?
Ease of Use
How Easy is Constant Contact to Use?
With Constant Contacts AI website builder, you don’t need to worry about scrolling through hundreds of template options. All you have to do is answer a few simple questions about what you’re aiming for, and Constant Contact will offer you a template that fulfills your needs.
Within seconds you’re signed up and presented with a usable website that you are then free to edit should you feel the need. First, you choose the topic of your site and whether you want a blog or a store.
There are many topics in their drop-down bar; however, you can enter a term even if there isn’t an exact match. You can add your logo if you have one or design one later using an AI logo tool.
You are then given a selection of layout, fonts and colour schemes based on your initial topic. You can pick images from the extensive selection that Constant Contact provides or, of course, upload your own.
Should you opt to ‘take a quick tour’, the key design elements are then shown to you. Now you only need to add your own content in the boxes provided and you are good to go!
As far as customisation goes, there are around four different formats to choose from in each section, and you can exclude any extra features.
While the builder is highly user-friendly, some may find it a little limiting when it comes to the flexibility of the design. You can edit the pre-designed sections, but ultimately those perfectionists out there may find themselves muttering, “that’ll do.”
You can sign up and create your website for free without entering any payment details, so you can view your finished site before deciding whether it’s worth paying for. With a no-obligation setup that is so easy and quick, I’d defiantly say it’s worth a go to see how it compares.
Tools and Features
What Are The Features Of Constant Contact?
Constant Contact has undeniably tried to take the hassle out of designing a website. Their main feature is their AI builder, which does an excellent job at helping you create a usable website in minutes. Their Unsplash integration provides you with over 500,000 images at no extra cost. This lets you add professional images to your website if you don’t have any of your own.
They also offer an AI-powered logo maker, which you can try for free, although if you find one you like, you do have to sign up for a plan before you can download and use it. I tried out the logo maker, and it wasn’t bad. They offer you a large selection of logos based on your brand name and (optional) slogan, which are then customisable with different colours and fonts.
However, there is the possibility that you may end up with a logo that looks like a competitor if they happen to be using the exact specifications and the Constant Contact logo maker.
As with most web builders, they give you a mobile and tablet responsive website, so your site looks great on all devices, and you can even see these different views while building your site.
As they are an online marketing company, there are many eCommerce tools if you’re looking to sell online. You get full support for digital products and services and access to tools to help attract and keep a customer.
They also give you a management dashboard that aids you in keeping track of sales and inventory. The analytics give you some excellent workable data to help you understand your customer’s habits. You can track visitor numbers and location, and Constant Contact offers several customisable reports to help you improve your site’s performance.
In addition, you can connect your site with your email strategy even if you’re not using Constant Contact for emails. The pop-up sign-up forms and automated welcome emails enable you to connect with clients through your site.
Are you looking to set up an online store?
Plans and Pricing
How Much Does Constant Contact Cost?
Sign-up is completely free, and you also get a 60-day free trial without having to enter any payment details. However, there is no free plan, and you will ultimately have to choose a monthly plan to benefit from a lot of the site’s options.
I could only find one plan offered, at £10 per month (excluding VAT). It seems to provide a lot, although they don’t show a simple table of essential features.
The pricing is based on your contacts list, and the package is capped at 1k of contacts. After which, you would have to upgrade to the next package.
I assume that would be the Email package available at £15 per month or the Email Plus at £30 per month (both prices exclude VAT.) However, they are unclear on that, with the email packages not listed under website pricing, but rather “email marketing” and “eCommerce marketing.” Adding the VAT brings the price of the web builder package to £12 per month, and the email and email plus to £18 and £36, respectively
The website package includes permission for up to 3 different users, email marketing (including the pop-up sign-up forms and automated welcome emails), customer support, contacts management, and marketing channels.
You can create up to 3 different websites and have unlimited storage and an SSL certificate at no extra cost. You can also enjoy free hosting and website analytics as well as inventory, order and tax management.
You can sell as many products as you want, but be aware that they charge a 1.5% commission on anything you sell online. Suppose you wish to use your own domain name without the Constant Contact subdomain. In that case, you have to buy one at extra cost from Constant Contact or connect to the one you already own.
Constant Contact Premium Website Plans
| Main Features | Email Plus | |
| Price | £15 | £30 |
| Custom Domain | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Number of websites | 3 | 3 |
| Website Analytics | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Free SSL Certificate | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Bandwidth | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Storage Space | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Logo Maker | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Image Library | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Dynamic Content | ✖︎ | ✔︎ |
| Automated Email | ✖︎ | ✔︎ |
| Email Marketing | ✔︎ | ✔︎ |
| Customer Care | 24/7 Support | 24/7 Support |
Help & Support
How Good is Constant Contact Support?
Like most large companies nowadays, Constant Contact would prefer you to help yourself rather than contact them.
With this in mind, they provide you with webinars, various guides and online tutorials, and a searchable knowledge base. You can get help with a topic, video tutorials, and more.
All of this is extremely helpful, but as customer support is one of the features included in their £12 package, let’s look at what you get for your money.
Should you need to contact someone, they offer phone support (with real live people!) from Monday to Friday, 11 am-9 pm ET (4 pm to 2 am in the UK). The UK customer support number is 0808 234 9315, which has the bonus of being free to call. They also give you a live chat option that’s operational from Monday to Friday.
Suppose you need help or advice on the weekend. In that case, there is a Constant Contact community area on their website that has a great deal of information. You can ask questions and give feedback. Alternatively, you can contact them through Twitter or Facebook.
With all these forms of contact, this web builder seems to live up to its name. As marketing is one of their core strengths, they clearly understand the power of communication.
It feels pretty refreshing to have set work hours during which you can contact customer support. The fact that they also have other options outside those hours is reassuring.
Does expert support matter to you?
Pros & Cons
What We Like & Dislike About Constant Contact
Constant Contact Pros
Free 60-day trial – this is plenty of time to get your site up and running, as well as figure out if Constant Contact is right for you.
Usable analytics – to help improve your online presence, attract more customers, and retain the ones you have.
Beginner-friendly – you definitely won’t feel overwhelmed as you are guided through your site setup.
A marketing company that knows their stuff – can offer you valuable insight into your customer’s needs and habits.
Unlimited storage – enough said, amirite?
Constant Contact Cons
Limited design flexibility – while you do have a choice of design elements, you may find yourself wishing you had a little more control over placement.
Limited pricing structure – with only one package being available, you aren’t exactly spoilt for choice.
Additional charges – the 1.5% for online sales, as well as paying extra for your own domain name or extra marketing advice, can make the monthly payments creep up.
What Are The Alternatives To Constant Contact?
Wix Best Overall Website Builder
+ Innovative drag and drop editor
+ Powerful web app integrations
+ FREE SSL certificate
Zyro Best Modern Website Builder
+ Brilliant blogging tools
+ Quick launch eCommerce solutions
+ FREE SSL certificate
Squarespace BEST ALL-AROUND WEBSITE BUILDER
+ Powerful blogging tools
+ Integrated SEO & Analytics
+ Unlimited Bandwidth and Storage
Duda Best Website Builder for Creatives
+ Easy drag-and-drop editor
+ Modern responsive website templates
+ Unlimited Sites and Bandwidth
Weebly Best Free Website Builder
+ Integrated email & digital marketing
+ Advanced eCommerce tools
+ FREE SSL certificate
Jimdo best website builder for ease of use
+ High quality image library
+ Great social media integration
+ FREE SSL Certificate
Godaddy Website Builder Best Website builder for beginners
+ Beautifully crafted website templates
+ Backup and Restore feature
+ FREE SSL certificate
Ucraft Best for building landing pages
+ Website language detection
+ Free icon and image library
+ FREE SSL & Unlimited Bandwidth
Gator Builder best website builder for basic websites
+ Excellent eCommerce management tools
+ Free access to Unsplash image library
+ FREE SSL certificate & Free domain
Final Thoughts
Do We Recommend Constant Contact?
If you’re looking for a quick and easy website builder, then this is the one for you. If you’ve ever thought, “I’m not creative enough to design my own site,” then do not hesitate to sign up to Constant Contact.
With their intelligent AI builder and wealth of professional images and content suggestions available, you could have a great-looking website up and running in no time. You can tell that they are primarily a marketing company rather than a website builder.
Their tools and features focus heavily on analytics and cross-marketing and not so much on website design. Therefore, if you focus on enhancing your visibility rather than your creativity, this will be a fantastic option.
They offer an exceptional email marketing service as well as many other great promotional and analytical tools. Their 26 years of experience in online marketing defiantly shows.
However, if you’re looking for a web builder that allows you to have optimal control over every detail, then this may be disappointed. Suppose you’re highly creative and already a wiz at raising your profile on social media. In that case, the pay-off of the email marketing expertise probably won’t outweigh the lack of flexibility when it comes to the design elements.
Overall, I’d say this website builder is for beginners and businesses who have found themselves in need of a quick online presence. Due to the number of marketing strategies and analytics available, it’s probably not best if you want somewhere to share your personal blog or portfolio.
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