When it comes to marketing automation software, ActiveCampaign and HubSpot are two of the most popular options. They offer a myriad of marketing automation and sales features for businesses of all sizes.
But which one is the best for your business?
While ActiveCampaign offers advanced segmentation using lists, tags, and custom fields to target your customers, HubSpot revolves around a customer relationship management (CRM) system offering robust reporting and contact management features.
In this post, we'll compare and contrast ActiveCampaign vs HubSpot to help you decide the best platform for your business. We'll look at what each entails, its advantages and disadvantages, its features, and when to use them.
What is ActiveCampaign?
Established in 2003, ActiveCampaign is a Chicago-based company that provides customer-experience automation software for small and medium businesses. It offers a suite of features to help companies engage with their customers by automating marketing, sales, and customer support processes.
ActiveCampaign provides advanced automation through workflows and segments using lists, tags, and custom fields to enhance your email marketing, CRM, and support operations.
What is HubSpot?
HubSpot is a software company that provides inbound marketing and sales software to businesses of all sizes. It was founded in 2006 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. HubSpot offers a wide range of features to help companies with their marketing, sales, and customer support efforts by providing a full suite of tools to help with inbound marketing, lead management, contact management, CRM, and sales pipeline reporting.
One of the distinguishing features of HubSpot is its built-in CRM system, which offers robust contact management and reporting features. HubSpot also offers a wide range of integrations with other software platforms to provide a more comprehensive marketing and sales automation solution.
How is ActiveCampaign Different from HubSpot?
The primary difference between ActiveCampaign and HubSpot is their respective areas of focus. ActiveCampaign is primarily an email marketing automation tool, while HubSpot is a CRM system with marketing and sales automation features.
ActiveCampaign is also best suited for SMEs looking to enhance their customer relationships, while HubSpot is better suited for larger businesses that need a more comprehensive CRM system. Unlike ActiveCampaign, HubSpot offers more robust reporting features and a wide range of integrations with other software platforms.
Advantages
To help you make an informed decision, looking at the advantages of each platform is crucial.
Advantages of ActiveCampaign
- Advanced automation with workflows and segments using lists, tags, and custom fields
- Variety of email marketing capabilities
- Affordable with no setup fees
- Easy to create powerful automated workflows
- Suited for small and medium businesses
- Allows A/B testing automation and campaigns
Advantages of HubSpot
- Wide range of features to help with inbound marketing, lead management, contact management, CRM, and sales pipeline reporting
- Built-in CRM system offers robust contact management and reporting features
- Wide range of integrations with other software platforms
- More comprehensive marketing and sales automation solution
Disadvantages
Of course, no platform is perfect, and both ActiveCampaign and HubSpot have disadvantages.
Disadvantages of ActiveCampaign
- Limited reporting features, which are difficult to navigate at times
- Standard plan does not include the on-site chat feature
- Not as comprehensive as HubSpot
Disadvantages of HubSpot
- Pricing can be prohibitive for smaller businesses
- Templates are a bit complicated to modify without proper knowledge of CSS
- Can be complex for beginners to navigate
- Does not offer A/B testing automation or campaigns on the lower packages
Features
ActiveCampaign and HubSpot have many features in common, but some elements are exclusive to each platform.
Features of ActiveCampaign
- Unified email and chat inbox
- Email marketing automation
- Advanced segmentation using lists, tags, and custom fields
- Robust email marketing capabilities
- A/B testing automation
- Drip campaigns
- Customizable CTAs
- Automation map shows how your automations connect so you can easily update and adjust them
Features of HubSpot
- Inbound marketing
- Cataloging/categorization
- Lead management
- Contract/license management
- Client tracking and management
- Sales pipeline reporting
- Wide range of integrations with other software
How to Choose the Best Platform for Your Business
When choosing the best platform for your business, the decision depends on your business's needs and what you're looking for in a marketing and sales automation solution. If you're looking for a more comprehensive CRM system, HubSpot is likely the better choice.
If you're mainly interested in email marketing automation, then ActiveCampaign is a better option. Ultimately, the best way to decide is to try out each platform and see which one works best for you.
When to Use ActiveCampaign
Understanding when to use ActiveCampaign is essential to get the most out of its features. Here are a few scenarios where ActiveCampaign is a great choice:
- You want to enhance customer relationships.
- You need A/B testing automation or campaigns.
- You want to create powerful automated workflows.
- You're interested in email marketing automation.
- You need an affordable automation solution.
- You want to improve the efficiency of your sales and marketing processes.
- You need an easy-to-use platform that's simple to learn.
When to Use HubSpot
Consider using HubSpot in these scenarios:
- You need a CRM system with robust contact management and reporting features.
- You want to increase leads through inbound marketing.
- You need a platform with a wide range of integrations.
- You want a more comprehensive marketing and sales automation solution.
- You need sales pipeline reporting.
- Your business is growing, and you need a platform that can scale with you.
CLOSING Thoughts
ActiveCampaign and HubSpot are beneficial tools that can help businesses automate their marketing, sales, and customer support processes. When deciding which platform is right for you, it's essential to understand the different features and how they can benefit your business.
ActiveCampaign is an excellent choice for businesses looking for email marketing automation, while HubSpot is a better option for businesses that need a more comprehensive CRM system. If you are looking to expand your customer base or need more leads and traffic, Eternal Works can help you achieve your business goals.
We are a full-service growth agency that can help you implement HubSpot, ActiveCampaign, and other marketing automation tools to increase your leads and traffic. With us, you will get mountains of leads and sales to boost the growth of your business. Contact us today to learn more and download our template to use hashtags like a pro!
