This is a review of the 3 best (in my opinion) newsletter and auto responder plugins for WordPress. There might be better newsletter handling ones, but my strong emphasis here will be on auto responder features because auto responders are very powerful for selling. So if you want to make money with your blog, you may be interested to know more about the best plugins for sending autoresponder campaigns.
Wysija Newsletters
Free version at http://wordpress.org/plugins/wysija-newsletters/
Pro version at http://www.wysija.com/premium/
Regardless of the title this plugin does support autoresponders. The free plugin is relatively easy to use and offers good level of stats and reports about the sent mails. There is even individual report for each user. It also includes plenty of free newsletter themes which is a big plus. Import/export etc basic features are of course available. Unfortunately its autoresponders, the main feature we are looking at, are rather confusing and not very powerful.
The free version is limited to 2,000 subscribers. There is also a pro version called Premium which offers more stats, spam score checking and more. The price is steep – $99 – $399 per year depending on the number of sites used.
Pros:
– The most popular plugin with huge user base
– Great support
– Free email templates
Cons:
– Poor autoresponder capabilities
– Expensive PRO version
– No custom fields in the lists
– The free version is limited to 2000 subscribers.
WP Autoresponder And Newsletter Plugin
Free version at http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-responder-email-autoresponder-and-newsletter-plugin/
There is no PRO version.
This is a good plugin but unfortunately development is discontinued for some reason. It’s still fresh at the moment with the last update from June 2013. Unfortunately the interface is bloody confusing. I have no idea why you should create a “newsletter” and then create an autoresponder on it for example. There are way too many screens and settings and it’s hard to get started with.
Pros:
– Powerful with lots of features as long as you learn how to use them
– Entirely free
Cons:
– Development discontinued
– Very hard to use and confusing
– Autoresponders are of only “X days after subscription” type.
Arigato Autoresponder and Newsletter
Free version URL: http://wordpress.org/plugins/bft-autoresponder/
PRO version URL: http://calendarscripts.info/bft-pro/
This is the newest, and therefore the least known plugin but it has good potential. Its primary purpose is to send autoresponders (newsletter functionality was only recently introduced) so it fits our goal well. It has several autoresponder email message types (2 in free version, more in pro) The plugin is very easy to get started with as you can go and create your autoresponder messages right away.
The plugin has a PRO version for $47 – $87 (depending on features) and it’s a multi-site license.
Pros:
– Very easy to use
– Exactly an autoresponder with strong focus on this area
– Affordable PRO version
– The plugin is in active development and many new features are added constantly
Cons:
– Very basic newsletter features
– Small user base so there are not many discussions and hacks known
– No free email templates yet
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