In my twenty years of technical support, I’ve heard the following phrases countless times…

• “We’re probably not using all the features”
• “I don’t know what I don’t know”

As an Act! Consultant I love the opportunity to teach an end user how to convert a digital Rolodex into a powerful productivity tool, and Act! has recently afforded all subscribers just such a tool in Act! Marketing Automation Basic, and the best part is it’s FREE!

Act! Marketing Automation is a comprehensive email marketing and CRM management tool, that can enhance your marketing efforts, and help convert your audience responses into actions, which can in turn lead to more sales. Traditionally Marketing Automation platforms like this are very expensive to set up, get started, and train your workforce to use.

So when Act! announced that all new and renewing accounts after April 1^st would be provisioned with free AMA Basic, I was excited for our customers.

The Basic tier in many respects replaces the discontinued Act! Emarketing (AEM), but with better features for more users. Like the Pro tier of AEM, AMA Basic includes 2500 monthly sends, CRM integration, basic reporting, and the ability to track recipient responses. Unlike AEM Pro, AMA Basic can be used by all users on your team and doesn’t include an annual (AEM Pro previously cost $250 per year, per user).

Act! Marketing Automation Basic Features:

• Email marketing with basic outbound delivery workflow
• 2,500 emails per month to unlimited contacts (Additional emails extra) 
• Interactive template editor with mobile & desktop preview
• Social sharing and Marketing Calendar
• Basic Drip marketing, campaign metrics, and Visual workflow designer
• Deliverability & compliance tools

AMA also boasts a powerful drag-and-drop email editor that lets you create engaging and mobile-friendly emails without having to know complex HTML or use any special tricks.  Simply drag the control onto the email, modify it to fit your needs, and set up the drip marketing campaign.

AMA Basic does have its limits compared to some of the upgrade tiers available, but it is a true taste of what you can experience before moving on to one of the paid solutions.

Here is what you should know about AMA Basic

1. What you get is just Emarketing campaigns: You are not getting all of the key features of a Marketing Automation platform. Basic is strictly for outbound emails, and the metrics that come with them. You cannot do anything automatically with this tier of AMA beyond that. This still compares quite favourably to the bygone AEM, but it's important to understand what you're getting with Basic, and what's available with the paid tiers.
2. Monthly Sends: The paid tiers of AMA offer a substantial increase in emails (Select includes 25K, Complete 50K, and Advanced 100K email sends per month)
3. Outbound and inbound data flow: The paid tiers of AMA deliver many features that send data back to Act! based on user responses, which can then be converted to other workflows. For instance, with the paid tiers you can add forms to your website where visitors can input data that automatically gets added to Act! and trigger new campaigns.
   For example, consider a form that leads to an email, which tracks what they click so customized emails can be sent directly to the interested party. Qualifying a lead without ever talking to them directly means your sales team can focus on what’s important: Delivering your product or service directly to the customer.

Click HERE, for a more detailed breakdown of the feature comparisons between AMA Basic and the paid versions. Click HERE to read a blog on how to determine which AMA tier is right for you.

Basic is a welcome addition and the best way to get your feet wet with how the workflow is designed.  When you see those emails start to generate leads and populate your pipeline, you’ll want to learn more about how AMA can help your business grow.

Give AMA Basic a try. It’s free, and the next time we talk you’re less likely to say “I don’t know what I don’t know”, saying instead “I know what I want this to do for me!”

Billy Clark is Keystroke's only Act! & MaaS Certified Consultant