What it is
ActiveCampaign is an email marketing platform known for its automation builder: workflows with conditions, waits and lead scoring that react to what each contact does. Higher plans include a CRM with sales pipelines, and it has added SMS, WhatsApp and AI agents. It sits between Mailchimp, which is simpler, and HubSpot, which is broader and more expensive.
How to use it
- Build visual automations with branches, waits and goals.
- Score leads based on opens, site visits and replies.
- Send segmented email campaigns with conditional content.
- Manage deals in sales pipelines tied to your marketing.
- Connect your store to trigger emails from purchases and abandoned carts.
What it's good for
- An online course creator sending a different sequence based on which lessons each student watched.
- A B2B consultancy handing leads to sales once they pass a score threshold.
- A Shopify store recovering carts and asking for reviews after each delivery.
Pros
- Automations with branches, waits, goals and ready-made recipes
- Lead scoring and CRM on the same platform
- Native integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce and Salesforce
- Site tracking ties website visits to each contact
Cons
- The sales CRM and several key features aren't in the entry plan
- Price rises with each contact tier
- Complex automations take time to learn
