As much as I love and use Keap (formerly known as Infusionsoft) on a daily basis, I have to say that while three parts of it are simply amazing, the last part is astonishingly amazing. However, when you’re a consumer that may not sound that fair, especially when you’re trying to take a great business decision. But what really stands out about Infusionsoft is that so far it has been used in just about any industry and boy did it help those businesses get real results. Some examples are healthcare, retail, software and technology, marketing agencies, manufacturing, franchises, ecommerce and a lot more.
Just like any software of its kind though, it’s very important to double check whether it’s going to meet your needs prior to deciding to invest in it and that’s because when moving to new software, the decision is somewhat permanent. So just to be safe, you certainly have to consider watching a demo of how the software works, read what others have said about it, how they use it and how it works and if it turns out that it can help your business, then take the plunge.
Setup Process and Sales Experience: What to expect
The first thing you’ll run into when trying to buy Keap (Infusionsoft) is the fact that you actually have to speak to one of their sales reps. While some people may not feel too comfortable doing so, this gives you a great opportunity to learn more about the software, how it can be integrated in your business and whether it’s the right one for you or not.
Keap (Infusionsoft) Pricing
Some businesses may not be ready for Infusionsoft yet and because of that, they may choose not to adopt it. This is mainly due to the high costs involved. But if you take a closer look at the solutions provided by competitors, it’s easy to see they cost several times more than Infusionsoft which, in comparison, looks quite affordable.
Monthly Rates: 199 dollars to 599 dollars.
Start Up Costs: 1500 dollars to 4000 dollars.
Kickstart Package:
As a well meaning business person, this part is surely going to make you swallow hard and no one’s going to judge you about it. The reason for the 4000 dollars is because you’ll have an entire team of Infusionsoft specialists teaching you how to use the software and how to set it up for your business. Just a tip though: the 4000 fee doesn’t include the first month’s software subscription which is actually going to be billed separately. Also, it’s important to keep in mind that you won’t be able to sign up if you don’t have a kickstart package and as much as you would like to skip this, there’s no shortcut. It is what it is.
So at this point, you’re probably wondering what’s with the kickstart fee. Well, the reason for it is that the guys behind Infusionsoft want to make sure that you know how to use their software. Not only will this avoid attrition, but at the same time it’s going to create loyal clients that greatly benefit from the software. You’d be surprised to know just how many people buy software that they eventually never get to use.
The software is indeed not accessible for all businesses, but its functionality is simply amazing and it’s really impressive how they have more than 23 thousand loyal clients and almost perfect retention rates.
Kickstart Coaching Sessions and Setup
After you’ve finally managed to sign up for Kickstart, the number one rule to keep in mind is that freaking out is not an option. The software is very complex and learning how to use it and integrate it with your business does take a while. Therefore, you have to be ready for some extra work, but it’s certainly going to pay off in the long run.
Important Note:
Keap (Infusionsoft) recently launched their campaign templates which are now built into each application. This means you can plug and play a wide range of premade campaigns and get support in order to customize them as per your needs.
In my opinion, the one thing that Keap (Infusionsoft) does manage to do right is the coaching in the kickstart package during the sales process. Their goal is to make sure that you never have to figure things out on your own, since this is what generally drives potential customers away from such products. It’s very important that you are properly trained as to how to make the most of the software and use it in order to grow your business as much as possible. While in my opinion they’d be able to sign up a lot more people if they wouldn’t charge so much for the coaching, it does have the added benefit of creating excellent retention rates.
After the first phase, you’ll receive hands on training, so you’re going to learn how to set up your Infusionsoft application while still being coached. You’ll be taken through the setup process where you’re going to be given access to webinars and the custom sessions that you’ll use in the beginning. When that’s over, you’re also going to be taken through brainstorming and strategy sessions that could help define new uses of the software for the specific type of business you’re running. In the end, you’re going to learn how to use everything you’ve absorbed during the training in order to create excellent live campaigns.
These sessions are actually excellent for people who want a helping hand when it comes to setting things up fast, more so for beginners. In my own experience, I am absolutely certain that more than 90% of beginners who don’t go through the coaching sessions won’t be able to make the most of Infusionsoft.
Setup Timeline: From 4 to 12 Weeks (based on your needs)
Getting started requires only a single phone call, but it’s after that that real work starts. If you’re an average individual and have minimal computer skills, then it’s going to take you anywhere from four weeks and up to twelve weeks in order to automate your business to the point it takes full advantage of the software. You need to be very committed, patient and dedicated to go through all this hard work, because once you set it up, you’ll start seeing results. If this is too much for you, then don’t worry, since you can speed up the process by hiring Infusionsoft to help out.
What Makes Keap (Infusionsoft) the Best Automation Software I’ve Personally Used:
I’d like to start out by saying that it’s a really big deal for me to be excited about automation software. It’s true that all the features you’d expect to find in this type of software are there, but what makes it exciting for me is the fact that it overdelivers. Below, I’m going to talk about some of these features which have personally turned me into a loyal Infusionsoft customer for quite some time now.
24/7 Chat:
Twenty-four seven live chat is extremely useful, especially when you don’t want to wait for a few hours or even longer in order to deal with simple, yet damaging issues that could be taking a toll on your customer experience and sales. What’s even better is that if you don’t want to wait for half an hour in order to speak to a customer rep via live chat during the day, you’ll be able to get faster access at night. To some, including me, this effort of being available when everybody else is sleeping is very convenient. One thing to keep in mind is that if you’re in the UK, you’ll be able to speak to support during business hours.
The New Campaign Builder
This is by far one of the most useful features of Infusionsoft and it’s definitely one you’ll love. If you believe that the campaign builder may be a bit too much for you, then you may want to schedule a demo and they’ll walk you through it. Infusionsoft really managed to stand out with this new level of visual DnD drafting of campaigns which was actually only available in enterprise solutions that would run for more than fifteen hundred dollars a month. If you need it, then this function may be reason enough for you to start using Infusionsoft.
The way it works is that using the visual DnD campaign builder, you can easily create mind map-style automation tasks and funnels. So all you need to do is set up an entire campaign and then proceed with laying it out visually. So you just DnD, connect the dots and finally add your desired content before clicking on “Publish”. It’s really amazing to say the least.
Navigation
Keap (Infusionsoft)’s previous versions didn’t have the best navigation, but the truth is that this has been fixed in the more recent updates. You can easily make your way around the software in minutes, which is excellent for both beginners and pros. What I found to be a nice timesaver is one feature which allows you to easily save favorites in your application navigation for the pages you frequently visit.
And if you’re curious about the set up process for E-commerce, let me tell you it’s very straightforward. Everything you require is in one place, so after going through 6 steps of E-commerce setup, you’ll finally be able to start taking orders.
Email templates and editor
My take on the E-mail editor is that it’s not really that great, but since I never had the chance to use design heavy HTML E-mails, I can’t talk about how much you may like this, but for personal use, it’s really refreshing to see how swiftly I can create and then send out broadcast E-mails. Just bear in mind that there’s no mobile support for their E-mail builder, which some may find to be a bummer.
The E-mail editor does com with Spam Assassin style E-mail rating and you can also have a wide range of “from” and “reply to” E-mail addresses.
Searching
Searching is a breeze and I really like the fact that I can easily save my searches based on various criteria. So if you need to find tasks, affiliates, orders, contacts or anything else swiftly, you just need to click on the box at the top right and that’s it.
What’s even more impressive is the fact that you get a built-in ability to search for just about any order or contact and then use the results of that search in a report. Because of that, it’s easy to conclude that the CRM side of Infusionsoft is pretty intuitive and employees are going to have easy time learning about proper contacts management.
Data Cleanup
Did you ever have a list of duplicates and you didn’t know how to remove them? Well, that’s not a problem anymore thanks to Infusionsoft’s data cleanup feature. Using it, you’ll easily be able lot remove duplicates in seconds!
Excellent Community And Events:
You’ll absolutely love the amazing community of developers and users that Infusionsoft managed to amass. They also have forums which are perfect if you want to connect with fellow users and have your most pressing questions answered fast. Local meet-ups are also available and they’re a great way to brainstorm while connecting with other users in order to learn how to make the most of the software.
There’s even a conference that’s being held where you’ll have the chance to hear great speakers talk about the software and how it can be better used depending on your needs. If you want, you can also take basic and advanced courses at the Infusionsoft University, but if you want to take it one step further, then you’ll can come into the company’s offices in Chandler, AZ and have an expert walk you through the entire process.
Is Keap (Infusionsoft) a Long Term Solution?
It’s very well known that if you switch to a different platform after you managed to set up your business with Infusionsoft, it’s going to be extremely difficult, frustrating and annoying to make this transition. However, if you think your business will greatly benefit from the platform, then you simply cannot go wrong with it.
Personally, I’m sticking with it for my retail business and I’m very happy with that, even though there were a few disagreements we’ve had in the past.
Final Verdict & Coupon Code
One of the best things I love about Keap (Infusionsoft) is that it makes me happy every day and even though there are a few exceptions to the rule, in the end everything’s exactly the way I want it to be. No matter how we’d like it to be, no software out there is perfect unless you have the time, knowledge and commitment to build it yourself. You just need to learn how to make the most of the available resources so you can get things done right for the type of business you’re running. With Infusionsoft, you get to do just that. It’s extremely versatile and can be configured so it does a lot of things.
Does Keap (Infusionsoft) work for me?
Absolutely! It actually managed to help me increase sales by a minimum of eighty five percent in just a few months. It does take a bit of patience and commitment to implement it in your business. To learn its ins and outs. To finally configure it for your needs and get things moving. But once you go through all of this, the results are nothing short of spectacular.
If the type of business you’re currently running fits the criteria, then I definitely recommend that you give it a try and I guarantee you’ll never look back.
It’s also true that if you want, you can use Infusionsoft with just about any business, but I have to warn you that it’s not a great choice for just about any type of business. I’m sure nobody would like to waste their time and money going in the wrong direction.
I hope this is clear enough, since when I was looking for an automation platform, I had no one to guide me in the right direction. I had to go through all the hassle of making mistakes, wasting time and experiencing the platform for myself in order to see whether it fits my business or not.
I certainly wouldn’t want anyone else to go through that, not even my competitors.
As a business automation fan, productivity junkie and marketing strategy, I’d never want to steer you wrong.
Leave a Reply