As a new business owner – heck, a newbie in the business world – you might feel intimidated by the amount of stuff you need to do.
From marketing and website building, all the way to the mindless tasks that need to be done to stay afloat, there are a lot of things to consider when owning a business.
If you are currently using an outdated system to manage your everyday work, then it is time for you to streamline your business and step into the modern world.
Kartra is a good solution. It is an all-around business platform designed to manage your marketing, management, web hosting, and so much more.
If you are looking to use Kartra for your business, then you have come to the right place. Here you will find an honest review of Kartra.
So, whether you have launched a new business or you are looking for a new system, then read on to find out more in this Kartra review.
Quick Overview of Kartra
The Kartra platform was founded by two men called Andy Jenkins and Mike Filsaime. Previously they had launched the WebinarJam service.
Kartra is a platform that enables you to do all of your marketing in one place. In fact, you can do everything in Kartra without the need for a third-party, or by hiring a person to do the job.
You can successfully create your marketing strategy and launch your own business without ever needing to use anything else. It has everything you could need for a business in one place.
This means you can use Kartra for email marketing, page building, management, web hosting, and so much more. It is also cloud-based so you can access it anywhere, on any device.
While Kartra is relatively new to this industry, it is a fully integrated platform that any business can use to run their business efficiently. This is what makes it stand out from its competitors.
In fact, it is often referred to as being a sales funnel builder, page builder, and a marketing automation service. With this in mind, no wonder people choose to use Kartra for their business.
Who is Kartra Aimed At?
Even though Kartra is an easy platform to navigate, it is not necessarily suitable for every person to use.
While you might want to change your current business set-up, you might find that adding Kartra may be more trouble than it is worth.
After all, if the service you already use is working for you, then give Kartra another think in the future.
Kartra is generally for businesses – or people – who don’t have a big, never ending budget to hire lots of staff. Instead, Kartra is great for those who want to work quickly and efficiently without spending lots of money.
If you are looking to concentrate on closing sales rather than hiring staff and fixing problems, then Kartra is a great option.
It is also a great alternative to the likes of Leadpages and Clickfunnels too. Despite them being big names in the marketing world, Kartra is most definitely worth checking out.
What Are the Features on Kartra?
Kartra has many different features – so much so that we cannot list them all in this article. Even so, we have hand picked some features that we thought would be worth mentioning.
While you might think that Kartra has everything you need for an online business, it is not strictly true. Even so, it comes very close.
So, let’s take a look at those features!
Email Marketing
If you are looking to gain some strong leads, then a good email marketing campaign (and strategy) is a must. Kartra can help you with this as it includes automation, sequences, broadcasts, and tagging – plus so much more.
This area of Kartra replaces the use of big names such as ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign and MailChimp. Of course, that isn’t exactly a small task!
You have two ways to create an email list. You can do this by importing those leads via a CSV file, or by doing it manually.
This makes it really easy if you are moving from different software to Kartra too.
Kartra allows you to use the broadcasting feature to send your messages out as an SMS or an email.
You can also use the ‘sequence builder’ to set up an automation builder.
While it can be long winded to use, and it may not be as seamlined as the big names, Kartra does generally offer a fully integrated marketing system for your business.
Lastly, Kartra has some helpful assistance when it comes to GDPR. As you are aware, for your European customers you will need to make sure you are up-to-date with GDPR knowledge so as to not get into financial trouble.
Fortunately you will get a lot of help with this at Kartra.
Marketing Campaigns
As a business, you will want to make marketing campaigns that are successful. You can do this at Kartra due to the fact that you can build a marketing campaign from the ground up through the platform.
You have the option of using a premade template, or if you have the skills you can make your own.
If you do decide to choose the latter route, you will need to add everything yourself – that is all the media you need for the campaign.
If you choose to use a readymade template, then Kartra will have everything you need.
Currently there are 5 different campaigns available, though this number could go up. Each of the plans have their own focus.
For example, one of the campaigns can help you to close those sales using your current mailing list. If you are unsure what the campaign is for, you can watch a video on each one which will tell you in greater detail.
You can also edit a premade campaign so it can fit the business you own. Once you have imported the campaign, you will have access to sales funnels, automation, email sequences, and so much more.
Page Builder
Kartra offers a really easy to use page builder. Due to the fact that they have over 100 templates for you to use, it means that even if you don’t have any experience in this field, you can make a good looking website.
Some of these include a sales page, a blog page, a thank you page and classic home page styles. It only takes a single click of the button to import a template.
Sometimes templates can look a little basic, but these templates look really good. The styles range from being a little old-school in style to up-to-date and modern.
How Easy is it to Use the Page Builder?
It is really easy to use the page builder on Kartra. Once you have selected the chosen template, you can then edit it within the page builder.
Editing the template involves changing the images, editing the text, and changing the style of the template. You can use blocks to incorporate elements onto the page too.
Despite the fact it is very easy to use, sometimes the steps to do things can come across as long winded. More often than not, an action that should be simple turns out to take a lot longer to do than necessary.
One example is when adjusting the size of a column. To do this you have to switch to the column mode. You then need to manually click to adjust the size of the column. This can be quite a tedious task.
The better option would just be to click and drag the sides. However, it does not offer this. Maybe they will in the future?
Even so, it is quick to upload an image to the page. You can upload a brand new picture, or use an image from the library of already uploaded pictures.
The page builder itself has some good functions compared to other page builders. However, there could be some improvements too on how it functions for the user. However, it is a really good builder for those who are new to using them.
The only downside is that there are smoother page builders out there that provide the user with flexible options.
Hosting of Videos
Videos have become a go-to for businesses. If you think about it, social media platforms like TikTok and YouTube do very well due to being video-based. A lot of people now prefer to watch videos than to read text.
The good news is, Kartra offer the ability to host videos. You can upload video to Kartra and embed the video onto other pages. This is just the same as you would do with YouTube.
However, you may find that sometimes the video buffers. To avoid this you will want to make sure that the video has been compressed.
Marketplace
One of the highlights of Kartra is the marketplace. Here you have the ability to share the campaigns you have created for your own business. You can also view other people’s marketing campaigns too.
If you do find a marketing campaign you really like, then you have the option to buy it. This goes the same for your own marketing campaigns, and is a great way to earn some extra cash.
You might find a totally brand new angle for your company to move forward in.
To sell your own marketing campaign, you need to make sure that you have all the assets added together once you have designed the campaign. You can then list it for a couple of hundred dollars.
There is also the option to add in extra services. For example, you can offer to change the marketing campaign to fit another person’s business.
What Are the Price Plans at Kartra?
Kartra has 5 different price plans to suit a plethora of businesses and budgets. This does not include the $1 trial which lasts for 14 days.
The starter plan is $99 a month and includes:
- 15,000 emails each month
- 100 host pages
- 1 helpdesk
- 1 domain
- 50 video hosting
- 50GB bandwidth
- Ability to sell 20 products
- 2,500 contacts
The silver plan is $199 a month and includes:
- Unlimited emails each month
- Unlimited pages
- Unlimited helpdesks
- 3 domains
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited products
- 12,500 contacts
The gold plan is $299 a month and includes:
- Unlimited emails each month
- Unlimited pages
- Unlimited helpdesks
- 5 domains
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited products
- 25,000 contacts
- Unlimited videos
The platinum plan is $499 a month and includes:
- Unlimited emails each month
- Unlimited pages
- Unlimited helpdesks
- 10 domains
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited products
- 50,000 contacts
- Unlimited videos
The enterprise plan has a price on request. You also need to discuss with Kartra what the plan includes.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Using Kartra?
Here are some of the pros and cons of using Kartra:
Pros
- Easy to use due to videos that explain how to do so
- $1 free trial for 14 days
- The use of Kartra marketplace
- Includes full marketing integration
- Great for new and existing businesses
Cons
- As a beginner you might find this service expensive
- Sometimes the UI is a little clunky and long-winded
- If you already have existing software, Kartra is not needed
- Does not support more than 50,000 on an email list
Final Thoughts
When you first launch a business, over time it will grow and become successful. This means that it makes sense to have software that can support your growth, as well as have everything that you need in one place.
Kartra is a great tool if you are a smaller business who cannot spend time or money hiring somebody to do the jobs this software can do for you.
It has fully integrated tools that allow for you to make strong leads with marketing campaigns, as well as host videos.
You can also build a full website and ensure that you close sales.
While it is useful, it will not suit every business. If you have an email list of over 50,000 people, then Kartra will not be right for you.
