Small business owners can’t do it all — and with the technology of modern marketing tools, it’s more likely than ever that they don’t have to. From SEO to email marketing, to analytics and social media management, the burst of AI into the marketing technology landscape changed the game.
Channing Muller, founder of DCM Communications in Chicago, advises that small businesses should at least be integrating a proper CRM, “ideally with an email marketing feature included.”
“Regardless of size or years in business, everyone needs to have email marketing software and actually be using it,” she says. “Email marketing may seem less sexy and flashy than social media or advertising, but it stands the test of time for a simple reason: It works! People may take time off from social media, but everyone checks their inbox.”
For service-based businesses, a CRM setup in the early stages of outreach will set the right foundation for truly being able to track your sales cycle, she adds. “The whole point of marketing is to bring in leads that convert to sales. So if you aren’t linking your marketing-sales efforts, then how can you do effective marketing? You can’t.”
The biggest mistake she sees is focusing too much on marketing or sales, not both: “Ensure they align for the benefit of each other and profitability,” she says.
Small business owners can use tools for collecting data, lead generation, AI-based ad creation, and other functions, but it can take a little time and research to determine which are the best tools for your specific business to integrate. I’ve listed some great options for different scenarios below.
12 Marketing Tools to Advertise Your SMB Compared
| Tool | Best for | Channels | Features | Pricing |
| Google Analytics | Collecting data. | Digital marketing. | Helps you understand customers and improve marketing. Just create an account to begin collecting data. | Free. |
| Buffer | Social media management. | Social media marketing. | Helps you create, plan, and share your social media content. The platform helps with scheduling posts and an AI Assistant is available to help with content and how to repurpose it. | Free, up to $10/month. |
| Mailchimp | Awareness and conversions. | SMS marketing. | A marketing and automation platform that even includes SMS. Depending on which level you subscribe to, Mailchimp can help with custom coded HTML templates, send monthly emails to large contact groups, and more. | Free, up to $350 per month. |
| BuzzSumo | Awareness and management. | Content discovery and research. | Helps with a range of tasks, like helping you find the best influencers for your brand, monitor what’s happening online related to your company, competitors, and overall industry updates. | $199 to $999 per month. |
| Shopify Email | Delivering strategic campaigns to customers. | Email marketing. | Utilize automation tools to create campaigns sent directly to your customers. | $29.99 to $2,300 per month. |
| Klaviyo | Leveraging customer interactions. | E-commerce marketing. | Awareness of customer behaviors to then provide targeted marketing. | Free, up to $6,000+ depending on the amount of active profiles and emails/SMS messages per month. |
| Automizely | Those new to SMS marketing. | SMS marketing. | Great for beginners as it includes simple but high-quality marketing tools. | $9 to $149+. |
| Hootsuite | Social media management. | Social media marketing. | A one-stop shop for managing all of your social media platforms. | After the free trial, plans start at $149/month. |
| AdRoll | Advertising campaigns. | Online marketing. | Helps you develop straightforward advertising. | Depending on your needs, you’ll pay as you go or contact sales for more information. |
| Vimeo Create | Video creation. | Video marketing. | Templates make it easy for anyone to create solid content. | Free, up to $65 per month. |
| Promo | Video creation. | Video business marketing. | Easily create marketing videos, whether for your social media or advertisements. | Downloads require a subscription starting at $29/month, up to $199+. |
| Realize | Lead generation and conversion. | Performance marketing. | Helps convert leads who are in consideration mode, using a range of performance funnel advertising strategies. | Flexible, based on advertising budget. |
Email Marketing Tools
1. Shopify Email
Shopify Email offers a streamlined experience for creating branded emails. Utilize the drag-and-drop editor and pre-built automation templates to target customers at optimal times and segment your lists effectively.
Pricing: Included at no extra cost with any Shopify store subscription.
Pros: Seamless integration with Shopify’s platform; no additional software required.
Cons: This simple tool may not be best for large or complex businesses.
SMS Marketing Tools
2. Mailchimp
A leading marketing automation platform, Mailchimp provides email and SMS marketing services. It features a user-friendly drag-and-drop editor, numerous templates, and extensive customization options. Automated emails can be triggered by customer behaviors and preferences.
Pricing: Free for up to 500 contacts with 1,000 sends per month. More extensive features start at $13/month.
Pros: Excellent integration capabilities, including a Shopify app that re-engages store visitors.
Cons: Pricing escalates with additional contacts and premium features.
3. Automizely
Automizely is designed for beginners but packed with advanced features like email automation, segmentation, A/B testing, and SMS marketing. It integrates smoothly with Shopify, providing a host of free features like pop-ups and campaign analytics. This also allows you to sync all of your contact data.
Pricing: Starts free for up to 300 contacts with 3,000 sends in total. Paid plans begin at $9/month for more extensive usage.
Pros: Comprehensive customer support.
Cons: Higher-tier features require pricey plans.
eComm Marketing Tools
4. Klaviyo
Klaviyo enhances e-commerce marketing through targeted email and SMS campaigns based on customer actions like cart abandonment. Segmentation and automated emails help you meet your e-commerce goals.
Pricing: Free for up to 250 contacts. Paid plans begin at $30/month for larger lists.
Pros: Known for high ROI and responsive customer support.
Cons: Higher cost as the scale of operations increases.
Social Media Marketing Tools
5. Buffer
Buffer allows users to schedule posts across several social media platforms from one dashboard. This tool is helpful for planning and executing a social media strategy and measuring performance through analytics. Then, ideally, the insights gained lead to growth.
Pricing: Free for managing up to three social channels with 10 scheduled posts. Full features from $5/month per channel, and even more features on the team plan for $10/month.
Pros: Enhances productivity with post scheduling and performance tracking.
Cons: Limited capabilities in the free plan.
6. Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a comprehensive platform for managing multiple social media accounts. It supports scheduling, analytics, and real-time engagement across platforms, including platforms like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
Pricing: Free trial available. Plans start at $149/month for more robust features.
Pros: Offers a detailed dashboard for managing all of your social media platforms, plus analytics.
Cons: Can be expensive for small businesses; somewhat complex for beginners.
Content Marketing Tools
7. BuzzSumo
BuzzSumo is great for content research and insights. It aggregates the most successful content across the web for any given topic, helping marketers to identify trends and engage with influential content creators.
Pricing: $199 to $999 per month.
Pros: Great for identifying popular content and influencers and useful for strategy development.
Cons: Full capabilities require a subscription.
Video Marketing Tools
8. Vimeo Create
Vimeo Create simplifies video production with tools that create professional-looking videos quickly. It includes AI-powered editing, licensed music, and a variety of effects to enhance your videos.
Pricing: Basic use is free. More professional features are available from $12/month.
Pros: Access to high-quality production tools; intuitive interface.
Cons: More advanced features require a paid subscription.
9. Promo
Promo helps businesses create marketing videos easily. The platform allows for rapid customization of videos to fit various marketing needs, including ads and social media content.
Pricing: Creation is free. Downloads require a subscription starting at $29/month.
Pros: User-friendly. No technical skills needed to create engaging videos.
Cons: Downloading content requires a paid plan.
Performance Marketing Tools
10. Google Analytics
GA helps you understand what your customers are interacting with on your website. Those insights can be used to improve your approach.
Pricing: Free.
Pros: An extremely helpful and insightful tool at no cost.
Cons: May not be as robust as some of the other tools.
11. AdRoll
AdRoll specializes in retargeting and multi-platform advertising campaigns, making it a versatile choice for enhancing online marketing strategies. It supports dynamic ads that adapt based on user interactions with your site.
Pricing: Varies — pay as you go, or contact the sales team.
Pros: Powerful targeting and retargeting capabilities along with broad platform integration.
Cons: Requires ongoing investment for effective use. This could be more complex for beginners.
12. realize:
realize: is a performance marketing tool helps identify leads considering purchase and convert them through its AI-powered audience targeting capabilities, with a range of ads (display, vertical, carousel, etc.) for digital publications and other companies. It includes an AI drawing on 17+ years of data to target and optimize ads in real time, as well as a social importer tool that lets you easily repurpose existing assets.
Pricing: Free to try. Further offers depend on budget and package.
Pros: A performance marketing tool that focuses exclusively on consideration and action, on the open web, enabling advertisers to reach targeted audiences beyond Search and Social.
Cons: Not optimal for low-intent audiences.
Unlock measurable outcomes at scale, beyond Search and Social
How Do You Choose the Right Marketing Tools for Your Business?
Budget
A marketing tool shouldn’t dominate your whole budget. Instead, it should free up valuable time for you or your team. The tools range from free to rather expensive, so be sure to shop around for a tool that fits your budget. If you can afford a tool that does more of the work and saves you time, it might be worth the investment.
User-Friendliness
You shouldn’t have to struggle through a clunky interface or do lots of tutorials to figure out how to use the marketing tool you select. If you’re struggling to use the trial or free version of the tool, it might be a sign to check out other tools instead. Many of the higher-end tools will have AI assistance to make the process easier.
Efficiency
Marketing tools should save you time and stress, but don’t expect the time savings to happen immediately. The end goal is to save you time, but you may have to invest some time up front getting established and learning how to use the tool you select.
Customization
This isn’t a time to rely on just a few standard templates. Make sure the marketing tool you select is customizable, so your emails or other outputs don’t appear generic. Marketing tools should elevate your content, not make it blend in with other content.
Coordination With Other Tools
When possible, utilize tools that communicate with other tools you already use. This promotes a seamless transition and less duplicate work as the new tool is introduced. Some tools work better than others at working across multiple different platforms, while others push you to integrate fully into all their offerings.
Key Takeaways
The same marketing tool won’t be best for everyone. Your business, budget, and familiarity with marketing all play a factor into how much assistance you need and how much time and money you should put into a tool. Consider these factors and weigh the pros and cons as you decide what’s best for your small business.
Frequently Asked qQuestions (FAQs)
What type of marketing is best for small businesses?
Marketing that helps small business owners reach their target audience exactly where they are is best. So, if your customers spend most of their time on email versus social media, prioritize tools that help with that. If your future clients hang out on LinkedIn, that will be more of your focus. But all marketing strategies should involve a cohesive, well-rounded approach that doesn’t focus too much on one tool alone.
Are there tools to help my SMB generate leads?
Small business owners can utilize marketing tools to help with lead generation, offloading a major burden from their to-do list. Tools like HubSpot, Salesforce, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator help with this, and small businesses should also ensure they have a lead magnet on their website and social media platforms to help with leads as well.
Are there AI tools for creating ads?
Tools including Realize, Superside, Canva, and others help with AI-enhanced libraries of images, graphics suggestions, and smarter capabilities for basic design functions.
