• by Jess Nelson , January 26, 2017

GoDaddy launched GoCentral on Wednesday, a Web site builder with a set of integrated marketing tools that includes email.

GoCentral expands the company’s Web site builder with a host of marketing tools, giving small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) a centralized location to create, manage and drive traffic to their Web site.

The company aims to help SMBs drive traffic and sales via a range of outreach capabilities, including SEO tools, Facebook and email marketing. GoDaddy’s email resources can be accessed on a mobile device or by desktop, and all marketing tools are available on GoDaddy’s dashboard.

Customers can leverage content and imagery from their GoCentral Web site as collateral for email marketing campaigns, creating an easy stepping stone for small business owners who are just getting started with email marketing. GoDaddy also offers tools to collect email addresses, and Web sites have a sign-up form by default. 

GoDaddy’s pro-level email marketing features have been integrated with GoCentral, according to Greg Goldfarb, vice president of commerce and email marketing, who talked with Email Marketing Daily about GoCentral’s email integration.

GoDaddy has created a set of purpose-build templates for email marketing, including a ‘grand opening’ email, featured products and newsletters. All emails are responsive and viewable on any device.

“You’ve already been through the design process while building the Web site, so the colors, imagery and styling you’ve selected transfers to email,” says Goldfarb. Goldfarb describes emails sent from GoCentral as “an extension of your online store.” If an email recipient clicks on a product or service, they will be directed immediately to a checkout page for what the subscriber is interested in. 

A streamlined experience is even more important when you’re considering mobile consumer behavior, says Goldfarb. “Reducing clicks out of the equation makes a big difference,” he says.

The GoCentral platform can be used on a desktop computer or mobile device, so entrepreneurs can build a functional Web site while on-the-go, and GoDaddy claims Web sites can be built in under an hour. In addition, GoDaddy provides engagement analytics to customers and recommendations on how they could improve traffic.

GoDaddy has also expanded the number of industry-specific Web site templates available significantly from 300 to 1,500. Users can select the topic of their business and the company will create a template Web site with pre-filled sections and stock images that users can the edit at their leisure.

All Web sites have been developed to be fully responsive -- they adapt so that they will be viewable on whatever device a reader is using to peruse the Web site in question. Additional product features include Apple Pay support as well as major credit cards and PayPal, and integrated inventory management and shipping setup.

GoDaddy has transitioned from a domain name registrar to a cloud-based platform that helps SMBs manage and market their businesses, and in addition to marketing and Web site building capabilities, the company also provides bookkeeping and invoicing services.

GoCentral will also be the focus of GoDaddy’s first SuperBowl ad in two years. A thirty-second TV spot will air during the first quarter of the football game, kicking-off the GoCentral marketing campaign.