60 PERCENT OF U.S. SMALL BUSINESSES ANTICIPATE STRONG HOLIDAY SALES SEASON

Small businesses concerned about increasing energy costs, but confidence in consumer holiday spending remains strong

Waltham, MA. - November 15, 2005

Small businesses are optimistic about the 2005 holiday shopping season. According to over 1,200 U.S. small businesses responding to Constant Contact's 2005 Holiday Small Business Outlook* survey, 60 percent anticipate a strong holiday sales season. The survey also revealed what small businesses are thinking about rising energy costs. Eighty-five percent surveyed expressed concerns about the potential impact of rising energy costs on their businesses, but for the holiday season, small business confidence in consumer spending remains strong. In fact, 65 percent surveyed believe that higher energy costs could lead to consumers making more online purchases. Constant Contact (www.constantcontact.com) is the leading email marketing service for small businesses, associations, and nonprofits.

Broken down by industry in terms of anticipated holiday sales outlook, retailers lead the pack with 73 percent feeling optimistic about this holiday season, followed by hospitality (i.e. restaurant, travel, and lodging) at 70 percent. Fifty-eight percent of consumer services businesses (i.e. beauty, spa, photography, fitness) surveyed anticipate strong sales this holiday season.

"The holiday sales season is important for the growth of millions of small businesses, and the near-term outlook - despite recent concerns about rising energy costs - shows strong growth is likely ahead," said Gail Goodman, CEO of Constant Contact. "Small businesses are one of the primary drivers of the U.S. economy, so optimism in this sector can be seen as a positive indicator for the overall economy."

Sample questions and results from Constant Contact's Holiday Business Outlook 2005 survey include the following:

"Do you anticipate a strong holiday season in sales for your business?"

Yes	60%
No	40%

"Are you concerned about the effect of rising energy costs on your business?"

Yes, I'm very concerned.	35%
I'm moderately concerned.	32%
I'm slightly concerned.	18%
No, I'm not concerned.	15%

"Do you think that high energy costs will lead to consumers making more purchases online during this year's holiday season?"

Yes	65%
No	35%

For more information about the survey or for additional results, please contact Kevin Mullins at 781-472-6206, or by email at kmullins@constantcontact.com

*The 2005 Holiday Business Outlook survey was conducted through targeted online distribution to U.S. small businesses and associations, including Constant Contact customers, recording results from more than 1,200 respondents. The survey was conducted October 21st - November 7th, 2005.

About Constant Contact
With over 40,000 customers and a recent winner of SmallBusinessComputing.com's "Excellence in Technology Award," Constant Contact® is the leading permission Do-It-Yourself Email Marketing® service for small and medium businesses (SMBs) and associations. Constant Contact is a Web-based email marketing solution that enables small organizations to easily create and send professional HTML email newsletters, promotions, announcements and more with no technical expertise required. Designed and priced for SMBs, Constant Contact is affordable, easy-to-use and includes a free 60-day trial at: www.constantcontact.com. The service is marketed through over 1,500 Business Partners and more than 100 marquee channel partners including American Express OPEN, AOL, Corel, FTD, IBM, Interland, Network Solutions, Register.com, Website Pros and Yahoo Search Marketing. Constant Contact is a founding member of the Email Service Provider Coalition (ESPC), a group formed to fight spam while protecting the delivery of legitimate email. Constant Contact is funded by Morgan Stanley Venture Partners, Commonwealth Capital Ventures, Longworth Venture Partners and Hudson Ventures. For more information, please call 781-472-8100.

Please direct all press inquiries to:

Rosalind Morville Constant Contact 339-222-5772 rmorville@constantcontact.com