I have utilized a lot of different e-mail list systems for many years. In the last couple of years, I’ve been a massive proponent of digital sovereignty and owning your very own platform. For that reason (and the outstanding features), I have actually been utilizing Beehiiv Thank You Page.
So, it is indeed an unusual move for me to decide to make use of BeeHiiv. After all, it is a hosted application and I am paying regular monthly for it.
Why did I do this?
In this BeeHiiv review, I intend to look at why I made the switch to BeeHiiv for my e-newsletters. I want to attend to the concern of digital sovereignty while making use of the platform and I would certainly additionally such as to attend to why I chose to use it over Substack.
Let’s dive in …
BeeHiiv: Built For E-newsletters
In Concern # 435 of my newsletter called My Hobby + A Huge Change In Method, I discussed exactly how and why I chose to turn my motor home blog right into primarily an e-newsletter. I made a decision that was the business version I wished to go after keeping that property.
Yet, to intentionally seek it as an e-newsletter, I wanted a platform that was purpose-built for that. I was using FluentCRM for the e-mail list for Gladly recreational vehicle, yet FluentCRM is not an e-newsletter system. It is built to be a CRM and marketing automation device and, truthfully, using it for newsletters is a little a waste. Much more on that in a little bit.
As I stated because concern of the e-newsletter …
Simply put, BeeHiiv is a platform with tools built into it specific to my function. Points such as:
- Ability to publish (to the blog site) and send the e-mail all at once without having it be two separate activities.
- Constructed in newsletter referral program. FluentCRM doesn’t have that and I would certainly have needed a third-party device like Sparkloop.
- Built-in capability to do cross-promotions with various other e-newsletters on the BeeHiiv platform.
- ” Magic Links”, which are primarily one-click subscription web links. Great for promo in other e-newsletters. FluentCRM has Smart Hyperlinks, however, so there are methods to do that.
- Capability to do paid “boosts” on the BeeHiiv network to advertise your e-newsletter.
- Integrated ad network, if I select to monetize with ads in the e-newsletter. And I may.
- Built-in ability to run a paid newsletter upgrade and generally run a premium e-newsletter. And BeeHiiv does not take a cut.
Primarily, BeeHiiv is purpose-built for newsletter authors with features aimed at development. The platform was actually constructed by the people who accumulated the modern technology for Early morning Brew. They recognize what they’re doing.
That is the factor here. BeeHiiv is built from the ground up for the objective of running an e-newsletter. FluentCRM has a various function.
And I finished off with this:.
I may certainly be moving The Edge over to BeeHiiv too. At the very least, I’m highly considering it.
Well, I didn’t consider it for long. Actually, I simply went all out. And in fact, The side was re-branded over to The Morning WP, set off as it’s own property to make sure that I can expand it more intentionally also.
The objective is that each e-newsletter has the capacity to be branded as it’s own media entity and grown separately. Gladly motor home was young, so very easy to change. Yet, The Early morning WP (formerly The Side) was buried in a sea of stuff here at the Blog Site Marketing Academy. By separating it off, I can do what I can to grow it on it’s own. It will certainly always be closely tied with the Blog site Marketing Academy, yet doesn’t have to be a part of it.
I switched over to BeeHiiv since it was developed for this purpose. FluentCRM was not.
E-newsletters Versus Simply A Typical Email List
There’s a distinction in between a newsletter platform and simply an e-mail checklist.
You can hold your email listing everywhere you desire and there are a number of them out there, from Aweber, ActiveCampaign, Drip, ConvertKit … over to self-hosted options like GroundHogg and FluentCRM.
What’s the difference?
The main difference is that, with a newsletter platform, the act of publishing means that it is going to your site and to your email customers simultaneously.
With both BeeHiiv and Substack, you have a site. You are releasing to that site. But, you are also sending off to all subscribers at the same time. The site and it’s customers are done in one. This makes administration of the system much easier.
With most e-mail systems, any kind of newsletter you set up is done as an email campaign. It is developed entirely independently from your website. So, for example, you may publish a short article to WordPress but then you would require to independently develop and send an email to your listing to send it to clients. These are after that two different collections of archives and two separate activities since blog posts and your e-mails are not naturally linked.
The closest point that transforms WordPress into a real e-newsletter system is Newsletter Glue.
It is a suitable name since it practically “adhesives” your e-newsletter to your WordPress posts and enables them to be the very same thing. Certainly, something like Newsletter Glue would certainly be a strong choice if I intended to remain to self-host every little thing. Nevertheless, you would certainly shed the growth tools that come with a platform like BeeHiiv.
Posting a newsletter naturally features a various set of requirements than a common email checklist.
You do not usually require much marketing automation. You don’t generally need autoresponder sequences, occasion monitoring, and all the bells and whistles of a marketing automation system.
What you DO demand, however, is one smooth posting experience and development devices to assist you develop your customer base that specify to newsletters.
BeeHiiv vs Substack
When I revealed to my customers that I was going to switch over the e-newsletter over to BeeHiiv, I had lots of people ask me why I was selecting it over Substack.
To be clear, also besides the fact that I picked to choose BeeHiiv, that does not suggest I think Substack draws. Actually, because Substack has been around much longer, it is elder and has even more features.
Even though BeeHiiv is younger, there are a couple things that at first got my interest:.
- BeeHiiv is specifically tailored to newsletter publishers. Actually, it is essentially built by the same people that developed the technology behind Morning Mixture. On the other hand, SubStack targets writers. In the real world, doesn’t matter. Yet, the evident positioning of BeeHiiv toward newsletter development called me out over the even more common positioning of being a “creator”. Growth is what I have an interest in here.
- That branding and differentiation likewise suggests that BeeHiiv has some fairly big brands and large publications using it. Whereas SubStack is intended more at solo creators. Once again, it simply informs me the consumer character difference between both firms.
Sending our my newsletter through FluentCRM really did not exactly draw. The only reason I would ponder trembling points up is if I assumed I might expand the checklist faster. And BeeHiiv talked specifically to that goal.
As a result of the targeting, I really don’t watch BeeHiiv and Substack as straight rivals. I believe BeeHiiv is targeting a various type of customer. Actually, if anything, I see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being a lot more direct rivals.
However, allow’s dive much deeper than just the placing below.
Things That Make BeeHiiv Better Than Substack
On the whole, BeeHiiv feels like it was constructed by individuals who comprehending email marketing. On the other hand, SubStack seems a lot more geared towards designers.
For instance, BeeHiiv uses custom-made fields on subscribers. Now, it isn’t as developed as something like FluentCRM. Yet, it has it. Substack does not.
BeeHiiv supplies Automations. As a matter of fact, it is a visual automation builder that works a whole lot like what we have inside of FluentCRM.
To be clear, the automation functionality is still early-phase. It is still quite restricted in triggers and the only action is the capability to send an email. Nonetheless, enhancements are coming. Quickly enough, automations will have brand-new triggers as well as brand-new activities, such as changing customized areas, sending out webhooks, and so on. I have actually already seen improvements to their automations just given that I started using the platform. For example:
- Capability to activate automations based on which certain embed type they was available in on.
- Ability to automatically do re-engagement (and deal with individuals based on opens up and non-opens).
- Capability to do standard conditional logic branches.
Substack does not have automations such as this. Likely, it never will. Substack simply can’t do this since the target market of Substack simply would not think to approach this like an e-mail marketer.
When it concerns writing your e-newsletters, the composing interface of BeeHiiv is just extra tailored toward newsletters. As a matter of fact, it actually has resemblances to the WordPress block builder in exactly how it works. I locate it to be extra user-friendly, personally.
Substack’s writing interface is nice and clean, but it would be extra equal to the traditional editor for WordPress. Toolbar at the top.
This difference is more than simply kind. As an example, with BeeHiiv you can insert a “Area” and afterwards put anything you desire in it. After that, you can place Exposure choices on that section to show it just to paid clients, hide it from e-mail, hide from customers, reveal only to clients, etc. Substack supplies nothing like this.
And when/if the moment comes that I begin a premium registration design, BeeHiiv does not take any kind of earnings. As a matter of fact, you actually attach as much as your very own Stripe account and it bills directly to it. With Substack, they will certainly take 10% of your revenue. Relying on the number of customers you get, that 10% can be quite a bit more cash than the month-to-month price of BeeHiiv.
Last but not least, BeeHiiv has an API. This may appear unpopular, however what it indicates is that there are integrations with BeeHiiv. You can actually make BeeHiiv work with the outdoors making use of devices like Zapier or Make.com. This is HUGE. Substack literally has … absolutely nothing. No integrations in all.
Overall, I simply seemed like BeeHiiv was extra built toward actual e-mail marketing. It was developed by individuals who “get it”. Also the opt-in kinds and the landing page develops appear better built for conversions. Development is nitty-gritty with BeeHiiv.
Despite the fact that there are still features I would like to see BeeHiiv add, I like the instructions it is going greater than Substack.
Things That Make Substack Better Than BeeHiiv
As I have said, Substack positions itself toward “developers” more than e-mail online marketers and e-newsletter owners. For that reason, you see some things tailored a lot more towards individuals that just think in terms of web content development.
For example, Substack sustains podcasts. BeeHiiv does not.
Likewise, while BeeHiiv does sustain numerous publications, they are dealt with quite independently. Whereas Substack does have the ability to cross-post to several magazines at the same time. This isn’t something I need, yet … awesome for people who may require it.
Substack likewise has even more social performance built-in. As an example, it has a chat function to host talks with customers. It also has a “Notes” function which functions sort of like a social networks newsfeed where you can share points from various other “Stacks” you’re reading. Fascinating. In general, Substack is established to be much more like a social network which sustains long-form material.
On the whole, Substack is also extra … minimal. You either care for that or do not. Directly, I do not. Nonetheless, if the goal is simpleness of interface and, honestly, features … Substack functions rather well.
But, I’ll be clear below …
When it involves real marketing, I don’t assume there’s much uncertainty that BeeHiiv is much better matched. I searched for more points that make Substack far better than BeeHiiv, but frankly … I have a tough time locating them.
BeeHiiv Vs ConvertKit
While BeeHiiv and Substack are commonly through to be the closest competitors, I actually see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being the closer competitors. Both are going after the exact same target market and have similar abilities.
ConvertKit is also placed at makers (like Substack), but it is far more strongly accommodating people that do it for business. ConvertKit has great visual automation building, it’s own business system, and a lot more. ConvertKit is an actually great platform.
I’m not mosting likely to bore you with a complete feature-by-feature breakdown here. ConvertKit is well known already. Yet, right here’s how I really feel BeeHiiv and ConvertKit contrast …
Points ConvertKit Is Much Better At …
Already, ConvertKit has much more adaptability when it comes to it’s automations. I will certainly likewise claim that I locate ConvertKit’s automation builder to be a bit a lot more user-friendly than that of BeeHiiv.
ConvertKit supports tagging. This is just a standard function of email listings that makes it possible for segmentation in a far more adaptable means than BeeHiiv currently does. I anticipate BeeHiiv to sustain tagging at some point quickly, truthfully. It feels like an oversight that it is missing Beehiiv Thank You Page.
ConvertKit does currently give the capacity to market points using their own system. BeeHiiv does not. If that’s important to you, it might be a big deal for you. For me, however, I would always choose a more straight choice anyhow. For me, I choose to utilize my own system powered by WooCommerce.
ConvertKit has actually been about much longer and therefore has way a lot more integration options. Lots of web-based tools and WordPress plugins integrate with ConvertKit. ConvertKit also has their very own WordPress plugin that is fairly powerful. As an example, their plugin currently also sustains member-gated web content as well as auto-embed of your newsletter archives right into your site. Essentially, this more closely puts ConvertKit into straight competitors by having you be able to release to your website and your e-mail listing at the same time.
BeeHiiv is badly doing not have in these kinds of third-party integrations right now. It’ll get there. However, we’re not there yet with it.
ConvertKit is even active taking on the growth tools of BeeHiiv. For example, BeeHiiv has the referral program and the Recommendation Engine where you can not just incentivize individuals to share your newsletter with benefits, but you can also pay per lead within the internal advertisement network of BeeHiiv to expand your listing. These are truly awesome features of BeeHiiv. However …
Did you recognize ConvertKit got Sparkloop? Sparkloop is one of one of the most popular viral promotion systems for newsletters … and ConvertKit bought it. You can see the creating on the wall surface of what this indicates for the system moving forward.
Things BeeHiiv Is Much Better At … Beehiiv Thank You Page
BeeHiiv is much earlier in it’s product cycle than ConvertKit. Part of that indicates less features and less integrations, which is all-natural for this phase of the cycle. Nonetheless, it also suggests that they are swiftly establishing.
In the short time that I have actually been a customer of BeeHiiv, I have actually witnessed almost weekly release of new features right into the system. And these aren’t puny little features … yet huge features that are quite essential. Their rate of development at this moment has actually gone over.
I likewise very much appreciate just how responsive they are. In fact, among their product announcements concerning some style enhancements to the website design features in fact included a small trouble with the web content size. I simply replied to that e-mail to tell them. I swiftly obtained a reply directly from the chief executive officer:.
That very same day, the problem was dealt with.
Few days later on, I gave them an additional suggestion …
Certainly, in a bit over a week of that exchange, the capacity to activate automations based on the embed type made use of was contributed to the system.
That type of responsiveness and straight participation of the team is something I truly value.
Another major factor of distinction below is the price. Both systems supply free plans, nevertheless the BeeHiiv free plan uses much more ability and more subscribers (2,500 vs 1,000) than ConvertKit.
As soon as you most likely to paid plans, the pricing of BeeHiiv is also even more favorable. ConvertKit appears cheaper initially glance due to the fact that their pricing web page shows lower numbers, however the subscriber limits are FAR lower and your price promptly boosts as your list grows.
With BeeHiiv, your very first degree paid plan starts at $42/mo (paid annually), nevertheless you can have up to 10,000 subscribers. That exact same dimension listing is mosting likely to run you $100/month with ConvertKit.
If you upgrade to the “Scale” plan with BeeHiiv (their ideal plan and the one I personally utilize), you can grow your listing up to 100,000. A listing of that dimension would certainly run you $566/month with ConvertKit. If you desire their referral network, as well, that places you at the $733/month plan. That’s if you pay each year, too. With BeeHiiv, you can get all that for simply $84/month if you pay yearly.
BeeHiiv is in a totally different organization when it involves pricing (in a great way).
Will BeeHiiv eventually increase prices? They could as time goes on. But, I’m thinking people like myself who are already in will certainly be locked-in. We’ll see just how points continue.
Points I Would Like BeeHiiv To Add
Among the important things you definitely require to remember is that BeeHiiv is reasonably young. They do appear to progress rather quickly and make brand-new product statements somewhat usually, however there are some basic features I actually desire they had that I need to just wait for.
One is that they require to have a setup on subscription kinds where I could select an automation to run right at the type degree. That would certainly be amazing for many reasons. Already, registration forms look OK, yet there’s very little setups for them to aid in division.
It would behave to have identifying at the subscriber degree. This would be powerful.
I assume webhooks should belong to automations to make built-in automations less complicated and lower dependence on outside devices like Zapier.
There are additionally some minor administrative user interface changes that would certainly come in handy. For instance:
- Capability to mass edit/remove clients.
- Capacity to mass edit posts (for instance, to label a lot of them at the same time).
- Having a few standard fields as common on customers (like the name).
- Some more customization choices for the web site (such as even more versatile shade choices, headline control, etc).
So, yeah … there are some imperfections. Points I wish they finish with it in the near future. BeeHiiv is respectable, yet it isn’t ideal and definitely not nearly as created as something like FluentCRM or any other actual CRM item.
It probably never ever will be, either. As I said, the objective is various so it would not a lot a lot of feeling for BeeHiiv to become a complete marketing automation platform. I think you never understand, though.
Last Ideas On This BeeHiiv Review
I such as BeeHiiv quite a great deal. Sufficient where I chose to switch my own newsletters over to the system regardless of my personal preference for digital sovereignty and possessing my very own platform.
Basically, for the e-newsletter posting model especially, I saw adequate worth in their platform to necessitate the adjustment.
Keep in mind, I do not use BeeHiiv as my exclusive email list. I use BeeHiiv for what it is good at, however I deliberately have points set up to ensure that I likewise maintain my list “in residence” inside of FluentCRM.
If you use BeeHiiv, I suggest you do the very same. It is simply a great insurance plan, for one. Yet, having a full-featured marketing automation platform for your list will certainly be of high use (FluentCRM is a full marketing automation platform and BeeHiiv is not and likely never will be).
So, the question is … should YOU use BeeHiiv?
In my point of view, if you are using Substack right now, I ‘d most definitely take into consideration switching over to BeeHiiv. It will merely be a lot more business-friendly. It is targeting various capabilities and different needs. Plus, BeeHiiv also has import tools for Substack, so the switch needs to be pretty uncomplicated.
If you are on ConvertKit now, I ‘d most likely stay unless you have a big email listing and are consequently being wooled with their high regular monthly expense. You will certainly not (yet) have every feature of ConvertKit with BeeHiiv, yet they are iterating promptly. There’s additionally a respectable possibility you’re not also using a few of those fancier functions of ConvertKit and you don’t even need them. Therefore, BeeHiiv might easily be a much better and a lot more inexpensive fit.
Finally, if you plan to be very deliberate regarding growing an e-newsletter, I think BeeHiiv is THE platform to consider and maintain and eye on for you.
If you make use of BeeHiiv with eyes wide open regarding what it is developed to be, it is just one of the best games in town now. This is the system to see.
BeeHiiv uses a 14-day trial on their paid plans. It deserves looking into for yourself. And if you wind up not sticking with the paid plan, you’ll locate the free account to be fairly feature abundant.