I have made use of a great deal of different email list systems over the years. In the last number of years, I’ve been a big advocate of digital sovereignty and possessing your own platform. Because of that (and the outstanding features), I have actually been using How Many Users Does Beehiiv Have.
So, it is indeed an unusual move for me to make a decision to utilize BeeHiiv. After all, it is an organized application and I am paying monthly for it.
Why did I do this?
In this BeeHiiv evaluation, I intend to discuss why I made the switch to BeeHiiv for my newsletters. I want to address the issue of digital sovereignty while utilizing the system and I ‘d additionally like to attend to why I selected to utilize it over Substack.
Allow’s dive in …
BeeHiiv: Developed For E-newsletters
In Issue # 435 of my e-newsletter called My Hobby + A Huge Shift In Technique, I talked about exactly how and why I chose to turn my recreational vehicle blog into mainly a newsletter. I decided that was business design I wished to seek with that residential property.
But, to intentionally pursue it as a newsletter, I wanted a system that was purpose-built for that. I was utilizing FluentCRM for the e-mail checklist for Happily RV, but FluentCRM is not an e-newsletter system. It is constructed to be a CRM and marketing automation tool and, honestly, utilizing it for newsletters is a little bit of a waste. A lot more on that in a little bit.
As I stated in that concern of the e-newsletter …
Basically, BeeHiiv is a platform with devices constructed right into it certain to my objective. Things such as:
- Capacity to publish (to the blog site) and send out the email all at once without having it be two separate actions.
- Constructed in newsletter referral program. FluentCRM does not have that and I would have needed a third-party device like Sparkloop.
- Integrated ability to do cross-promotions with various other newsletters on the BeeHiiv system.
- ” Magic Hyperlinks”, which are primarily one-click registration links. Great for promotion in various other newsletters. FluentCRM has Smart Links, though, so there are means to do that.
- Capacity to do paid “boosts” on the BeeHiiv network to advertise your newsletter.
- Built-in ad network, if I choose to monetize with ads in the newsletter. And I may.
- Built-in ability to run a paid e-newsletter upgrade and generally run a premium e-newsletter. And BeeHiiv doesn’t take a cut.
Generally, BeeHiiv is purpose-built for newsletter authors with features aimed at growth. The platform was literally constructed by the individuals who developed the innovation for Early morning Mixture. They understand what they’re doing.
That is the point here. BeeHiiv is developed from scratch for the objective of running a newsletter. FluentCRM has a various function.
And I finished off with this:.
I may indeed be moving The Edge over to BeeHiiv also. At the very least, I’m highly considering it.
Well, I really did not consider it for long. As a matter of fact, I just went for it. And actually, The side was re-branded over to The Early morning WP, triggered as it’s own residential property so that I can grow it more intentionally also.
The goal is that each newsletter has the ability to be branded as it’s very own media entity and expanded separately. Gladly motor home was young, so very easy to transition. But, The Early morning WP (previously The Side) was hidden in a sea of stuff here at the Blog Site Marketing Academy. By separating it off, I can do what I can to expand it on it’s own. It will undoubtedly constantly be closely linked with the Blog Marketing Academy, but does not have to be a part of it.
I switched to BeeHiiv because it was constructed for this function. FluentCRM was not.
E-newsletters Versus Just A Normal Email List
There’s a difference between an e-newsletter platform and just an e-mail checklist.
You can hold your email listing just about anywhere you want and there are a number of them around, from Aweber, ActiveCampaign, Drip, ConvertKit … over to self-hosted choices like GroundHogg and FluentCRM.
What’s the difference?
The key difference is that, with a newsletter system, the act of posting indicates that it is mosting likely to your web site and to your e-mail customers concurrently.
With both BeeHiiv and Substack, you have an internet site. You are publishing to that internet site. But, you are likewise sending off to all clients at the same time. The web site and it’s clients are all in one. This makes monitoring of the platform much simpler.
With many e-mail platforms, any type of newsletter you set up is done as an email campaign. It is constructed completely separately from your internet site. So, as an example, you may release a short article to WordPress but then you would require to individually develop and send an e-mail to your list to send it to subscribers. These are then 2 separate sets of archives and two different activities since blog posts and your e-mails are not naturally connected.
The closest thing that transforms WordPress into a real newsletter system is Newsletter Glue.
It is a suitable name because it basically “glues” your e-newsletter to your WordPress articles and allows them to be the exact same point. Certainly, something like E-newsletter Glue would certainly be a solid choice if I wanted to continue to self-host whatever. Nevertheless, you would certainly shed the growth tools that come with a system like BeeHiiv.
Posting a newsletter naturally includes a various collection of demands than a common email list.
You do not normally require much marketing automation. You don’t normally require autoresponder series, occasion tracking, and all the bells and whistles of a marketing automation system.
What you DO requirement, however, is one smooth posting experience and development tools to assist you build your subscriber base that are specific to newsletters.
BeeHiiv vs Substack
When I announced to my customers that I was mosting likely to switch over the newsletter over to BeeHiiv, I had lots of people ask me why I was picking it over Substack.
To be clear, even besides the reality that I picked to select BeeHiiv, that doesn’t mean I think Substack sucks. Actually, since Substack has actually been around longer, it is elder and has even more features.
Although BeeHiiv is more youthful, there are a couple points that at first got my attention:.
- BeeHiiv is specifically customized to newsletter publishers. In fact, it is essentially built by the same individuals that built the innovation behind Morning Brew. On the other hand, SubStack targets writers. In the real life, does not matter. Yet, the evident positioning of BeeHiiv towards newsletter development called me out over the more common positioning of being a “creator”. Development is what I’m interested in below.
- That branding and distinction additionally suggests that BeeHiiv has some fairly huge brand names and large publications using it. Whereas SubStack is aimed more at solo developers. Once again, it simply informs me the customer avatar difference between the two companies.
Sending our my newsletter through FluentCRM didn’t exactly suck. The only factor I would consider drinking points up is if I assumed I can expand the checklist quicker. And BeeHiiv spoke specifically to that goal.
Because of the targeting, I actually don’t check out BeeHiiv and Substack as straight competitors. I think BeeHiiv is targeting a different kind of customer. In fact, if anything, I see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being more straight rivals.
But, let’s dive much deeper than just the positioning below.
Points That Make BeeHiiv Better Than Substack
Generally, BeeHiiv looks like it was constructed by people who comprehending email marketing. On the other hand, SubStack appears extra geared toward makers.
As an example, BeeHiiv uses custom areas on subscribers. Currently, it isn’t as developed as something like FluentCRM. Yet, it has it. Substack does not.
BeeHiiv provides Automations. Actually, it is an aesthetic automation builder that works a great deal like what we have inside of FluentCRM.
To be clear, the automation functionality is still early-phase. It is still rather minimal in triggers and the only activity is the capability to send out an e-mail. Nevertheless, improvements are coming. Quickly sufficient, automations will have brand-new triggers as well as new activities, such as customizing custom-made fields, sending out webhooks, etc. I have actually currently seen enhancements to their automations just given that I began using the system. For example:
- Capability to cause automations based upon which specific embed type they came in on.
- Ability to automatically do re-engagement (and handle people based on opens and non-opens).
- Capacity to do fundamental conditional reasoning branches.
Substack does not have automations similar to this. Likely, it never ever will. Substack simply can’t do this because the target audience of Substack just wouldn’t think to approach this like an e-mail marketer.
When it pertains to writing your newsletters, the composing interface of BeeHiiv is simply more geared towards e-newsletters. In fact, it really has resemblances to the WordPress block builder in just how it functions. I locate it to be much more instinctive, directly.
Substack’s creating user interface is nice and tidy, yet it would certainly be much more equivalent to the traditional editor for WordPress. Toolbar on top.
This distinction is more than simply type. For example, with BeeHiiv you can place a “Area” and after that put anything you desire in it. After that, you can put Exposure choices on that particular area to show it only to paid clients, hide it from email, hide from clients, show only to customers, etc. Substack supplies absolutely nothing such as this.
And when/if the time comes that I start a costs membership model, BeeHiiv does not take any type of profits. Actually, you essentially connect approximately your very own Stripe account and it charges straight to it. With Substack, they will take 10% of your profits. Depending upon the amount of subscribers you obtain, that 10% can be a fair bit even more cash than the regular monthly expense of BeeHiiv.
Last but not least, BeeHiiv has an API. This may seem nerdy, but what it implies is that there are integrations with BeeHiiv. You can actually make BeeHiiv work with the outside using tools like Zapier or Make.com. This is HUGE. Substack literally has … absolutely nothing. No integrations whatsoever.
Generally, I simply felt like BeeHiiv was much more built towards real email marketing. It was built by people that “get it”. Also the opt-in types and the landing page makes seem much better constructed for conversions. Development is nitty-gritty with BeeHiiv.
Although there are still features I want to see BeeHiiv add, I such as the direction it is going greater than Substack.
Things That Make Substack Better Than BeeHiiv
As I have actually claimed, Substack placements itself towards “makers” more than email marketing professionals and newsletter owners. For that reason, you see some points tailored a lot more towards individuals that just believe in terms of material production.
For instance, Substack supports podcasts. BeeHiiv does not.
Additionally, while BeeHiiv does support multiple magazines, they are treated fairly individually. Whereas Substack does have the ability to cross-post to several magazines at the same time. This isn’t something I call for, but … awesome for people who could require it.
Substack likewise has more social performance built-in. For example, it has a conversation feature to host chats with subscribers. It also has a “Notes” function which functions type of like a social networks newsfeed where you can share things from various other “Stacks” you read. Intriguing. On the whole, Substack is set up to be more like a social media which supports long-form material.
Generally, Substack is also a lot more … minimalist. You either take care of that or don’t. Personally, I don’t. Nevertheless, if the goal is simplicity of user interface and, frankly, features … Substack functions quite well.
Yet, I’ll be clear here …
When it involves actual marketing, I do not assume there’s much uncertainty that BeeHiiv is much better matched. I searched for more points that make Substack better than BeeHiiv, but truthfully … I have a tough time finding them.
BeeHiiv Vs ConvertKit
While BeeHiiv and Substack are commonly with to be the closest rivals, I actually see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being the closer opponents. Both are pursuing the same target market and have similar capacities.
ConvertKit is likewise positioned at developers (like Substack), however it is far more highly satisfying people who do it for business. ConvertKit has nice aesthetic automation building, it’s very own business platform, and much more. ConvertKit is an actually good platform.
I’m not going to bore you with a complete feature-by-feature malfunction here. ConvertKit is popular currently. But, right here’s how I really feel BeeHiiv and ConvertKit contrast …
Things ConvertKit Is Better At …
As of now, ConvertKit has a lot more adaptability when it concerns it’s automations. I will likewise claim that I locate ConvertKit’s automation builder to be a little bit much more user-friendly than that of BeeHiiv.
ConvertKit supports tagging. This is just a basic function of email checklists that enables division in a far more flexible way than BeeHiiv presently does. I expect BeeHiiv to support tagging eventually quickly, truthfully. It feels like an oversight that it is missing How Many Users Does Beehiiv Have.
ConvertKit does currently give the ability to offer points via their very own platform. BeeHiiv does not. If that is necessary to you, it may be a big deal for you. For me, nonetheless, I would certainly constantly select a more direct choice anyway. For me, I favor to use my very own system powered by WooCommerce.
ConvertKit has been around much longer and therefore has way extra integration options. Lots of online tools and WordPress plugins integrate with ConvertKit. ConvertKit even has their very own WordPress plugin that is quite powerful. As an example, their plugin now even sustains member-gated web content in addition to auto-embed of your e-newsletter archives right into your site. Basically, this much more very closely places ConvertKit right into direct competitors by having you be able to release to your website and your e-mail listing at the same time.
BeeHiiv is severely doing not have in these kinds of third-party integrations currently. It’ll get there. Yet, we’re not there yet with it.
ConvertKit is even active tackling the development tools of BeeHiiv. For example, BeeHiiv has the referral program and the Referral Engine where you can not only incentivize individuals to share your e-newsletter with advantages, yet you can also pay per lead within the inner advertisement network of BeeHiiv to grow your listing. These are actually incredible features of BeeHiiv. However …
Did you know ConvertKit got Sparkloop? Sparkloop is among one of the most popular viral promotion systems for e-newsletters … and ConvertKit bought it. You can see the composing on the wall of what this suggests for the platform going forward.
Points BeeHiiv Is Better At … How Many Users Does Beehiiv Have
BeeHiiv is much previously in it’s product cycle than ConvertKit. Part of that indicates less features and much less integrations, which is natural for this stage of the cycle. Nevertheless, it also indicates that they are quickly establishing.
In the short time that I have been a customer of BeeHiiv, I have experienced virtually weekly release of new features into the system. And these aren’t puny little features … however huge features that are quite vital. Their rate of development at this point has actually been impressive.
I also very much appreciate how responsive they are. Actually, one of their item news concerning some style improvements to the website design features really contained a small issue with the web content size. I simply responded to that email to tell them. I swiftly got a reply straight from the chief executive officer:.
That same day, the issue was repaired.
Few days later on, I provided one more tip …
Indeed, in a bit over a week of that exchange, the capacity to set off automations based on the embed type used was added to the system.
That sort of responsiveness and straight participation of the group is something I truly value.
One more major point of distinction right here is the rate. Both systems use totally free plans, however the BeeHiiv free plan provides much more ability and even more subscribers (2,500 vs 1,000) than ConvertKit.
When you go to paid plans, the pricing of BeeHiiv is also much more positive. ConvertKit appears cheaper in the beginning look because their pricing web page shows lower numbers, however the customer restrictions are FAR reduced and your cost rapidly increases as your list grows.
With BeeHiiv, your initial degree paid plan begins at $42/mo (paid each year), nevertheless you can have up to 10,000 customers. That exact same size list is mosting likely to run you $100/month with ConvertKit.
If you upgrade to the “Range” plan with BeeHiiv (their best plan and the one I personally make use of), you can expand your checklist up to 100,000. A list of that size would run you $566/month with ConvertKit. If you desire their referral network, too, that puts you at the $733/month plan. That’s if you pay every year, as well. With BeeHiiv, you can obtain all that for simply $84/month if you pay each year.
BeeHiiv is in an entirely different organization when it pertains to pricing (in a good way).
Will BeeHiiv at some point increase rates? They may as time goes on. However, I’m thinking individuals like myself that are already in will certainly be locked-in. We’ll see just how points continue.
Points I Would Certainly Like BeeHiiv To Include
One of the important things you certainly require to bear in mind is that BeeHiiv is relatively young. They do appear to evolve rather rapidly and make new item news somewhat often, yet there are some basic features I really desire they had that I require to simply wait on.
One is that they require to have a setup on registration kinds where I could pick an automation to run right at the form degree. That would certainly be remarkable for so many factors. Currently, membership forms look OK, yet there’s very little settings for them to aid in segmentation.
It would be nice to have identifying at the client degree. This would certainly be powerful.
I believe webhooks must become part of automations to make integrated automations simpler and reduce reliance on outdoors tools like Zapier.
There are likewise some small administrative user interface adjustments that would certainly be handy. For instance:
- Ability to mass edit/remove customers.
- Capacity to mass edit blog posts (for instance, to identify a bunch of them at the same time).
- Having a few standard fields as typical on customers (like the name).
- Some more modification options for the internet site (such as more flexible shade selections, heading control, etc).
So, yeah … there are some drawbacks. Things I hope they do with it in the near future. BeeHiiv is pretty good, yet it isn’t best and definitely not nearly as established as something like FluentCRM or any other real CRM item.
It possibly never ever will certainly be, either. As I said, the objective is different so it would not much a great deal of feeling for BeeHiiv to come to be a full marketing automation system. I guess you never understand, though.
Final Ideas On This BeeHiiv Testimonial
I such as BeeHiiv fairly a whole lot. Sufficient where I chose to switch my very own e-newsletters over to the platform despite my personal choice for digital sovereignty and owning my very own platform.
Simply put, for the newsletter publishing model especially, I saw enough value in their system to warrant the adjustment.
Bear in mind, I do not make use of BeeHiiv as my unique e-mail checklist. I make use of BeeHiiv wherefore it is good at, however I intentionally have points establish to ensure that I likewise keep my listing “in residence” inside of FluentCRM.
If you utilize BeeHiiv, I suggest you do the very same. It is just an excellent insurance coverage, for one. However, having a full-featured marketing automation system for your listing will certainly be of high use (FluentCRM is a full marketing automation system and BeeHiiv is not and likely never ever will certainly be).
So, the inquiry is … should YOU utilize BeeHiiv?
In my viewpoint, if you are using Substack now, I ‘d absolutely think about switching over to BeeHiiv. It will merely be much more business-friendly. It is targeting various capacities and various requirements. Plus, BeeHiiv even has import tools for Substack, so the button should be quite simple.
If you are on ConvertKit now, I ‘d most likely stay unless you have a big email list and are as a result being fleeced with their high regular monthly bill. You will not (yet) have every feature of ConvertKit with BeeHiiv, yet they are repeating rapidly. There’s additionally a pretty good possibility you’re not also using several of those fancier features of ConvertKit and you do not even require them. For that reason, BeeHiiv might conveniently be a better and a lot more budget-friendly fit.
Last but not least, if you plan to be extremely deliberate about growing an e-newsletter, I think BeeHiiv is THE platform to think about and maintain and eye on for you.
If you utilize BeeHiiv with eyes wide open regarding what it is developed to be, it is among the most effective video games in town right now. This is the platform to see.
BeeHiiv offers a 14-day trial on their paid plans. It is worth checking out for yourself. And if you end up not sticking with the paid plan, you’ll discover the cost-free account to be quite feature abundant.