I have used a lot of various e-mail list systems throughout the years. In the last couple of years, I have actually been a significant advocate of digital sovereignty and owning your own platform. For that reason (and the incredible features), I have been using Beehiiv Vs GoHighLevel.
So, it is certainly an unusual move for me to make a decision to use BeeHiiv. After all, it is a held application and I am paying month-to-month for it.
Why did I do this?
In this BeeHiiv review, I want to discuss why I made the switch to BeeHiiv for my e-newsletters. I intend to address the concern of digital sovereignty while utilizing the system and I would certainly likewise like to resolve why I selected to use it over Substack.
Allow’s dive in …
BeeHiiv: Built For Newsletters
In Issue # 435 of my e-newsletter called My Pastime + A Big Change In Method, I talked about how and why I determined to transform my motor home blog right into mainly a newsletter. I chose that was business design I wanted to pursue with that said property.
However, to deliberately pursue it as an e-newsletter, I wanted a system that was purpose-built for that. I was making use of FluentCRM for the email list for Gladly RV, but FluentCRM is not a newsletter system. It is built to be a CRM and marketing automation device and, truthfully, using it for e-newsletters is a little a waste. Much more on that in a bit.
As I said because concern of the newsletter …
Put simply, BeeHiiv is a platform with tools built into it certain to my objective. Points such as:
- Ability to release (to the blog) and send the e-mail simultaneously without having it be 2 different actions.
- Built in newsletter referral program. FluentCRM does not have that and I would have needed a third-party tool like Sparkloop.
- Integrated capability to do cross-promotions with various other newsletters on the BeeHiiv system.
- ” Magic Links”, which are primarily one-click registration web links. Great for promo in various other newsletters. FluentCRM has Smart Links, though, so there are means to do that.
- Ability to do paid “boosts” on the BeeHiiv network to promote your e-newsletter.
- Built-in advertisement network, if I pick to generate income from with advertisements in the e-newsletter. And I may.
- Built-in capacity to run a paid newsletter upgrade and generally run a costs e-newsletter. And BeeHiiv does not take a cut.
Generally, BeeHiiv is purpose-built for newsletter publishers with features targeted at growth. The system was actually built by the individuals who built up the innovation for Morning Mixture. They understand what they’re doing.
That is the factor here. BeeHiiv is built from scratch for the purpose of running a newsletter. FluentCRM has a various purpose.
And I ended off with this:.
I might undoubtedly be moving The Edge over to BeeHiiv as well. At least, I’m strongly considering it.
Well, I didn’t consider it for long. In fact, I simply went all out. And in fact, The side was re-branded over to The Morning WP, set off as it’s very own residential or commercial property so that I can expand it much more deliberately also.
The objective is that each e-newsletter has the capability to be branded as it’s very own media entity and grown independently. Gladly recreational vehicle was young, so very easy to change. But, The Early morning WP (previously The Edge) 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 grow it on it’s very own. It will clearly always be closely connected with the Blog Marketing Academy, but does not have to belong of it.
I switched over to BeeHiiv due to the fact that it was constructed for this function. FluentCRM was not.
E-newsletters Versus Just A Typical Email List
There’s a distinction in between an e-newsletter platform and just an e-mail checklist.
You can hold your email listing anyplace you desire and there are a variety of them out there, from Aweber, ActiveCampaign, Drip, ConvertKit … over to self-hosted choices like GroundHogg and FluentCRM.
What’s the distinction?
The key distinction is that, with an e-newsletter system, the act of posting implies that it is mosting likely to your web site and to your email customers all at once.
With both BeeHiiv and Substack, you have a site. You are releasing to that web site. Yet, you are additionally sending off to all subscribers at the same time. The web site and it’s clients are all in one. This makes monitoring of the system much less complex.
With many email platforms, any type of newsletter you established is done as an e-mail campaign. It is constructed completely separately from your site. So, for example, you may release a write-up to WordPress yet after that you would require to individually develop and send an e-mail to your list to send it to clients. These are after that 2 different collections of archives and two different actions due to the fact that article and your emails are not inherently connected.
The closest thing that turns WordPress into a true newsletter system is Newsletter Glue.
It is a fitting name since it virtually “adhesives” your e-newsletter to your WordPress blog posts and allows them to be the same thing. Definitely, something like E-newsletter Glue would certainly be a solid choice if I intended to continue to self-host whatever. Nonetheless, you ‘d lose the growth tools that feature a system like BeeHiiv.
Publishing a newsletter naturally comes with a different set of demands than a regular email list.
You do not generally need much marketing automation. You don’t usually need autoresponder series, event monitoring, and all the bells and whistles of a marketing automation system.
What you DO demand, however, is one seamless posting experience and growth tools to help you build your subscriber base that specify to e-newsletters.
BeeHiiv vs Substack
When I introduced to my subscribers that I was going to switch the e-newsletter over to BeeHiiv, I had many people ask me why I was choosing it over Substack.
To be clear, even besides the fact that I chose to select BeeHiiv, that does not imply I think Substack sucks. Actually, due to the fact that Substack has actually been around longer, it is elder and has even more features.
Despite the fact that BeeHiiv is more youthful, there are a couple things that at first obtained my focus:.
- BeeHiiv is particularly tailored to e-newsletter authors. In fact, it is essentially built by the very same people who built the innovation behind Early morning Mixture. On the other hand, SubStack targets authors. In the real life, doesn’t matter. However, the obvious positioning of BeeHiiv toward newsletter growth called me out over the more common positioning of being a “creator”. Development is what I want below.
- That branding and differentiation likewise suggests that BeeHiiv has some fairly huge brands and large magazines utilizing it. Whereas SubStack is aimed more at solo developers. Once again, it just tells me the consumer avatar distinction in between the two firms.
Sending our my e-newsletter via FluentCRM didn’t exactly draw. The only factor I would contemplate drinking things up is if I assumed I can GROW the listing much faster. And BeeHiiv spoke precisely to that goal.
Due to the targeting, I actually do not view BeeHiiv and Substack as straight rivals. I believe BeeHiiv is targeting a various type of consumer. As a matter of fact, if anything, I see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being a lot more direct competitors.
However, allow’s dive much deeper than simply the positioning here.
Things That Make BeeHiiv Better Than Substack
On the whole, BeeHiiv looks like it was built by people who recognizing email marketing. On the other hand, SubStack appears a lot more geared towards creators.
For instance, BeeHiiv offers customized fields on customers. Currently, it isn’t as created as something like FluentCRM. Yet, it has it. Substack doesn’t.
BeeHiiv offers Automations. As a matter of fact, it is a visual automation builder that works a lot like what we have within FluentCRM.
To be clear, the automation capability is still early-phase. It is still rather restricted in triggers and the only action is the capability to send out an email. Nonetheless, enhancements are coming. Soon sufficient, automations will have brand-new triggers in addition to brand-new actions, such as customizing customized areas, sending out webhooks, etc. I’ve currently seen enhancements to their automations simply because I started using the platform. As an example:
- Ability to cause automations based on which specific embed form they was available in on.
- Capability to immediately do re-engagement (and handle people based on opens up and non-opens).
- Capacity to do standard conditional logic branches.
Substack does not have automations such as this. Likely, it never ever will. Substack simply can not do this because the target audience of Substack simply wouldn’t believe to approach this like an email marketing expert.
When it concerns composing your newsletters, the composing user interface of BeeHiiv is just more tailored toward e-newsletters. Actually, it actually has similarities to the WordPress block builder in just how it works. I find it to be a lot more user-friendly, personally.
Substack’s creating interface behaves and tidy, however it would be much more equal to the traditional editor for WordPress. Toolbar at the top.
This difference is greater than simply type. For example, with BeeHiiv you can insert a “Area” and after that put anything you desire in it. After that, you can place Presence options on that area to reveal it just to paid clients, hide it from email, conceal from subscribers, show only to clients, etc. Substack uses absolutely nothing like this.
And when/if the time comes that I begin a costs registration model, BeeHiiv does not take any type of profits. 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 take 10% of your income. Depending on the amount of customers you get, that 10% can be quite a bit more money than the regular monthly price of BeeHiiv.
Lastly, BeeHiiv has an API. This might appear unpopular, yet what it implies is that there are integrations with BeeHiiv. You can in fact make BeeHiiv work with the outside making use of devices like Zapier or Make.com. This is HUGE. Substack essentially has … absolutely nothing. No integrations whatsoever.
Overall, I simply seemed like BeeHiiv was a lot more developed toward real email marketing. It was built by individuals who “get it”. Also the opt-in forms and the landing page makes appear better built for conversions. Growth is the name of the game with BeeHiiv.
Although there are still features I would like to see BeeHiiv include, I like the instructions it is going greater than Substack.
Things That Make Substack Better Than BeeHiiv
As I have actually said, Substack placements itself towards “designers” greater than email online marketers and newsletter proprietors. For that reason, you see some points tailored extra toward individuals that simply think in terms of material creation.
As an example, Substack supports podcasts. BeeHiiv does not.
Additionally, while BeeHiiv does sustain multiple publications, they are treated fairly individually. Whereas Substack does have the capability to cross-post to several publications at the same time. This isn’t something I require, yet … awesome for individuals who might require it.
Substack additionally has even more social capability built-in. As an example, it has a conversation function to host chats with customers. It also has a “Notes” feature which functions kind of like a social media newsfeed where you can share points from other “Stacks” you’re reading. Intriguing. Overall, Substack is set up to be a lot more like a social network which supports long-form material.
In general, Substack is additionally extra … minimal. You either look after that or don’t. Personally, I don’t. Nevertheless, if the goal is simpleness of user interface and, truthfully, features … Substack functions quite well.
But, I’ll be clear below …
When it involves real marketing, I don’t think there’s much doubt that BeeHiiv is better fit. I tried to find even more factors that make Substack better than BeeHiiv, yet honestly … I have a tough time finding them.
BeeHiiv Vs ConvertKit
While BeeHiiv and Substack are frequently via to be the closest competitors, I in fact see BeeHiiv and ConvertKit being the closer opponents. Both are going after the exact same target market and have comparable capacities.
ConvertKit is additionally placed at designers (like Substack), however it is far more highly accommodating people who do it for organization. ConvertKit has nice aesthetic automation building, it’s own business system, and much more. ConvertKit is a really wonderful platform.
I’m not going to birthed you with a complete feature-by-feature break down here. ConvertKit is well known currently. But, here’s just how I really feel BeeHiiv and ConvertKit compare …
Things ConvertKit Is Better At …
Currently, ConvertKit has extra flexibility when it comes to it’s automations. I will certainly likewise say that I locate ConvertKit’s automation builder to be a little bit a lot more instinctive than that of BeeHiiv.
ConvertKit sustains marking. This is just a basic feature of e-mail listings that makes it possible for segmentation in a much more versatile way than BeeHiiv presently does. I anticipate BeeHiiv to sustain identifying at some point quickly, truthfully. It feels like an oversight that it is missing Beehiiv Vs GoHighLevel.
ConvertKit does currently give the capability to offer points through their own system. BeeHiiv does not. If that’s important to you, it might be a big deal for you. For me, nevertheless, I would always select a more direct option anyhow. For me, I favor to utilize my own platform powered by WooCommerce.
ConvertKit has been about much longer and because of that has way more integration choices. Tons of web-based tools and WordPress plugins integrate with ConvertKit. ConvertKit also has their very own WordPress plugin that is quite effective. As an example, their plugin currently even sustains member-gated material as well as auto-embed of your e-newsletter archives right into your website. In essence, this much more very closely places ConvertKit into direct competition by having you have the ability to release to your site and your email listing at the same time.
BeeHiiv is significantly lacking in these kinds of third-party integrations presently. It’ll get there. However, we’re not there yet with it.
ConvertKit is even busy dealing with the growth tools of BeeHiiv. For example, BeeHiiv has the referral program and the Recommendation Engine where you can not only incentivize people to share your e-newsletter with advantages, but you can likewise pay per lead within the inner ad network of BeeHiiv to grow your list. These are truly awesome features of BeeHiiv. Yet …
Did you know ConvertKit got Sparkloop? Sparkloop is one of one of the most popular viral promo platforms for e-newsletters … and ConvertKit bought it. You can see the composing on the wall surface wherefore this means for the platform moving forward.
Points BeeHiiv Is Better At … Beehiiv Vs GoHighLevel
BeeHiiv is a lot previously in it’s item cycle than ConvertKit. Part of that indicates much less features and much less integrations, which is all-natural for this stage of the cycle. Nonetheless, it likewise indicates that they are rapidly establishing.
In the short time that I have actually been a customer of BeeHiiv, I have actually experienced virtually regular launch of brand-new features right into the platform. And these aren’t weak little features … but large features that are rather crucial. Their rate of growth at this point has actually gone over.
I additionally very much appreciate how receptive they are. In fact, among their item announcements regarding some layout enhancements to the web design features actually contained a tiny issue with the content size. I simply responded to that e-mail to tell them. I rapidly got a reply straight from the chief executive officer:.
That very same day, the concern was taken care of.
Few days later, I gave them one more recommendation …
Indeed, in a bit over a week of that exchange, the ability to set off automations based upon the embed form utilized was included in the system.
That sort of responsiveness and straight participation of the team is something I truly appreciate.
Another major factor of differentiation below is the rate. Both systems supply free plans, nonetheless the BeeHiiv free plan uses more capacity and even more clients (2,500 vs 1,000) than ConvertKit.
As soon as you go to paid plans, the pricing of BeeHiiv is likewise FAR more beneficial. ConvertKit appears less costly in the beginning glance since their pricing web page reveals reduced numbers, nonetheless the client limits are FAR lower and your rate swiftly increases as your listing expands.
With BeeHiiv, your first level paid plan starts at $42/mo (paid annually), however you can have up to 10,000 subscribers. That very same dimension listing is going to run you $100/month with ConvertKit.
If you update to the “Range” plan with BeeHiiv (their ideal plan and the one I personally make use of), you can grow your listing as much as 100,000. A list of that size would certainly run you $566/month with ConvertKit. If you want their referral network, too, that places you at the $733/month plan. That’s if you pay each year, as well. With BeeHiiv, you can obtain all that for just $84/month if you pay each year.
BeeHiiv remains in an entirely various league when it pertains to pricing (in an excellent way).
Will BeeHiiv eventually raise costs? They may as time takes place. However, I’m presuming individuals like myself who are currently in will certainly be locked-in. We’ll see exactly how things continue.
Things I Would Like BeeHiiv To Add
One of the important things you definitely need to keep in mind is that BeeHiiv is fairly young. They do seem to progress instead promptly and make new item news rather commonly, yet there are some basic features I really want they had that I require to just wait on.
One is that they require to have a setup on membership types where I can select an automation to run right at the type degree. That would be remarkable for numerous reasons. Already, subscription kinds look OK, however there’s very little setups for them to aid in segmentation.
It would behave to have labeling at the client degree. This would be powerful.
I believe webhooks ought to be part of automations to make built-in automations simpler and reduce dependence on outside tools like Zapier.
There are additionally some minor management user interface changes that would certainly come in handy. For example:
- Capability to mass edit/remove customers.
- Ability to mass edit blog posts (as an example, to label a lot of them at the same time).
- Having a couple of standard fields as common on customers (like the name).
- Some even more customization alternatives for the internet site (such as more adaptable color selections, heading control, etc).
So, yeah … there are some imperfections. Things I wish they do with it in the future. BeeHiiv is pretty good, yet it isn’t best and absolutely not almost as developed as something like FluentCRM or any other genuine CRM product.
It probably never will be, either. As I said, the purpose is various so it would not much a great deal of feeling for BeeHiiv to become a complete marketing automation platform. I guess you never ever know, though.
Final Thoughts On This BeeHiiv Evaluation
I like BeeHiiv quite a lot. Enough where I made a decision to change my very own e-newsletters over to the platform despite my personal choice for digital sovereignty and owning my own platform.
Put simply, for the e-newsletter publishing model especially, I saw enough worth in their system to warrant the modification.
Bear in mind, I do not use BeeHiiv as my exclusive email list. I use BeeHiiv wherefore it is good at, however I deliberately have things set up to make sure that I likewise keep my list “in residence” within FluentCRM.
If you use BeeHiiv, I recommend you do the very same. It is simply a great insurance coverage, for one. However, having a full-featured marketing automation system for your listing will be of high use (FluentCRM is a complete marketing automation platform and BeeHiiv is not and likely never ever will certainly be).
So, the concern is … should YOU utilize BeeHiiv?
In my opinion, if you are using Substack right now, I ‘d certainly take into consideration changing to BeeHiiv. It will simply be more business-friendly. It is targeting different capacities and different demands. And also, BeeHiiv even has import tools for Substack, so the button should be pretty straightforward.
If you get on ConvertKit now, I ‘d probably stay put unless you have a huge email listing and are therefore being wooled with their high month-to-month expense. You will certainly not (yet) have every feature of ConvertKit with BeeHiiv, but they are iterating promptly. There’s additionally a respectable possibility you’re not even making use of several of those fancier functions of ConvertKit and you don’t even require them. Because of that, BeeHiiv might easily be a much better and much more inexpensive fit.
Last but not least, if you plan to be extremely deliberate about growing a newsletter, I believe BeeHiiv is THE platform to take into consideration 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 one of the very best video games in town right now. This is the system to enjoy.
BeeHiiv uses a 14-day trial on their paid plans. It is worth checking out for yourself. And if you end up not sticking to the paid plan, you’ll discover the complimentary account to be rather feature rich.