ConvertKit vs. Mailchimp: Why I Chose ConvertKit
ConvertKit keeps things functional and simple—in a good way.
I myself am a small business owner, and I serve creative and wellness entrepreneurs who don’t have a lot of time to futz around with email marketing.
I know how important it is to have an easy-to-use, reliable email service provider that you enjoy using, and ConvertKit and Mailchimp are often at the top of small business owners’ lists.
So which email service provider should you choose—ConvertKit or Mailchimp?
The title of this post contains the spoiler: I went with ConvertKit*.
*Full disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post and I may receive a small commission if you sign up, but I only recommend services and software that I use myself, have used, or like and can recommend!
Who is ConvertKit for?
ConvertKit says:
“Do you identify as an online creator? Are you a blogger, podcaster, YouTuber, maker, course creator, freelancer, coach, musician, or photographer? Do you make digital or physical products, provide services, build software, or have ads, sponsorships, or affiliate products and market or sell those things online?”
I’d say this is a good description, because I probably wouldn’t recommend ConvertKit to a massive corporation, or companies that rely on heavily designed newsletters.
ConvertKit is great for businesses who want to keep emails and email marketing simple, while also having robust functionality available when needed.
It’s for serious entrepreneurs who want to focus on the content of emails, and using email marketing to achieve marketing goals, such as increasing revenue.
(Not sure how email marketing can help your business? Read my post Why Email Marketing is So Important for Small Businesses.)
Why I love ConvertKit so much
Ease of use
I was able to get a handle on the platform so quickly. That’s what made me confident that it would be a good choice for small business owners and digital entrepreneurs—even those who aren’t super-savvy with tech.
Like any software, there is a learning curve and some idiosyncrasies, so if you’re tech-challenged, hire someone like myself to set it up for you, hire a VA, or give yourself a bit of time to learn it and get comfortable.
Doesn’t overwhelm
If you just want to send a weekly email, you’re covered. If you need serious functionality, you’re covered.
But unlike Mailchimp, there aren’t a million things you can do with it, which is truly comforting as an entrepreneur. More choices does not equal better!
I love that there is a stopping point on the platform.
I actually want to use it
I no longer avoid my weekly newsletter now that I don’t have to spend time drag-and-dropping images or formatting text. I created one template that I use each week; occasionally I spice it up with an image.
Keeping it simple means I’ll actually write and send the email.
For most entrepreneurs and small businesses, your emails don’t have to be a design feat. When I was using the design-focused email marketing software Flodesk, I found that I was spending way too much time designing, and the stress and time made me not want to write emails—not good!
Also, simple emails often have better deliverability. Read ConvertKit’s article on why fancy emails aren’t the answer.
Robust functionality
Functionality is SO important when you’re sending emails. When I was using Flodesk I wasn’t able to tag subscribers, and at the time I couldn’t resend to people who didn’t open my email—it was a dealbreaker.
Make sure whatever email service provider you’re using has the functionality that you need!
ConvertKit functionality includes:
Resend your “broadcast” (a.k.a. email or newsletter) to those who didn’t open with the same or different subject line, giving them another chance to open
Tag your subscribers with labels so you know who’s interested in what blog post, or who bought a specific product
Segment your subscribers (i.e. send emails just to customers or just to leads)—here’s more information on how to use ConvertKit to segment your subscribers
Link triggers, i.e. automated tagging, such as when someone clicks a link they are tagged as interested in that product or service
Send automated marketing emails based on interest or purchase
Automation rules, i.e. when someone purchases a specific product, send them into a specific email sequence
Integrates with a bunch of other software so that you can get email signups or send customers into a sequence when they’re using other software, such as Acuity Scheduling or Teachable
But again—if you’re just starting out with email marketing, you can just use the basics and it works great! Which brings me to…
Has a free plan
ConvertKit’s free plan allows you to build your email list (up to 1000 subscribers), deliver lead magnets and sell your digital product—all without an upfront investment.
On the free plan you can’t use sequences or automations BUT you can:
capture leads on a landing page that’s easy to design on a customized domain
deliver a freebie / lead magnet via the incentive email
sell a digital product and track it on the platform
All for free. It’s a great way to get started with a business without even having a website...
Have I converted you yet? 😉 You can sign up for a free ConvertKit plan here*.
Why I Don’t Love Mailchimp
It’s clunky and not intuitive
I used Mailchimp back in 2013 when I ran a digital marketing department at a nonprofit; I also used it when I first started my website design business in early 2019; and I have set up Mailchimp for many clients.
I find the Mailchimp interface to be too busy and complicated. There are a lot of things that needs to be customized with branding, and it felt overwhelming even for me, a tech-savvy website designer.
I thought: this will overwhelm my clients, so I cannot recommend it. I value simplicity, so ConvertKit fits the bill better.
Only lets you have one opt-in form per list
This is a dealbreaker. I have a bunch of different opt-in forms for different audiences and freebies. You can utilize a forms plugin or software such as Gravity Forms, but this is something that should come standard and does in ConvertKit.
Reasons You Might Love Mailchimp
The Drag-and-Drop Builder
Mailchimp has a drag-and-drop email builder that’s fairly intuitive and makes it easy enough to design a newsletter, plus they have pre-made templates. It’s good if you want to have newsletters with a lot of images.
ConvertKit has three simple templates. You can always add your logo and images, change the fonts and colors, but the design in ConvertKit is meant to be simple.
Because my emails focus more on the content, making things feel personalized, and because I don’t want to spend a bunch of time designing emails, the drag-and-drop builder wasn’t attractive to me. I also wouldn’t recommend spending a bunch of time on designed newsletters when you’re an entrepreneur—your time is precious and pretty emails don’t necessarily translate to sales or revenue!
If you want other marketing functionality—not just email marketing.
Mailchimp has a bunch of other offerings, such as the ability to create social media posts and ads through the platform. They also have advanced information about your contacts, such as predicted demographics, locations and sources (where people came from). Mailchimp can serve as a customer relationship management (CRM) software in addition to straight email marketing.
(Note: These features require the paid plan.)
You don’t want to pay for an email service provider.
Mailchimp’s free plan is free until you hit 2000 subscribers, while ConvertKit’s free plan is until you hit 1000 subscribers.
Note that you won’t be able to remove the Mailchimp logo from your emails until you upgrade to a paid plan.
Conclusion
ConvertKit* is for you if you value simplicity and ease of use, want a streamlined interface with powerful email marketing functionality. You also like the idea of being able to sell a digital product from the platform.
Mailchimp is for you if you value newsletters that have more design options, integration with social media posts and ads, marketing tools other than emails, and if you plan to use Mailchimp as your customer relationship management software. You’re okay with having a lot of bells and whistles and you don’t find it overwhelming.
But for the typical creative or wellness entrepreneur, I’m partial to ConvertKit! 💁🏻♀️
