Existing newsletter platforms often lack a creator-centric approach. I'm seeking a newsletter platform that allows complete customization of newsletter designs, simplifies the process of writing and sending emails, and offers robust tools for analyzing metrics and expanding subscriber bases.
What is beehiiv?
beehiiv is an integrated platform tailored for newsletters, offering a creator-friendly environment for designing, writing, sending, promoting, monetizing, and tracking the ROI of newsletters.
Developed by former employees of the renowned newsletter company Morning Brew, beehiiv is designed to assist creators in launching and monetizing their newsletters, drawing from the growth strategies that contributed to Morning Brew's success with over 4 million subscribers.
This article details my encounter with beehiiv, highlighting its standout features, pros and cons, and why I ultimately opted for it as my preferred newsletter platform.
Who is beehiiv for?
beehiiv caters to nimble content creators seeking a platform enabling them to create customized newsletters, with or without the necessity of owning a website.
Successful newsletters thrive on possessing the right set of tools to initiate and expand their reach, and beehiiv is tailored to provide these essential resources.
For independent writers, media entities, startups, and content creators, exploring beehiiv is highly recommended. The platform offers a free start, and payment only kicks in once your subscriber count exceeds 2,500.
Paying for beehiiv can serve as a positive indicator that your content resonates with audiences, affirming their genuine interest in what you produce.
How to start using beehiiv
Starting with beehiiv:
Free Plan Registration:
Begin by signing up for the free plan. Access the “Join for free” button on the beehiiv website to get started. This plan offers a substantial range of features, including hosting for your website, a newsletter CMS, advanced customization, analytics, external embed forms, and more, accommodating newcomers or those seeking to transition to a new platform.
Onboarding Process:
After account creation, the onboarding process involves answering queries such as whether it's your first newsletter, your experience with other platforms, and if you have paying subscribers. You'll also name your newsletter and determine its URL, residing on a beehiiv subdomain under the free plan.
Dashboard Navigation:
Upon accessing the main dashboard, detailed analytics and settings become visible. The dashboard provides insights into sign-ups' origin and quantity. The navbar encompasses options like “Dashboard,” “Write,” “Audience,” and “Settings,” granting control over newsletter creation, audience segmentation, and administrative tasks.
Newsletter Composition:
Starting to write content involves minimal barriers in beehiiv. Navigate to the “Write” section, focusing initially on content creation rather than design. The intuitive editor offers a clean interface to structure and stylize your newsletter content, accommodating various media types.
Email Template Customization:
Once the newsletter content is ready, fine-tune your email template and settings. Manage your newsletter's name, description, logo, welcome emails, and other settings within the “Settings” panel. The “Email Template” tab allows detailed customization of colors, borders, fonts, images, and more to tailor your newsletter's appearance.
beehiiv simplifies the newsletter creation process with its user-friendly interface and a comprehensive suite of features. Dive into the free trial to explore its functionalities firsthand.
Essential beehiiv features
beehiiv encompasses an array of impressive features tailored for newsletter creators:
Newsletter Builder:
At its core, beehiiv serves as a straightforward platform for crafting and dispatching emails. The editor's modern and minimalistic interface offers a user-friendly experience for content creation and design customization.
Website Hosting:
Each beehiiv newsletter can be hosted on a dedicated website, acting as a centralized hub for all past issues. Similar to Substack, this feature allows subscribers to access your previous newsletters and provides an avenue for new subscribers to join. While the free plan provides website hosting on a beehiiv subdomain, upgrading to a paid plan allows the addition of a custom domain.
Subscribe Forms:
Acquiring subscribers is pivotal, and beehiiv streamlines this process. The platform offers subscription options directly from the beehiiv-hosted website or through embed forms. These embed forms are versatile, available in three styles (full width, fixed width, slim embed), and can be integrated into an existing website for newsletter sign-ups. Users can track attribution using UTM parameters for analysis purposes.
While these features offer substantial functionality, there are areas where beehiiv's subscription features might benefit from further enhancement, as mentioned in the pros and cons section below.
beehiiv pricing plans
beehiiv presents four distinct pricing plans tailored to suit varying user needs:
Launch Plan (Free):
This plan is designed for starters and offers comprehensive features for nurturing and expanding newsletters, accommodating up to 2,500 subscribers.
Grow Plan:
The Grow plan includes all Launch plan features and extends the subscriber limit to 10,000. It incorporates additional perks such as a custom domain, polling capabilities, and access to premium subscriptions.
Scale Plan:
With everything from the Grow plan, the Scale plan further expands the subscriber limit to 100,000. It introduces priority support and unlocks the referral program feature.
These plans provide substantial value, especially in comparison to other creator email platforms like ConvertKit. For instance, while ConvertKit's free plan restricts users to 300 subscribers, beehiiv offers up to 2,500 subscribers. Even at 100,000 subscribers on the Scale plan, beehiiv charges significantly less at $100/month, making it a cost-effective alternative to ConvertKit, which might cost over $600/month for similar subscriber numbers.
The competitive pricing of beehiiv appears advantageous, potentially positioning it as a more affordable option in the market, especially considering its extensive offerings.
Conclusion
In summary, beehiiv emerges as an exceptional email marketing and newsletter platform in today's market. Its functionalities surpass many competitors, and the availability of a comprehensive free plan makes it an attractive choice for beginners, offering minimal risk in exploring its capabilities.
Moreover, the paid plans are impressively cost-effective considering the features they offer. For instance, the ability to manage 100,000 subscribers for just $100/month is an unparalleled deal. Typically, a newsletter platform with similar capacities and features could cost significantly more.
As someone who rarely writes review posts, I do so only when I've personally used a tool and would confidently recommend it. beehiiv has proven to be an asset that I'd endorse to friends and fellow marketers alike.
If you're keen on enhancing your newsletter marketing strategies or exploring new avenues in marketing, I encourage you to visit the homepage of this website and consider subscribing to Marketer Milk for further insights and strategies.