If you’re looking for a reliable email marketing tool, we’ve got two great services you might want to look at - Convertkit and Mailchimp. These two platforms offer outstanding automation options and multiple personalization features. Read this Convertkit vs Mailchimp comparison and find out which tool is better for you.
Written By Jason Rowse - Digital Marketing Expert Updated: 09/02/2021 |
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Score | 8/10 | 8.4/10 |
Summary | ConvertKit is a simple and straightforward platform that will provide you with sufficient email automation and design options, as well as good personalization features. | Mailchimp is a highly intuitive platform for marketers of any level. The multiple training resources and advanced analytics and automation options make it a great tool. |
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Best fit for | Bloggers, eCommerce businesses, content creators. | Marketers of any level, content creators |
Both Mailchimp and ConvertKit have a good selection of ready-made emails that help you create email campaigns faster.
ConvertKit can help you design beautiful email campaigns. However, you can only do this by starting from 3 main templates: classic, modern, or text only. These three options represent text emails you can personalize with different fonts, color choices, or other graphic elements.
Mailchimp features a wide array of themed templates that is close to 100. These templates are divided into several categories. You can get anything from newsletters to promotional email templates for online shops, or event invitation templates. Moreover, there are also 14 blank templates you can populate with your own design.
Mailchimp is better as it offers numerous templates.
By segmenting your audience according to their interests, your open rates and conversions are more likely to increase. Here are ConvertKit vs Mailchimp’s segmentation features.
CovertKit’s specialty is segmentation. This tool doesn’t divide your contacts into lists but allows you to assign tags to subscribers or place them on a sequence or form to categorize them. You can also create separate sequences for users with similar interests, even if they are not on the same form or have different tags. Overall, the process is very flexible.
Mailchimp, on the other hand, enables you to create different lists. This feature will help you keep your contacts separated according to the criteria you choose to implement when building each list. If you’re using several lists and you find duplicate contacts on more than one list, be aware that the tool will charge you for the duplicates. Tags and segments are also available.
This time, we prefer ConvertKit because its contacts management process is faster and simpler.
Through automated workflows, you can send emails to your entire contacts list at desired times. You can also send specific action-triggered emails after a purchase or a new subscription.
Convertkit’s automated workflows are based on sequences, which represent emails that are sent sequentially depending on users’ actions. There are multiple triggers you can use to implement these workflows and you can even combine more sequences. Every automation is based on a maximum of 5 entry points. Furthermore, the platform also boasts a visual automation builder to help you set up your sequences easier.
To find Mailchimp’s automation tools, you don’t have an icon or a dedicated section. You need to go to the Campaigns tab and click on ‘Create an email’. The automation creation process is not very visual. There are multiple ready-made workflows you can choose from, such as abandoned cart emails or emails triggered by visitors’ behavior on your website.
We choose ConvertKit this time as it provides a more straightforward automation-building process.
| You may also like the following comparison: Mailchimp vs ActiveCampaign |
Forms are another essential aspect any reliable email marketing platform should provide. They will help you gather leads and gain more insights into your audience.
With ConvertKit, you can easily customize your forms and add new fields by using a visual editor. You can also add different dropdown lists to your form to make it more user-friendly. To implement these forms, you can either embed them or choose the options pop-up or slide-in. You can also hide forms from those website users who have already completed them.
Mailchimp’s forms work similarly. You can also embed them or choose to use the pop-up format. You’ve got two options to start building forms; you can begin the process from the ‘Campaigns’ section or ‘Lists’. The form builder is quite intuitive. It is based on a visual drag-and-drop functionality.
ConvertKit’s editor seems to be easier to use, so here is another point for this platform.
Tests are essential when you want to create efficient email marketing campaigns. Here is a quick ConvertKit vs Mailchimp testing comparison.
ConvertKit offers a set of basic testing capabilities. You can carry out simple A/B tests to check out how different subject lines work. The testing process is fast and easy: you can add different subject lines when creating an email. However, there are no spam tests or design option testing, but there is an email preview function.
Mailchimp is more generous in terms of testing features. You can check your emails’ look by accessing the desktop and mobile previews. You can also use the inbox preview option to see how your emails will look in different email inboxes. There is also an option that signals if there are any missing links in your emails. A/B and multivariate testing tools are also available.
Since it provides a wider array of testing capabilities, this time the winner is Mailchimp.
Both platforms offer different payment plans. Moreover, both also have a free version.
ConvertKit offers three payment plans. The first option is a free version you can use for a maximum of 1,000 subscribers. This plan grants you access to unlimited landing pages and form templates, send email broadcast functionality, email support, digital products, and subscription sell features. You can’t use the automated sequences or access reports with this limited plan.
The second tier, called Creator, also includes automated funnels and sequences and free migration service from other tools. This plan costs $29/month. The third tier is the Creator Pro plan. It costs $59/month and includes all the features of the free tier, and the Creator plan, plus a newsletter referral system, subscriber scoring features, advanced reports, Facebook audience customization tools.
MailChimp provides four pricing options. The free plan is available for up to 2000 contacts and it includes the email builder, marketing CRM, creative assistant, landing pages and forms templates, website builder, and Mailchimp domain.
Next comes the Essential plan, which costs $9.99/month, and includes email templates, A/B testing, customized journey builder, multi-step subscriber journey, 24/7 support. The Standard plan is the next tier. It costs $14.99/month and brings the following additional features; send-time optimization, dynamic email building process, behavioral tagging, custom templates.
For high-volume senders, there is also the Premium plan. Here, the prices start at $299/month. The extras you get with this plan include advanced segmentation features, multivariate testing, phone support, comparative reports, role-based access and an unlimited number of users.
Although ConvertKit’s advanced plan costs less than MailChimp’s, the latter also offers a more robust package. For this reason, we consider MailChimp the winner.
Both these tools are relatively easy to use, even if you have little or no experience in the email marketing field, and offer numerous training resources.
Convertkit features fewer options, which makes it more user-friendly than many of its rivals. Although this platform doesn’t provide a drag-and-drop email builder, it enables you to easily change colors, fonts, or images when editing your text emails.
ConvertKit also offers demo videos for each essential feature, which helps you save a lot of time when you’re just getting started. Moreover, there are multiple other educational and training resources you can access. When you access the platform for the first time, you also get checklists that guide your steps towards creating your first sequences.
Mailchimp’s features are super useful. Mailchimp has a straightforward drag-and-drop editor that allows you to easily add or eliminate content. Just like ConvertKit, Mailchimp also has plenty of guides and training resources. Moreover, you get personalized tips from the platform once you configure your account.
Because Mailchimp features a drag-and-drop editor that’s based on a simple, visual approach, we declare it the winner.
If you can connect your email tool to other apps, you’ll easily share data and manage more accounts from your email marketing platform dashboard. Let’s see what integrations these two services offer.
ConvertKit provides a good selection of integrations with different platforms and marketing tools, more than 90, to be specific. However, one of the main things it lacks in this regard is the integration with eCommerce platforms such as WooCommerce.
Some of the most important platforms you would want to and could easily integrate with ConvertKit include WordPress, Stripe, Wix, Squarespace, Acuity Scheduling, or Zapier. If you want to integrate any other tools with ConvertKit, you can do this through their API; the platform has several useful guides on how to do this.
When it comes to integrations, it’s hard to outperform Mailchimp, and we’re not only talking about the Convertkit vs Mailchimp comparison. This tool is generally one of the best options on the market in terms of integrations, having more than 200 third party integrations.
Some of the most common tools you can integrate with your Mailchimp account include WordPress, GoogleAnalytics, Canva, ClickFunnels, Xero. Mailchimp also offers a useful integration with PayPal. Moreover, you can connect different eCommerce platforms with your Mailchimp account. CRM, content management system (CMS), and social media platforms are other integrations you can benefit from.
Due to its impressive number of integrations and the fact that you can also easily use it for an eCommerce business, Mailchimp is the winner.
Reports allow you to see how effective your email campaigns are. Both of these platforms offer reporting features, find out which one excels at this chapter.
ConvertKit offers a rather basic package of reports. However, they can be sufficient if you're in the early stages of creating email marketing campaigns. You can get different landing page reports with this platform and easily see how many people have subscribed to your list, how many visitors you’ve got, and how well your conversions are going.
ConvertKit also allows you to see which referring links perform better so that you can understand where most of your traffic comes from. To see how each email campaign unfolds, you need to go to that specific campaign or select an email sequence, which is a bit of a bummer as it’s more time-consuming since there’s no specific reporting section.
MailChimp, on the other hand, offers advanced reporting features. The amount of data you can collect from their reports is outstanding and it can help you improve your email marketing efforts, especially if you’re an experienced marketer who’s used to working with complex analytics.
Some of the reports you can generate from this platform include hourly performance analytics, domain performance analytics, social statistics, click maps, sales reports, and plenty more. Another nice addition is the comparison reporting feature that enables you to understand how effective your campaigns are compared to the average open rate or bounce rate statistics.
Mailchimp is once again the winner since it provides a wider array of reports containing useful insights.
| You may also like the following comparison: ConvertKit vs ActiveCampaign |
Customer support is always important when choosing an email platform. There are plenty of questions you might have and your platform of choice should be able to support you.
In terms of customer support, ConvertKit won’t let you down. There are multiple assistance options available. The easiest way to get help is through the platform’s sticky help button you can access once you log in to your account.
Moreover, this platform also offers you the possibility to get help via live chat, from Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM. This is also the schedule during which you can contact their team via email. These two support options are also available at the weekend, although their working hours are limited in this period.
There is also a user support forum where you can get in touch with other people who are using the tool. The platform also boasts a comprehensive knowledge base with lots of useful articles and resources.
MailChimp has a different approach when it comes to their customer support options. They try to provide as many training resources as possible in order to help users navigate through their platform without requiring extra help from an agent. To this point, they offer a complex Knowledge Center where you get a large variety of articles.
All their resources are filled with screenshots that help you easily solve problems. Video tutorials are also available. After you start browsing through their resources, you will gradually be directed to the page where you can submit a ticket, in case you couldn’t find the answer you were looking for.
Depending on the pricing plan you opt for, you also get round-the-clock email support or phone support, with the Premium plan.
It’s easy to pick a winner for this category, and the winner is ConvertKit due to its multiple support options.
Due to their different capabilities, each one of these two tools are more suitable in certain situations and for specific purposes.
ConvertKit is a great option for individuals who are managing their personal blogs and want to make them profitable. With the free plan, you might even be able to cover all your blog’s email marketing necessities for a while. This tool is also suitable for small businesses that need basic reporting tools and plenty of list segmentation options.
Since it doesn’t have a drag-and-drop email editor, ConvertKit is more suitable for the tech-savvy.
Mailchimp is definitely the tool you should be using if you work in the eCommerce field as it provides you the possibility to integrate your eCommerce platform or CRM.
Due to its user-friendly interface and its drag-and-drop email builder, this tool can be a good option for marketers of any level. If you’re running a small business and you’re also in charge of your marketing strategy, even with little experience or knowledge, you can easily get started using Mailchimp.
Each one of these two email marketing software services has its advantages and disadvantages. You should carefully consider them based on your current needs before you decide to opt for one of them.
ConvertKit is a great email marketing option for bloggers and content creators. It was mainly developed for their needs, but it can also work very well for small businesses. This platform provides all the basic features you might need to set up a successful email marketing strategy for your blog or company. It is pretty straightforward, with a simple and accessible interface, and offers a wide variety of customer support options, plenty of integration, good segmentation features, and a simple way to create and style your emails.
What ConvertKit doesn’t offer, however, is integration with eCommerce platforms and a drag-and-drop editor. The reporting features are also pretty basic compared to other similar platforms.
MailChimp offers a robust package of useful features including complex reports, a multitude of forms and email design options, and good list segmentation features. This platform is highly intuitive and the fact that it features a drag-and-drop editor is another benefit. Thanks to this capability, you can create email campaigns fast and easily.
Another advantage is the fact that Mailchimp can be integrated with several eCommerce platforms. However, this tool is not very efficient in terms of customer support. It’s a bit harder to get in touch with their agents, and some contact options are only available for the most expensive pricing plan which is significantly higher than that of other services in this niche.
Both ConvertKit and Mailchimp offer an array of reliable features. They are similar in terms of pricing plans, and the email building and personalization processes are pretty intuitive on both platforms. However, in the above comparison, Mailchimp was the winner in most categories due to its advanced reporting features, multiple integrations, and drag-and-drop editor.
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