When it came time to pick a brand-new email platform, I really did not desire “good enough.” I required something better– something built for development, smarter money making, and a smoother experience overall. After virtually a years helping others with email marketing (and two years running my own e-newsletter), I wasn’t searching for just a tool– I was searching for a correct companion Beehiiv Careers.
Which’s exactly how Beehiiv went into the picture.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Isn’t Beehiiv just another Substack alternative?” I assumed that as well at first. But after three months of kicking the tires and diving deep, I’ve obtained a lot to claim– both the wins and the weird peculiarities. If you’re attempting to determine whether Beehiiv is the right system for you, work out in. You’re about to obtain the whole story.
Why I Left My Old Email Tool Behind
Let’s be sincere– most email company (ESPs) are constructed like they’re still stuck in 2013. I needed a tool that can actually assist grow my listing and make some money while I went to it. My old ESP just had not been sufficing anymore.
So I started contrasting options. Beehiiv, Substack, Kit … the common suspects. Each had its benefits, yet I was looking at this through the lens of a person who takes email seriously– and who desired full control over my audience and material.
The Substack Problem: Looks Excellent Up Until You Look Closer
Substack was my initial quit. It’s polished. It’s easy. And yeah, it’s popular.
But dig a little deeper, and splits start revealing. The most significant one? You do not in fact own your followers.
That “adhere to” switch you see on Substack? It’s mainly smoke and mirrors. Those followers live behind a wall surface– inside the Substack application or on their site. You can not email them directly. Can’t export them. You’re generally renting out an audience you can never completely get to.
It resembles performing on a stage where the lights only switch on if the location decides to let the group see you. Doesn’t really feel great.
And then there’s the cash side. Substack takes 10% off your paid subscriptions. Stripe takes an additional 3%. That’s 13% of your revenue– gone. You would certainly assume they were running a club, not an email platform.
So yeah, Substack? A no for me.
Beehiiv Looked Promising, But Was It Also Great to Be Real?
So what made Beehiiv stand apart?
Initially, it was the pledge of creator-first features– like better money making, smarter list development devices, and no system fees (in addition to the typical Stripe cut). But pledges are easy. Execution? That’s where it obtains real.
Still, the reviews were encouraging. The Reddit threads didn’t sound like bots or brand plants. And the onboarding? Surprisingly smooth.
I figured, “Why not?” and took the jump.
Getting Set Up on Beehiiv
Let me inform you– moving to a new platform generally seems like drawing teeth. Yet Beehiiv? Surprisingly painless.
Importing my checklist? Smooth. Establishing kinds? No disasters. Connecting my customized domain? A couple of minor hiccups, but absolutely nothing that needed swearing at the display.
One thing I actually appreciated was the “domain name warming” feature. Beehiiv slowly introduces your domain to inbox carriers, piggybacking off their very own sending out domain name. Translation? Fewer spam folder headaches.
Likewise, their assistance web content– videos, assistance docs, and walkthroughs– actually felt human. Like someone took a seat and said, “Let’s not frustrate the heck out of our individuals today.” Refreshing.
Automation on Beehiiv: Beehiiv Careers
Currently right here’s where things got a little … fascinating.
Beehiiv’s automation system is good, but don’t anticipate it to compete with heavyweight platforms like ActiveCampaign or ConvertKit. For instance, each kind can just be linked to a solitary automation. That makes it difficult to customize welcome series based on how somebody joined.
I ended up going complete investigative setting– playing with sections, making use of different landing pages, reviewing odd Reddit strings– just to construct a few customized workflows.
Is it manageable? Definitely. But if you’re used to drag-and-drop flowcharts with conditional reasoning, this might seem like stepping back a bit.
Email Builder: Mostly Great, However Not Perfect
I’ve obtained a little a love-hate partnership with Beehiiv’s email builder.
Visually? It’s slick. Drag, go down, layout, sneak peek– it seems like it was created by a person who’s really composed a newsletter or more.
However default templates took a couple of tweaks to solve. And right here’s a curveball: Beehiiv e-mails can obtain big. Like, Gmail-clipping-at-102kb huge.
That indicates your magnificently crafted message may get cut in half if you’re not careful. I discovered this by hand– then went down a rabbit opening of testing devices to enhance HTML dimension and stay clear of that dreaded clipping.
My best approach?
- Downloading and install examination e-mails from Gmail and inspecting dimension
- Running the HTML with Parcel.io’s e-mail customer
- Confirming with Aboutmy.email for deliverability and structure
Little bit of a hand-operated process, yet it works. I even reached out to Beehiiv concerning adding better size cautions. Fingers crossed.
The Stuff That Actually Steps the Needle
Alright, let’s enter into the meat of it– what’s made a tangible distinction considering that switching to Beehiiv?
Audience Development
In just three months, I added over 160 new customers to a rather particular niche newsletter. That’s about 60% greater than what I was seeing in the past– and I had not been even running paid advertisements.
The majority of that growth came from Beehiiv’s integrated tools: the referral program, Boosts (think newsletter cross-promotions), and organic reach. You can really track what’s working and where customers are coming from. Makes tweaking your technique a great deal less complicated.
Monetization That Does Not Nickel-and-Dime You
Let’s talk money because for the majority of creators, it matters.
Beehiiv doesn’t take a cut from your paid subscriptions. Just Stripe’s charge. That’s it. That alone makes it 10% better than Substack (essentially).
But there’s even more: their advertisement network is intuitive and passive. Within 3 months, I was already fielding interest from marketers. Beehiiv’s partner network connects designers with brands in such a way that doesn’t really feel disgusting or required. It’s built-in earnings potential, plain and simple Beehiiv Careers.
And when I prepare to release a premium membership? I understand precisely what reduced I’ll get: all of it (minus Stripe).
Built-in Development Tools
What really sets Beehiiv apart is that growth isn’t an afterthought– it’s baked in.
You’ve obtained personalized referral programs. Boosts for newsletter cross-promotion. Multiple landing pages for tracking lead resources. You can turn your visitors into supporters without dangling unpleasant swag or one-time gimmicks.
I’ll claim this: Beehiiv seems like a system that desires you to succeed. Not one that just wants an item of your pie.
Things I ‘d Still Like to See Improve
No platform is ideal, and Beehiiv’s got its peculiarities.
Assistance can be slow-moving when you struck a weird bug or need deep assistance.
Some automations still feel also fundamental.
Email size monitoring requires far better in-app notifies (please and thank you).
No built-in countdown timers (sad face if you love FOMO emails).
Ecommerce integrations? Essentially missing.
So if you’re marketing physical products or want abandoned cart flows, Beehiiv possibly isn’t your best option.
Final Thought
If you’re a maker who’s serious about e-newsletters– whether you’re generating income from, growing a listing, or simply tired of outdated systems– Beehiiv’s a solid choice.
You’ll like it if:
You want full ownership of your target market
You’re aiming to expand fast without paying platform tax
You desire something that really feels constructed by designers, for designers
Will it solve every issue? No. But in 3 months, it’s assisted me grow much faster, gain much more, and tension less about the little points.
So, should you try Beehiiv?
If you’re ready to stop working out and really range your newsletter with real devices that value your job and target market– yeah, I think it’s time.
Take place. Provide it a spin. You just may fall in love like I did.