Flodesk VS Mailchimp: Why I Switched My Email Platform
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Let’s go back to the fall of 2021.
My business needed to adapt to the economic climate of the era and I was looking for every reasonable way to reduce expenses.
Every single transaction in my business’ expense sheet was scrutinized for whether it was needed or not. If it was needed, could it be reduced somehow?
In addition to running over the numbers of my business and cutting back in various areas, I was also asking my Spirit Guides and Angels to help direct me to resources that would help my business grow, while not increasing costs.
One of the expenses that caught my eye and became a target for cost reduction was my newsletter service.
Having a newsletter service is essential when you run a business because it helps you reach your clients directly, independent of the algorithmic changes on various social media platforms and search engines.
While reaching clients on social media and search engines is an important part of digital strategy, it’s not always targeted to your ideal audience.
A newsletter is targeted. It’s filled with your clients who volunteered willingly to hear from you.
Newsletter audiences are your ideal market - they want to hear about what your business offers.
They entered their email into your opt-in form specifically to hear more about what your business does, so they are your ideal, most dedicated fans.
Sadly, though, you can’t simply email your favorite clients in big groups to let them know of sales, workshops, new releases and other things they want to be aware of using your regular email.
CAN-SPAM laws require you to give those receiving business news from you an easy option to take a break and stop getting your updates.
So first and foremost, newsletter services help you legally send business emails with proper opt-out options.
While following Federal Trade Commission regulations matters, newsletter services aren’t all serious business, they do more than just follow the law.
You can use an email service to:
Schedule emails to be sent along timelines you set
Set up workflows to send your clients specific information
Segment emails to only go to certain groups (like sending new releases to your top subscribers first)
Create email courses
And much more
This brings us back to the late 2021.
My business was paying Mailchimp anywhere between $57.23 to $66.77/mo or $750.36/yr for their newsletter service.
This is a lot of money for a small business to pay for a single software.
While Mailchimp had been my email service for almost the entirety of my business’ life, and I really like to be loyal to my vendors, they had also been steadily raising their prices over the years, so I was starting to wonder if they were as loyal to me as I was to them.
Additionally, Mailchimp, like many other newsletter services, charges more money as your email list grows, so as this business expanded, they took bigger and bigger cuts - a practice they continue.
I needed to find a way out of this never ending cycle of inflating prices - the prices weren’t stable and price instability is not good for business.
On top of my desire for a more cost sustainable way to send emails, Mailchimp had changed the plans they offer, so my legacy plan and software system was being phased out.
As a result the backend system was getting increasingly complex to navigate.
I was toggling between the old dashboard I’d learned over the years, to the new dashboard for new clients, with features I wasn’t able to use, being on an old plan.
So here I was: becoming increasingly frustrated with the constant Mailchimp pricing increases and clunky dashboard navigation, researching solutions online and praying for my Spirit Guides to send me an answer.
They both offer an email platform solution and a 14 day free trial, but other than that, there are core differences.
A few differences between Flodesk and Mailchimp:
1 - Flodesk offers unlimited subscribers for the same low rate
Mailchimp still charges more when you gain subscribers.
2 - Flodesk is cheaper in the long run
Flodesk does not have tiered plans based on your number of subscribers.
There’s only Professional and Advanced, both featuring unlimited subscribers, where Advanced gives you added functions for selling products.
Mailchimp’s plans are tiered based on your subscriber numbers and once you hit 500 subscribers, Flodesk is consistently cheaper.
Your list will eventually grow to over 500 subscribers, if it’s not there already.
Based on the list size I have today, had I stayed with Mailchimp, I’d now be paying at least $100/mo or $1,200/yr.
If you calculate the savings at the current Flodesk Professional Plan annual pricing of $420 with what my Mailchimp pricing would be today, I’m paying 65% less.
Even if you do the math using the monthly Flodesk plan rate of $38/mo and the Mailchimp monthly rate for the next level above 500 subscribers, 1,500 subscribers, which is $45/mo, you’re paying 15% less - that’s $84 annually you get to keep in your business.
Flodesk costs less over time with a potential of savings from 15 to 65% as your list grows.
3 - Flodesk offers price stability
I’ve been using Flodesk for 4 years, and have not received a single price increase alert notice. I’ve been paying the same price since my first bill.
With Mailchimp, I did get those dreadful “an important update to your pricing plan” emails.
This hasn’t changed and likely won’t - Mailchimp has continued to increase prices for the same services and list size since I left.
4 - Flodesk templates feature beautiful, intuitive designs
The improved visual and technical design options creates a better experience as you design the email experience and it’s an improved aesthetic experience for your client upon opening the communication.
Mailchimp also has templates for workflows, opt-ins and emails, but Flodesk’s have been more visually beautiful to interact with.
Visual aesthetics make a difference, whether you’re a designer or a receiver.
5 - Flodesk has better performance data tracking
Their process for segmenting and finding different performance metrics for your lists, audiences, emails and user data elements is easy to use and understand.
If you love to get your newsletter systems down to data science art with the aim of a better user experience for all, your Flodesk newsletter data metrics are extremely easy to parse and glean insights from.
Mailchimp also has Performance Data Metrics, but it was easier for me to use and understand the Flodesk data system.
6 - The Flodesk dashboard is more minimalist
It’s simple, easy to navigate and find what you need. It has depth - in terms of being able to access your audience, your emails, your workflows and your data, and it’s well organized. It’s not in a maze of different pages, hidden in deep folders, that you’ll have a hard time finding again.
The Flodesk dashboard deserves an award for how intuitive it is to navigate.
If you enjoy software that makes it easy for you to login, do what you need to go, and log out, Flodesk offers that.
It has an easier to use dashboard with performance metrics that make sense, plus the templates, workflows and opt-in forms feel more elegant and upscale.
This helps create a better front-facing experience for you, when you’re creating your systems, and for your clients, as they get a more beautifully designed form of communication too.
If you enjoy saving money and appreciate elegant design, you’ll love Flodesk. It feels like it was designed by someone who loves the art of sending letters, but in this case, digital ones.
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