Let’s start with the essential thing: ConvertKit is not suited to people who want to create visually appealing emails.

It has a fundamental Email Editor, and it has only a few templates that are not very appealing from a design standpoint.

ConvertKit believes more straightforward emails perform better, and this is intentional. This is an unusual approach.

User experience suffers when you put less care and attention into one feature. ConvertKit’s email editor is more complicated to learn and use than some of its competitors, and it takes more time to create emails.

Plus, it lacks many essential features you need to make sure your simple emails work correctly and are free from typos. There are no link- or spell-check options, and you can’t preview the email according to your device or email client.

ConvertKit is a tool for who?

ConvertKit is an email marketing software primarily geared towards bloggers and people who sell products online but not those who wish to target multiple audiences.

Despite this, ConvertKit isn’t suitable for anyone without technical knowledge, as there are options within the email editor that require inserting code snippets.

The features of ConvertKit

The features of ConvertKit are excellent. The autoresponder, subscriber management, and form-building features are perfect. Its email editor, however, is lacking.

There is no option to create an email from the menu. Instead, you must choose either the Broadcast option (which sends an individual email) or Sequences (which sends a series of related emails).

This is a significant oversight because creating an attractive email is a key component of a successful campaign, so unless you have design and coding resources, you will only make the most basic emails.

Email editor

First, let’s get the bad news out of the way. ConvertKit’s email editor is a disappointment. Since the company has created outstanding features for setting up and managing email campaigns, it is surprising that they didn’t dedicate more time to the email editor.

A minimal range of email and newsletter templates is available, and editing options are fundamental.

Style attributes include background and content color, font, and button style. You can personalize the subject line by copying and pasting a code snippet.

No preview, spam-check, or spell-check options are available. Comparing ConvertKit’s email editor to Mailchimp or SendPulse is far below par.

Subscriber management

Instead of lists, email tags are used to manage subscribers (the term ConvertKit is used for contacts). The tags can be specified (for example, subscribers imported on November 1st), and a subscriber can have as many tags as you like.

You can choose which autoresponders, forms, and tags to add subscribers to when you’re adding them. You can also import subscribers from another email marketing provider with ConvertKit.

ConvertKit is highly analytics-focused, and this extends to subscribers. It tracks important subscriber metrics, including

• New subscribers
• Total subscribers
• Average open rate
• Average click rate

You can also get granular reports on purchase metrics if you run an online store, such as which products your subscribers have bought and what channels they used to make the purchase.

Segmentation

Segmenting your customers is key if you want to deliver customized content to specific audiences. By using ConvertKit, you can create segments based on as many conditions as you wish, both excluding and including customers.

You can apply under the following conditions:

• Location
• Subscription date
• Purchase behavior

Read our email marketing automation guide.

Forms and landing pages

ConvertKit’s landing page and form-building capabilities are excellent. Like all other features, it’s presented in a beautifully designed user interface.

Along with templates and the usual design editing options (color, font, background, text size, etc. ), ConvertKit offers many advanced features.

These include:

• When a customer fills out the form, what action should be taken
• Automatically sending incentive emails to new subscribers
• Changing what’s shown to returning visitors
• Altering text is shown in search results and social media

Using the built-in forms and landing pages reports, you can see how many visitors, subscribers, and conversions you are getting, so you can make changes if necessary.

If you don’t have a website, don’t worry, ConvertKit will host your landing page on its server and domain.

Autoresponders

Autoresponders are emails sent automatically when a customer takes action or another condition is met, such as three days since the last email.

ConvertKit makes it easy to create complex autoresponders. The first step is to choose the condition, action, or event. This includes:

• Adding and tagging new subscribers
• Filling out a form
• Purchasing a product

Additionally, ConvertKit provides automation templates that you can use if you’re not sure what steps will work best to reach your goal. Among these templates are:

• Host a webinar
• Launch a product
• Follow up with customers who haven’t purchased
• Newsletters optimized to send according to when customers are most likely to open them

ConvertKit’s user-friendly interface

Upon logging in to ConvertKit, it asks you if you are migrating from another email newsletter software and already have a website. The interface and options are then configured accordingly.

To help you get started with its email tools, ConvertKit offers a checklist.

The options are related to the mechanics of running a campaign (segmenting, automating sequences, etc.) rather than the email itself.

You can get acquainted with the solution using the extensive content provided by ConvertKit. To help you understand how each feature works, it displays a video on the relevant page the first time you use it.

There is no main dashboard where you can see all the aspects of your campaign; you can access all the relevant information in the respective menus.

Because there is no option to create an email, you have to experiment with the solution before realizing that you need to choose either the Broadcast or Sequences option.

Pricing for ConvertKit

ConvertKit’s free plan has limitations. You can send unlimited emails to up to 1,000 recipients per month, as well as create landing pages and signup forms. Autoresponders and segmentation are not included.

The two paid plans offered by ConvertKit are expensive for what they offer. Its least expensive plan is the Creator, which is only for 1,000 subscribers and costs $29 per month. Reporting is not included in this plan.

With the Creator Pro plan, prices start at $59 for 1,000 subscribers.

Support for ConvertKit

The support options offered by ConvertKit are good. All plans come with full live chat, email support from 8 am to 8 pm EST Monday through Friday and limited service on the weekends and evenings.

The sticky button makes it easy to access these features.

The ConvertKit online community offers peer-to-peer support and an extensive collection of help documents. It also displays demo videos on each main feature page to help you get the most out of its features.

Benefits of ConvertKit

ConvertKit’s analytics-driven approach lets you quickly understand if all aspects of your email marketing campaigns are performing as expected.

It tracks email not only opens and clicks but also the performance of your landing pages and signup forms and how successful your efforts to grow your email list have been.

Using it, you can also create autoresponders and create super-specific subscriber segments.

A software compromising user experience

It feels like ConvertKit is still a work in progress. It has excelled in so many areas – creating forms and landing pages, managing subscribers, and creating segments – but the email editor and lack of focus on creating well-designed emails is a disappointment.

Although the company maintains that this is an intentional approach because simple emails work better, user experience is compromised.

Other email marketing solutions, such as Mailchimp, have an easier-to-use email editor and enable you to create more visually appealing campaigns more quickly.

This lack of the main dashboard to give users an overview of overall performance only highlights the software’s approach of compromising user experience and not catering to novice users. And user experience should always be a key consideration.

Frequently Asked Questions for ConvertKit

Is ConvertKit free?

You can send unlimited emails to up to 1,000 recipients with ConvertKit’s free plan, which has limited features. It does not offer autoresponders or segmentation. ConvertKit’s price varies with the number of subscribers, and the least expensive option starts at $29 per month.

Does ConvertKit provide a drag-and-drop email editor?

ConvertKit does not provide a drag-and-drop email editor, unlike many other email marketing solutions. It offers a simple text editor and a few basic templates. Sending simple emails as part of its strategy, as it believes they are more effective.

Is ConvertKit a CRM?

As much as ConvertKit focuses on subscriber management, it does not provide the features of a CRM, including lead management, social media integrations, and pipeline management.

Is ConvertKit better than Mailchimp?

Choosing an email marketing solution depends on what you’re looking for. Mailchimp is straightforward and has a free plan, suitable for people on a tight budget or inexperienced email marketers.

If you’re looking for Mailchimp alternatives, ConvertKit has excellent subscriber functionality, but its price and user experience make it a better choice for experienced marketers.

Who is ConvertKit’s target audience?

The primary target market for ConvertKit is bloggers and e-commerce store owners who want to promote their content.