Are you tired of reading reviews done by people who are sponsored by MailerLite, and just want to know whether it is good or bad? You’re in for a treat for this week’s review, so read on!
Hands down, email marketing can make us money WHEN DONE RIGHT. You need great copy, strategy, services, and TOOLS. But with a plethora of email marketing platforms offered online, which one should you choose?
We decided to do a review of our top email automation tools to help out business owners like you, starting with MailerLite. So if you’re looking for a great email automation tool, or if you want to know whether or not MailerLite is worth trying, this blog post is for you. Make sure you read the entire review so you make an informed decision without wasting money, effort, or time!
Top 5 Features of MailerLite
Automate your emails
Create a campaign
Build forms
Track your stats
Manage your subscribers
MailerLite Overview
MailerLite is the underdog of the email automation industry, surrounded by big names like MailChimp and ActiveCampaign.
Its aim is to make email marketing less complicated without making it less sophisticated. At the end of this review, you’ll find out whether or not it is able to do just that!
Year Founded
2010
Languages Supported
8 Languages
Free Trial or Freemium?
Freemium
Website
Get In Touch
How To Use MailerLite's Key Features
Automate your emails
Create a campaign
Build forms
Track your stats
Manage your subscribers
What I Love About MailerLite
User Interface
MailerLite is fast and simple; like a few other email automation tools, it has a drag-and-drop editor. Having an easy-to-use editor lets me do mostly what I need it to do, but if you want to get more technical, it also has an HTML editor. It’s very friendly for beginners on the most part, although figuring out groups and segments can take a while to get used to. I don’t have a hard time navigating through the interface, unlike other platforms that make you feel like you’re lost in a maze.
Free Account
Who doesn't love free stuff? Using the free account, you can send emails to up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. You’ll also be able to make subscribe forms, landing pages, embedded forms, and popup form. With access to a lot of key features, the inclusions in the free plan are pretty decent.
Campaigns
The editor is very smooth to use, with four campaign types including regular, A/B split, auto-resend, and RSS campaign. I particularly like the auto-resend campaign, so I can connect with subscribers who did not open my previous emails. You also get to choose whether you want to create the email in custom HTML, rich text, or the drag-and-drop editor (my choice).
Segments and Groups Instead of Tags
As I previously mentioned, this feature can be a bit of a learning curve. Groups are more like tags, which can be updated using an automation rule or manually. Segments, on the other hand, are based on rules you define. A subscriber is included in a segment if they meet those rules.
Sound confusing? Don’t worry, you aren’t the only one, which is why MailerLite has created additional guides on this feature. Once you’ve figured it out, you can use segments and groups to personalize your campaigns more to increase click, open, and conversion rates.
Tracking Changes
One thing I love about MailerLite is being able to track the changes I make when I work on my emails. I end up changing my mind halfway through, so I often need to undo things. Because I am able to see what I did to my email, I can undo things with ease.
Diverse Support
Not having English as your primary language is not a problem with MailerLite. As of the moment, their interface comes in 8 different languages, and more for their email and chat support. If you do get stuck on some of the features and don’t want to talk to support staff, you will have access to a vast knowledge base full of tutorials that aren’t too hard to follow.
What MailerLite is Missing
Automations Goals
Compared to most marketing automation programs, MailerLite does not have a ‘goal’ for its automation, which is an important feature if you’re planning to sell products or services using marketing automation.
Template Options
MailerLite has flexible templates, but the style options are limited. These templates are also not included in the free plan.
Advanced Triggers
While some are already satisfied with simple triggers for their automation, I found that MailerLite lacks advanced triggers for more complex automations. For example, they have a trigger for link clicks but not for website visits.
Advanced Reporting
There's also limited features for reports. You only get the basics, like open rates and click-throughs.
Pros and Cons of MailerLite
If you’re running on limited time and want to make a quick decision on whether or not MailerLite is worth using, here’s a quick rundown on the pros and cons as well as the positive and negative reviews and feedbacks on this email automation tool.
Pros
Cons
Positive Reviews
Professionalism
"Professionalism, expertise and excellent service by Mailerlite team makes the entire process comfortable and a pleasant experience. It’s a great experience with how this company doing business, trustworthy. They provide you with excellent service and prompt responses if you have any questions. I highly recommend this company."
Customer Support
"Your customer support is amazing! Thanks for all the help, really appreciated."
Design and Features
"Nice design and good automation features!"
Negative Reviews
Email Delivery Issues
"Mailer lite is a great tool with ONE BIG PROBLEM.
It has serious issues with email delivery.
I ran few test and i found the following issues:
1-some emails are marked as sent but never get delivered- they are literally lost in transit....
2-the rest are straight in junk even after whitelisting the domain."
Charge on Sends
"... They charge on sends. Not on subscribers. Did you send a campaign and then remove people who haven't interacted in months? I hope you have deep pockets or are okay not using your plan for the remainder of the month. You choose... "
from Trustpilot
Recommended Users
So now that we’ve got the basics, as well as pros and cons figured out, should you use MailerLite? This tool is...
Best for:
A newbie to email automation
If I have not emphasized it enough, MailerLite is VERY EASY TO USE. Beginners won’t have a hard time learning the hoops of MailerLite, so the drag-and-drop editor and flexible templates make for a great start to anyone new to email automation.
A creative or a blogger
A lot of the MailerLite features are customized for creatives, especially if they’re the only ones running their blogs at the moment. You will have access to list segmentation, video marketing, WordPress integration, as well as RSS campaigns.
A freelancer, entrepreneur, or owner of small to medium-sized businesses
Working within a modest budget, but want an email automation tool with more capabilities than just sending out newsletters? You’ll be able to execute smart business strategies and look professional with personalized campaigns that MailerLite offers.
Not Recommended For:
Large Businesses
With an emphasis on the word “LITE”, it’s targeted mostly for lighter users.
Those Who Need These Features:
A sequence funnel, complicated automation, or complete reports.
The premium features are very limited, even if you’re on a paid plan. The features are pretty standard, so you are better off with other automation tools if you are looking for something more advanced.
What I Use MailerLite For: Lead Magnet Capture & Delivery
Despite MailerLite’s shortcomings, it’s still one of my favorite email automation tools when it comes to simplicity and user experience compared to other tools on the market. If that’s exactly what you’re looking for, then it sounds like MailerLite is ideal for you.
Once you do sign up, try out this process I use for lead magnet capture and delivery. It’s very simple, so even beginners will be able to execute this snag-free.
1. Choose something to give away
Everybody loves freebies, and so will your future subscribers and potential clients. Figure out something you can give away. For me, it’s usually free content like a short guide or a framework.
Make sure you choose something relevant to your business, like a quick consultation call for coaches, or a plumbing system checklist for plumbers. Don’t make it too complicated, or you’ll be stuck at step number one for a long time! Remember the KISS rule: Keep it simple, stupid!
2. Setup up a simple pop-up form
Once you figure out what you want to give away, you can use Mailerlite’s form builder to create a popup. Mailerlite has a bunch of templates you can choose from. There aren’t a lot of choices, but they’re easy enough to work on that you can use them as a foundation in case you can’t find what you’re looking for.
Play with the style to match your branding, but don’t forget the KISS rule.
3. Embed the pop-up form on your website
You can then control when this pop-up should appear on your page. It can be timed or set to appear when the user has scrolled down a bit or is about to close the webpage. Lastly, add the generated code snippet to your website.
Whenever people visit your website, they’ll have to fill the pop-up form up if they want to get the freebie. This will capture the lead, and allow you to send them automated emails such as newsletters in the future.
Pricing
So how much will all of this cost? Compared to other email automation tools, it is a lot more affordable. Here are the current pricing plans:
$ 0
/mo
Free
$ 10
/mo
$84 annually
$ 15
/mo
$126 annually
$ 30
/mo
$252 annually
$ 50
/mo
$420 annually
The annual pricing results to a 30% discount. You can also sign up for free and try all the premium features for 14 days.
Free vs. Premium Plan
Below is a full pricing comparison of all paid plans and their free plan from their website:
You also have the option of going with MailerPro at $100 per month in order to get priority support through live or email chat. You’ll have a manager who will help you out with web forms, email templates, subscribers, and metrics. At an additional $50 per month, you will get a dedicated IP which can improve deliverability. This is a good option if you’re sending around 50,000 emails weekly.
Choosing a plan all depends on your needs and how many people you plan on reaching. Personally, I would go with the $10 monthly starter plan without the add-ons. But if you’re only testing things out, the free plan is the way to go.
Alternatives
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Does MailerLite have Live Chat Support?
How do you speed up the Approval Process?
What web services do MailerLite integrate with?
With all this information at hand, you’ll be able to make an informed decision on Mailerlite that you won’t regret.