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I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

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Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#31

Post by jamesknelson »

gnicholas wrote: post #28
krn wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I don’t like mailchimp and find the pricing to be atrocious for my purposes (emailing 5k people once or twice a year). Have you looked at MailerLite[1]? [1] https://www.mailerlite.com/

Thanks I'll check it out! What doesn't sit well with me is that someone can send weekly emails to 2k subscribers for free, but if I want to be respectful of people and not spam them all the time, I end up paying much more to send way fewer emails.

I’m in the same boat here. I had a list of ~15,000 blog readers at some point, but gave up sending emails when most services wanted to charge me $1000~$2000/year, even when I only wanted to send 1-2 emails a year.

If there are any services that allow me to import my previous list and email them (very) occasionally for a reasonable price, I’d love to know about them.

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#32

Post by gnicholas »

jamesknelson wrote: post #31
gnicholas wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks I'll check it out! What doesn't sit well with me is that someone can send weekly emails to 2k subscribers for free, but if I want to be respectful of people and not spam them all the time, I end up paying much more to send way fewer emails.

I’m in the same boat here. I had a list of ~15,000 blog readers at some point, but gave up sending emails when most services wanted to charge me $1000~$2000/year, even when I only wanted to send 1-2 emails a year. If there are any services that allow me to import my previous list and email them (very) occasionally for a reasonable price, I’d love to know about them.

If the source of the email signups was a blog, I feel like you can very reasonably use substack. I feel a little dicey doing so for my startup, but I may end up doing it and sending out hybrid email updates/blog posts.

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#33

Post by swyx »

gnicholas wrote: post #7

I’ve never thought of using substack as a way to manage my startup’s email list, but seeing this comparison made me consider it. I don’t like mailchimp and find the pricing to be atrocious for my purposes (emailing 5k people once or twice a year). How odd would it be to get an update from a company via a substack email? Does anyone else do this?

kind of unsolicited advice here but if you're running a mailing list for a startup you should be emailing it more than once or twice a year so that people can build a relationship with you... at least thats the traditional email marketing advice. you do you of course

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#34

Post by kingcharles »

ncmncm wrote: post #23

Mail from Mailchimp is typically indistinguishable from a phishing attempt. A company so clueless about internet security as to send out in bulk what are indistinguishable from phishing attempts clearly cannot be trusted to help manage your login/signup process. And, any company seen to trust an outsourcer as clueless as Mailchimp cannot be trusted with your personal information, never mind your banking or stock tran…

They might not be good at email, but they make great tea:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZbDnuKjco

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#35

Post by madiator »

swyx wrote: post #33
gnicholas wrote: post #7

I’ve never thought of using substack as a way to manage my startup’s email list, but seeing this comparison made me consider it. I don’t like mailchimp and find the pricing to be atrocious for my purposes (emailing 5k people once or twice a year). How odd would it be to get an update from a company via a substack email? Does anyone else do this?

kind of unsolicited advice here but if you're running a mailing list for a startup you should be emailing it more than once or twice a year so that people can build a relationship with you... at least thats the traditional email marketing advice. you do you of course

As an end user I don't want companies to email me often to establish relationship, but if I were a company I would follow your advice. What a world of suffering we live in.

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#37

Post by DonHopkins »

kingcharles wrote: post #34
ncmncm wrote: post #23

Mail from Mailchimp is typically indistinguishable from a phishing attempt. A company so clueless about internet security as to send out in bulk what are indistinguishable from phishing attempts clearly cannot be trusted to help manage your login/signup process. And, any company seen to trust an outsourcer as clueless as Mailchimp cannot be trusted with your personal information, never mind your banking or stock tran…

They might not be good at email, but they make great tea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZbDnuKjco

And they tell great penguin jokes!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9ETlTZoF1E

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#38

Post by gnicholas »

swyx wrote: post #33
gnicholas wrote: post #7

I’ve never thought of using substack as a way to manage my startup’s email list, but seeing this comparison made me consider it. I don’t like mailchimp and find the pricing to be atrocious for my purposes (emailing 5k people once or twice a year). How odd would it be to get an update from a company via a substack email? Does anyone else do this?

kind of unsolicited advice here but if you're running a mailing list for a startup you should be emailing it more than once or twice a year so that people can build a relationship with you... at least thats the traditional email marketing advice. you do you of course

I am personally allergic to spam, and I treat others as if they are the same. You're right that I should realize that the people who sign up for our email list are genuinely excited about our products and want to hear every time we win an award or launch a new partnership. I just dread seeing those unsubscribes, knowing that I've just pissed someone off...

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#39

Post by rumblings »

gnicholas wrote: post #7

I’ve never thought of using substack as a way to manage my startup’s email list, but seeing this comparison made me consider it. I don’t like mailchimp and find the pricing to be atrocious for my purposes (emailing 5k people once or twice a year). How odd would it be to get an update from a company via a substack email? Does anyone else do this?

Use ListMonk. Its an open source software. Used and developed by a unicorn.

Re: I switched my newsletters from Substack and Mailchimp to Buttondown

#40

Post by medion »

funerr wrote: post #22
medion wrote: post #20

I switched the other way - Buttondown to Substack. I did this in theory for growth, because I thought Substack may provide some better discoverability. It did not and I regret the move!

You didn't move to substack you mean? And how do you know if it was regretful?

Sorry, that was a bit of a word salad. I was using Buttondown and moved across to Substack, thinking it may increase list growth - but it did not make any difference.

Also, I miss the markdown editor on Buttondown…

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