Email marketing is an essential aspect of modern-day content creation.

With numerous options available, choosing the right platform can be challenging, especially for beginners.

Here are my 3 top choices for 2024.

#1 Substack*

No surprise here. Substack* is the king of newsletters for beginners.

The essence

Substack is a platform that enables writers and content creators to publish and distribute newsletters to their subscribers for free.

Substack provides a simple and user-friendly interface that allows writers to create and send newsletters without needing any technical knowledge.

The features

Substack offers features such as light customization (colors, fonts, logos), subscriber management, analytics for views, open and click rates, and subscriber growth with details about source, location, and more.

It also provides tools for writers to monetize their newsletters through paid subscriptions and pledges. Substack takes a 10% cut of the revenue generated by its creators.

Substack has become popular among writers and content creators for its simplicity and writer-focused business model. The internal growth boost features like discovery and recommendations help writers to gain and grow their audience.

The verdict

Substack* perfect for anyone who wants to build a direct relationship with their audience and monetize their content outside traditional media outlets. It has been used by journalists, bloggers, and other writers to build their brands and grow their audiences.

Downsides

For advanced use cases that include email marketing and automation, Substack is a no-go. It doesn’t offer any email automation functionality or API access.

#2 EmailOctopus*

This little-known competitor is a high-value, easy-to-use, beginner-friendly email marketing option.

The essence

EmailOctopus* is a UK-based email marketing platform that allows businesses and creators to draft and send email campaigns to their subscribers. It offers a drag-and-drop email builder, pre-designed templates, and automation features that help with effective and engaging email campaigns.

The features

Free for up to 2500 contacts and 10,000 emails per month and some of the most affordable paid plans you’ll find online, these are the standout features of EmailOctopus.

Moreover, it integrates with popular third-party applications such as Zapier, WordPress, or Shopify, enabling creators to connect with their subscribers on multiple channels. An accessible API is another plus.

It also offers customizable opt-in forms, landing pages, and automated email sequences, making it easy for creators to nurture their subscribers and turn them into loyal readers/customers.

With EmailOctopus, users can track the performance of their email campaigns with open rates, click-through rates, and subscriber engagement.

The platform provides segmentation and personalized content to help you optimize your campaigns and improve results.

The verdict

EmailOctopus* is an attractive option for small businesses and creators who want to reach their audience with effective email campaigns without breaking the bank. The smallest paid plan started at $8 a month.

Downsides

EmailOctopus doesn’t allow custom code or custom domains for their landing pages. It’s not as feature-rich as large competitors like ConvertKit* or MailerLite*.

#3 Flodesk*

The beauty among the beasts.

The essence

Flodesk* is an email marketing automation platform that enables creators to design visually stunning and effective email campaigns without skills.

The features

Flodesk provides a drag-and-drop email builder, pre-designed templates, and automation workflows that make it easy to create and send professional-looking emails to your subscribers.

Flodesk’s user-friendly interface allows you to customize the email templates with your own branding, colors, and fonts, and includes features like customizable opt-in forms, landing pages, and automated email sequences.

Flodesk also offers analytics to help users track the performance of their campaigns, including open rates, click-through rates, and subscriber engagement.

The verdict

With its simplicity and focus on design, Flodesk* has become a popular choice for businesses and individuals who want to create visually appealing email campaigns that stand out from the competition.

Downsides

Flodesk does not offer direct access to the API (for services like SparkLoop for example), apart from a number of their own integrations. There’s no free version available either.

The bottom line

We compared three email marketing platforms for beginners: Substack*, EmailOctopus*, and Flodesk*.

To summarize:

• Substack is praised for simplicity, monetization options, and internal discovery features, but lacks advanced functionality.
• EmailOctopus offers affordability, integration, and tracking but is less feature-rich.
• Flodesk offers visually stunning design, automation, and customization but has no free version.