Irrespective of how big or small your business is – you must take a plunge into the world of digital, and you must do it now.
There are plenty of tools like Mailchimp and Brevo to assist you to take your marketing game to the next level but for that, you need to find the best email marketing tool that will suit your needs and offer ease of use.
Narrowing the discussion a bit, according to a McKinsey & Company study, emails are 40 times more effective at acquiring customers than social media like Facebook and Twitter combined.
In the eCommerce industry, for instance, transactional emails perform well and prompt the consumers to make purchases, with the average order value increasing by 17 percent.
Email marketing automation offered by tools like Brevo and Mailchimp, if done right, transactional email is three times more powerful for driving conversions than any social media activities.
The main difference between Brevo and Mailchimp is that Brevo is easy to use for bloggers, businesses, and solopreneurs. Mailchimp is used more by Ecommerce stores
This Brevo vs Mailchimp comparison article will help you understand which of these two powerful tools will work best for you.
Brevo
Headquartered in Paris, France, this email marketing solution was designed with a view to fulfilling just one aim: to offer a specific type of platform to businesses that help them achieve their marketing goals and empower their customers with focused knowledge and to build and grow relationships with them.
It is also one of the most sought MailChimp alternatives for SMS marketing that offers ease of use.
There are three core elements of Brevo that make it one of the best email marketing service:
1) Marketing campaigns
Businesses – irrespective of size and industry – can leverage email marketing and SMS marketing campaigns to inform, engage and convert.
“Too much” is “too less” for the modern customer, and the sooner businesses realize this, the better it is.
2) Transactional emails and messaging
Today’s consumers like to be treated specially. Personalized messages are preferred more than generic messaging.
Brevo helps you create transactional emails and provides the benefit of the best email marketing service.
3) Marketing Automation
If your efforts are not automated, you are wasting time and money.
With this marketing software, you can be assured to receive the right phone support or chat support system from their customer support team to guide customers through a personalized buying journey.
Mailchimp vs Brevo: Features
1) Email designer
With the right kind of design, color palette and branding, you can breathe in life to your email campaign.
2) Contact list management
You’ll need need list management for email marketing that update automatically based on your criteria.
Since you can segment contacts, you’ll need to accordingly create contact forms to engage and connect with your audience.
Brevo also allows you to send emails month to unlimited contacts without any restrictions.
3) Campaign reports
The tool allows you to determine the buttons, CTAs, and links which triggered the maximum clicks on a web page and ease of use.
Basically – it has a strong reportage feature you’re looking for in a marketing automation software.
If you have all the data right in front of you regarding your campaigns, it becomes a lot easier to learn from the mistakes and gauge the performance metrics.
This feature Brevo offers is certainly an important one when you’re looking for the best email marketing automation tool.
4) Marketing automation
Marketing automation is all about analyzing data and using it properly to predict the consumer’s’ next move.
Brevo is completely on board with this, which is why automating campaigns is a fun challenge for marketers on this tool.
Brevo enables the marketers to create multi-step, multi-channel campaign flowcharts in minutes.
Brevo email software also enables you to create professional email templates, personalize sign-up firms and segments your unlimited contacts as per your usage and convenience – all from the same dashboard!
The core aspect of Brevo is marketing automation, and it truly lives up to its name. We will certainly have to give this popular Mailchimp alternative a few brownie points in this field.
5) Transactional emails
Brevo ensures your messaging is actually delivered and that it doesn’t get stuck in the servers.
It also logs all the emails, text messages, app alerts and other push notifications that have gone out from Brevo, so that if you’re looking to go back and see something, you can.
6) Deliverability
If you’re looking to use a third-party tool to send your communication, you must do a thorough analysis of its credibility and reputation.
You’ll need a dedicated IP address to send emails, SMS’, etc for SMS marketing.
You have one too and you you can even buy a dedicated IP for a year for just $99.
September, 2021 Update: It was just yesterday that Brevo acquired Chatra messenger, Metrilo customer analytics and Pushowl push notifications. Clearly, they have plans for an integrated platform for online ecommerce retailers.
eCommerce
So, whatever industry you are targeting Brevo offers one of the best email automation tools available and also a great MailChimp alternative.
So whenever a transaction takes place on your online store, the transaction details automatically show up in your Brevo contacts dashboard.
This, in turn, helps you to automate your marketing campaigns better.
Brevo also makes it easy to use automated trigger marketing flowcharts.
Brevo Update: GDPR and CCPA compliance is mandatory for all the organizations dealing with EU citizens. If you are one of them, then feel free to use Brevo as they are GDPR and CCPA compliant.
Their website has enough information to help its customers understand GDPR and CCPA and know how to make their operations GDPR and CCPA compliant.
Brevo New Features Update:
Chatbox feature:
You can set up a chatbox that matches your requirements within a fraction of minutes which is easy to use.
You can also customize the colors to match your business idea and add your name and logo so that your users know that it is you.
Advanced Segmentation:
Everybody knows how vital segmentation is and how effective it can be if done in the right direction.
Brevo allows segmentation based on demographic and behavioral criteria with ease of use.
Brevo allows its users to build landing pages that enhance conversions with ease to use drag and drop.
Users can create landing pages that suit their brand without any technical or coding skills.
The Brevo landing page builder helps to streamline customer service.
The user can also make their landing page more impressive by adding URL in the emails, social media posts, and a lot more.
Integrations
WordPress, Drupal, WooCommerce, Wix, Shopify, Google Analytics, Facebook and Salesforce are just some of the apps and tools that can be integrated with Brevo.
APIs
Brevo is a flexible solution and you can create custom integrations with the website, app or customer service using the tool’s powerful API that can be accessed in a variety of programming languages.
You can even install Brevo plugins with popular eCommerce systems and CMS or marketing platforms to make it eay to use.
Brevo Pricing Structure
If you are just starting out and the influx of emails and text messages is not much, then you can begin your journey with Brevo with the free plans.
If you opt for the first paid plan, you can easily send 40,000 emails month, 2,000 contacts and Brevo doesn’t charge you for that, you’ll need a separate sending service, though.
Brevo Lite version allows you to send up to 40,000 emails a month and you’ll need to pay based upon the number of emails.
The package costs $23 capped at 40,000 emails in a month.
You’ll be able to use marketing automation features with up to 2,000 contacts to 2,000 contacts if you’re on the Essential tier or below.
You’ll need to check out the complete pricing structure here and the features Brevo offers:
MailChimp
With a customer base of 12 million, who send more than 1 billion emails every day, the Mailchimp’s automation email software is a hot favorite and a popular Brevo alternative among many eCommerce companies that want to scale their operations at a much faster pace with ease of use.
MailChimp’s tagline is “everyone starts small, but with the right resources”.
So now let us see what MailChimp has to offer in our Mailchimp vs Brevo review and does it fits the bill of being the best email marketing software available:
Features
1. Simple sign up
It is pretty easy to use and create a MailChimp’s free account. If you are using Mailchimp’s Free plan, you’ll get 30 days email support.
Brevo doesn’t ask you to submit any credit card and contact details to use the limited feature Brevo offers to its new users.
2. User-friendly interface
The elements on the dashboard are user-friendly and easy to use.
You can upload your contacts, do list management, invite your colleagues, etc. in a simple manner. It is easy to use and Brevo doesn’t offer a steep curve of learning.
3. Multiple campaigns
There are a total of four campaigns that can be created on MailChimp. First is the regular campaign – where you’ll need design and customize the template and content.
Second is the plain text campaign which enables the users to send plaintext emails and easy to use.
This one’s good to send like really simple transactional emails – nothing fancy – to the consumers.
Then there is an A/B testing campaign which enables the users to test their subject lines and other email editor and to optimize their email marketing campaign.
In RSS campaign wherein the user can combine the MailChimp email templates with the RSS feed – sounds cool, right? You will get Mailchimp’s free email editor with lots of options to customize your email.
4. A/B testing functionality
Today, this feature has become a rather usual component of all the best email marketing automation tools.
Mailchimp’s automation allows the users to create and execute a variety of split tests – on the basis of subject lines, send time, content, “from name”, etc. MailChimp offers top results with the A/B testing feature.
5. The process of sending messages
MailChimp offers a rather simple drag-and-drop email editor to help even the novice marketers to quickly create a template with all the elements of their own choice.
But first – you need to choose from a plethora of email templates that this email software already offers.
6. Time optimization
MailChimp also calculates the best time to send transactional emails to a particular segment of consumers to achieve the best results.
This way, you can save the transactional email from getting lost in the consumer’s inbox. But this a paid feature; if you are using the Mailchimp’s free version, you might have to give your best guess.
7. Built-in forms
If an email software can’t create built-in forms, then what’s the point? MailChimp has a drag-and-drop feature that is probably the best thing about this tool.
This article will help you to find out how Brevo fares in this field.
8. Contact management system
You can also add subscribers from sign up forms on the social media Facebook page, web, etc.
MailChimp helping in boosting customer engagement numbers and thus generating a loyal list of customers, do list management and is it not what one expects from the best email marketing solution?
9. Mailchimp’s Automation
Although this is a paid feature, Mailchimp’s automation features is quite an interesting feature of MailChimp.
You can create workflows to initiate trigger messages – just like any other advanced email marketing platforms.
You can also create a series of targeted emails that trigger whenever there is an activity by the subscriber using Mailchimp’s.
You can even create your own trigger rules. Once again, this is what you’re looking for in software like this.
10. Mailchimp Generative AI tools
To help small businesses and marketers generate, optimize, and benchmark their email marketing campaigns, Mailchimp has introduced Generative AI tools, which include Email Content Generator, Send Day and Send Time Optimization, Content Optimizer, Creative Assistant, Purchase Likelihood and Customer Lifetime Value, Customer Journey Builder Next Action Recommendations, Subject Line/ Header/ Subheader/ Preview Text Generation with GPT, Alt-text Generation, Stock Image Suggestion, and Campaign Performance Benchmarking.
These AI tools employ a mix of in-house models and third-party AI products, such as Intuit’s AI infrastructure, to provide detailed insights and recommendations to enhance campaign performance.
Mailchimp Update: You can build forms that are GDPR and CCPA ready and can use it for everything ranging from hosted to pop-ups to every other form.
Integration
Brevo doesn’t have the broadest range of integrations available. In the area of integration, Mailchimp is an undefeated champ – not even the best email marketing software comes close to it.
WordPress, Blackbaud, Eventbrite, ExpressionEngine, Salesforce, Google Contacts, Facebook, Formstack, Freshbooks, Gravity, Hootsuite, Microsoft Dynamics, Flickr, Joomla, Highrise, Google Analytics, and more.
API
MailChimp is known to have a very complex yet flexible API documentation.
It enables you to quickly adapt your email marketing to sustain the workflow created by you for automation campaigns.
By the way, did you know you could create visual workflows in the email marketing automation software too?
Brevo vs MailChimp
Both tools are tough competitors to be touted as the best email automation tool as they serve many great purposes to marketers and help them execute effective campaigns.
But just because company A likes Brevo doesn’t mean company B can’t opt for MailChimp for its email marketing activities.
Here we compare email marketing software vs MailChimp Brevo and provide you a comparative analysis to assist you to understand these tools:
1. Clientele
When we compare Brevo vs MailChimp directly one major ruling factor is the clientele.
MailChimp is one such email marketing tools whose clientele is from limited industries. Its major clients are eCommerce, solo-preneurs, individual marketers, small businesses, etc.
It is not a tool that would appeal to anyone and everyone. If you think MailChimp suits your business requirements, then go ahead with it.
Otherwise, please look for other options. Brevo, on the other hand, has a lot many customers from various industries and background but Brevo doesn’t suits everyone.
So, here again, Brevo comes as a better MailChimp alternative.
2. Visual automation
In MailChimp, you can’t create visual workflows, like other tools such as Brevo, where you can see which response will trigger when.
You’ll need to pay some amount as you can’t use this feature in MailChimp free version.
3. Customer Support system
If you are using the trial version of MailChimp, you will not get access to any kind of support.
You will also not find multi-lingual customer support in MailChimp – which means countries like France and Spain.
While the friendly customer support team of Brevo is available over the phone support and via live chat support and often praised for its customer service.
4. Pricing
When it comes to MailChimp pricing then it is an eCommerce centric email marketing solutions tool. MailChimp offers the Free plan for up to 2,000 contacts and for $25/month, you’ll be able to send up to 40,000 emails.
It is known for its easy to use interface, multiple layouts and the fact that it is free forever if you are happy with the services you receive in the Mailchimp’s free package.
Mailchimp free plan is basically for beginners. But the only catch is MailChimp is expensive. Brevo Mailchimp Pricing Based on how many emails you send per day or per contacts. For more information, you can contact their customer service team.
A comparison table for Mailchimp vs Brevo:
Factors | Mailchimp | Brevo |
---|---|---|
What We Like | Impressive feature set with their lower tier plan. Vast number of integrations Easy to use and generous free plan. | CRM, SMS marketing and advanced segmentation at a reasonable price. List management and segmentation are very easy to implement. |
What We don’t Like | You have to pay even for unsubscribed users that is not the case with Brevo. List management is not impressive as it is basic in its functioning. | Lacks social and ecommerce reporting. Email templates are not as good as that of Mailchimp. |
Value for Money | For less number of contacts, Mailchimp is a great affordable option. | Very affordable that packs up some good powerful features. |
Who should use it? | Small to medium-sized businesses. | Ecommerce and people who want one on one campaigns. |
Our Score | 4.6/5 | 4.4/5 |
Our Experience
According to the Brevo & Mailchimp comparison guide, we can say that Brevo offers the best all-in-one tool for bloggers, businesses, and solopreneurs when it comes to digital marketing; MailChimp is more for eCommerce stores.
Hopefully this Brevo vs MailChimp comparison article will help you to take your pick!
What sets Mailchimp apart from Brevo?
Mailchimp distinguishes itself with its comprehensive suite of marketing tools, including advanced segmentation, A/B testing capabilities, and detailed analytics. This platform is ideal for businesses aiming to enhance their email marketing strategies through data-driven insights and extensive integration options with e-commerce systems.
Can Brevo send multiple emails simultaneously?
Absolutely, Brevo is designed to handle bulk emailing efficiently. Users can send multiple emails at once, leveraging its scalable infrastructure to ensure timely delivery, making it a solid choice for large-scale marketing campaigns.
Does Brevo offer webpage templates?
Yes, Brevo provides a variety of customizable webpage templates. These templates are designed to meet the needs of different types of marketing campaigns and can be tailored to enhance user engagement and conversion rates.
Methods for dispatching mass emails through Brevo?
To send mass emails through Brevo, simply upload your contact list, create your email using one of the customizable templates, and set your sending parameters. Brevo’s intuitive interface makes it easy to segment your audience and schedule the dispatch.
What is Brevo campaign capacity limit?
Brevo supports extensive campaign capacities, catering to both small businesses and large enterprises. The platform is engineered to handle a high volume of emails per campaign without sacrificing performance.
What is the most effective service for mass emailing?
For mass emailing, Mailchimp and Brevo stand out due to their robust delivery networks, comprehensive analytics, and user-friendly design. Both platforms offer powerful tools for managing large-scale email campaigns effectively.
What distinguishes Mailchimp from others?
Mailchimp robust integration with e-commerce platforms, extensive automation features, and advanced analytics set it apart. Its user-friendly interface and educational resources make it particularly accessible for beginners and professionals alike.
What types of integrations does Mailchimp support?
Mailchimp supports a wide range of integrations including e-commerce systems like Shopify, CRM software like Salesforce, and services like WordPress. These integrations enhance functionality and streamline workflow across different marketing platforms.
What are the benefits of using Mailchimp for email marketing?
Using Mailchimp for email marketing offers advantages like advanced segmentation, automation, and comprehensive analytics. These features help marketers tailor their content effectively, track performance in real-time, and optimize their strategies for better engagement.
Are there multiple editions of Mailchimp available?
Yes, Mailchimp offers various editions tailored to different business needs, from the basic free version suitable for startups, to more advanced plans offering sophisticated features for scaling businesses.
Is Brevo a reliable platform?
Brevo is recognized for its reliability in managing email campaigns. With robust infrastructure and uptime guarantees, it ensures that marketing campaigns run smoothly without interruption.
Is Brevo cost-effective?
Brevo is known for its cost-effectiveness, offering competitive pricing plans that cater to businesses of all sizes. It provides a good balance of features and affordability, making it a popular choice for cost-conscious marketers.
Is there a free version of Brevo available?
Yes, Brevo offers a free version that allows users to explore basic features with limited sending capabilities. It’s ideal for small businesses and startups just beginning with email marketing.
Why should one opt for Brevo?
Choose Brevo for its user-friendly interface, scalability, and robust support. It’s particularly effective for businesses looking to launch and manage email campaigns easily and efficiently without extensive technical knowledge.
Does Brevo compare with Mailchimp?
While both Brevo and Mailchimp serve as excellent email marketing tools, Brevo might offer better pricing flexibility, which is great for startups. Mailchimp, however, excels with its extensive integrations and advanced features.
Is Brevo suitable for cold emailing?
Brevo is effective for cold emailing, provided users adhere to spam regulations. Its tools allow for precise targeting and personalization, increasing the likelihood of engaging potential clients effectively.
How many individuals use Brevo?
Thousands of marketers across various industries rely on Brevo for its straightforward and effective email marketing tools. The platform’s growing popularity is testament to its reliability and user-centric design.
Do emails from Brevo often end up in spam?
Brevo implements sophisticated deliverability optimization techniques to ensure emails land in the inbox rather than the spam folder. Regular updates and adherence to email sending best practices contribute to its high deliverability rates.
Is Brevo a platform for customer relationship management?
While primarily an email marketing tool, Brevo offers some CRM functionalities that help manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle, aiding in customer retention and driving sales growth.
Is Brevo an effective tool for newsletters?
Brevo excels in newsletter creation with its diverse range of templates and drag-and-drop editor, making it easy for businesses to craft engaging and visually appealing newsletters that capture the audience’s attention.
What’s the success rate for Brevo email delivery?
Brevo boasts an impressive email delivery success rate, often achieving rates above 98%. This is due to their rigorous maintenance of server health and compliance with email delivery best practices.
What are the pricing plans for Brevo?
Brevo offers several pricing tiers to accommodate the needs of different businesses, from a free starter plan to more advanced options with additional features and higher sending limits, all designed to scale with your business growth.
Can you run extensive email campaigns through Brevo?
Absolutely, Brevo is built to handle extensive email campaigns, supporting businesses as they expand their reach. It offers robust tools to manage large volumes of emails and detailed analytics to monitor campaign performance.
How can I enhance my email delivery rates with Brevo?
To enhance your delivery rates with Brevo, focus on maintaining a clean mailing list, segmenting your audience, personalizing your emails, and regularly updating your strategies based on analytics provided by the platform.
What are the customization options in Mailchimp?
Mailchimp offers extensive customization options, including a wide array of templates, a flexible design editor, and advanced segmentation features. These tools allow marketers to create highly personalized and effective email campaigns.
What are the latest features of Mailchimp?
Mailchimp continuously updates its platform with the latest features like predictive demographics, send-time optimization, and enhanced behavioral targeting, which help marketers increase engagement and conversion rates.
How does Mailchimp support ecommerce platforms?
Mailchimp integrates seamlessly with popular e-commerce platforms, offering features like targeted product recommendations, automated follow-up emails, and detailed performance tracking to boost online sales.
Are there any limitations to Mailchimp free version?
The free version of Mailchimp offers basic features suitable for small startups, but it does limit the number of sends per month and lacks some of the more advanced analytics and testing features available in paid plans.
How does Brevo user interface compare to Mailchimp’s?
Brevo user interface is highly intuitive, making it easy for new users to get started with email marketing. While Mailchimp offers more advanced features, Brevo focuses on simplicity and ease of use.
How effective is Brevo for marketing automation?
Brevo provides robust marketing automation tools that allow businesses to set up automatic email sequences based on user behavior, significantly enhancing engagement and efficiency in campaign management.
What analytics does Brevo offer for tracking emails?
Brevo offers detailed analytics, including open rates, click-through rates, and conversion statistics. This data helps marketers adjust their strategies in real-time to achieve better outcomes.
How does Brevo handle large subscriber lists?
Brevo efficiently manages large subscriber lists with features that support easy segmentation and targeted communications, ensuring that each subscriber receives relevant and personalized content.
What security measures does Brevo have in place?
Brevo prioritizes security with features like data encryption, secure data storage, and compliance with international data protection regulations, ensuring that your data and that of your subscribers remain secure.
How does Mailchimp handle data privacy?
Mailchimp adheres strictly to data privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA, implementing robust security measures to protect user data and enhance trust with customers by maintaining transparency about data usage.
I loved the article, very informative indeed.
Tbh I haven’t personal experience with both of the tools, only with 1 of them.
At our eCommerce business, we recently switched from Mailchimp to ContactPigeon after almost 6 years because they offer email marketing+marketing automation+push notification management+exit intent pop ups+list building pop ups+landing pages at 199$/month. Plus they offering real, hands-on support.
Would love to see a review of ContactPigeon by you, Ankit, anytime soon. 🙂
Thanks!
Sendinblue has recently introduced custom landing pages. You can build your landing pages from the Sendinblue platform itself. You can use the drag and drop editor and make custom changes to your pages and boost your conversion rates. It has a vast repository of thousands of royalty free stock photos to select from and ready to use for your site. I have not tried it yet but will be doing it soon as I am finding it quite impressive. Share your thoughts if you have given it a try.
MailChimp is a great tool when it comes to email marketing as it offers most of the integrations, the interface is intuitive , great A/B testing and some solid reporting features. But, there template gallery is way too basic.
MailChimp is a great tool and one of the popular tools that people prefer over any other option. But, if you ask me then for me Sendinblue has its own set of benefits especially creating visual workflows.