Klaviyo: The Ultimate Guide & Review for Small Businesses

👉 “90% of all Ecommerce start-ups fail in the first 120 Days,” says Forbes.
The biggest reasons given in this survey were poor online marketing as well as poor search visibility.
The question that is probably running around in your mind right now if you own an Ecommerce store is: “Am I one of the 90%?”
The most likely answer is a big ‘YES’ but I would like to think the latter.
Using a growth marketing platform like Klaviyo that focuses on owned marketing can give you a lifeline and put you in the 10% group that survives ‘The Apocalypse.’
Interested? Then read on.

Table of Content:

The complete guide to Klaviyo
Review
Constant Contact Pricing and Plans in details
Features
Alternatives
Guide

Try Klaviyo

Try it for free

What is Klaviyo?

laviyo is a cloud based email marketing and marketing automation solution that focuses on ecommerce brands.

It is a growth-focused platform will assist you to create unforgettable experiences across marketing channels that you own such as:

Email
Mobile
Your website
And your app.

It was in mid-2012 when Andrew Bialecki and Ed Hallen bootstrapped enough capital to go and register Klaviyo Inc. as a legal entity.

Andrew and Ed both had family business backgrounds. They were taught the old-fashioned way of growing businesses;

Save money>>>Bootstrap>>>start business>>>make business profitable>>>grow company>>>hire>>>etc.

They had tried and tested their business idea the old-fashioned way and so far it worked, Klaviyo was growing, and fast! …… Faster than they had anticipated. They had to go out and get some investment to sustain their booming small business.

On the 26^th of August, 2015 Klaviyo got its first investment of $1.5M, then 2017; $7M, fast forward 2019; a whopping $150M!!! …..That’s how much Summit Partners trusted Klaviyo’s potential.

Every ecommerce business is buzzing about Klaviyo these days!

Their site gets an estimated 1 230 356 Visitors a month
In 2019, Klaviyo users made $1B+ in sales, all attributed to the platform
From a few hundred users in 2012 they have now went to 50 000+ in 2020

If you haven’t made a decision of moving to Klaviyo for your email marketing campaigns, I am here to help you re-think that decision.

💡 Examples of Businesses That Use Klaviyo

There are currently 50 000+ businesses (big and small) who use Klaviyo for their marketing.

I will handpick a few of the most popular brands that use it to show you of its significance in the ecommerce arena.

Maduka

Manduka LLC is a company that sells yoga gear:

mats
gear
clothing
and accessories

Maduka currently has 160+ employees, generating a revenue of between 10M-50M.

Best Choice Products

Best Choice Products is an Ecommerce store that sells:

furniture
toys
outdoor products
and seasonal products

Best Choice Products is based in the USA and has a revenue of 50M-250M.

Beardbrand

Beardbrand is an American privately owned men’s grooming company that sells products for maintaining:

beards
hair
and skin

Beardbrand has a revenue stream of $1M-$10M.

Why choose Klaviyo?

Before Klaviyo was formed, interactions that customers had with brands were so generic and impersonal.

It seemed as though brands were just monsters, with a sole purpose of sucking us of our money dry.

Not anymore!

Andrew and Ed came to save us with Klaviyo.

Klaviyo was created on the idea that every single interaction would be much more memorable if it were powered by accumulated data that businesses had gathered about their customers.

Tools marketers used before they moved to Klaviyo weren’t tracking enough.

Klaviyo tracks what customers:

react to
are looking at
are buying
or not buying etc.

Data science has revolutionized the way email marketing platforms leverage data.

Klaviyo’s rich raw data, leveraged from data science, helps to build better relationships with customers.

This is achieved through a well-thought out, data-driven communication that makes the customer feel understood, which in turn creates memorable experiences.

Klaviyo Key Features

Klaviyo Reporting

“In the end you should only measure and look at the numbers that drive action, meaning that the data tells you what you should do next.”
– Alex Peiniger CEO, Quintly

The Klaviyo reporting feature helps you understand your performance level at any given moment. You are given:

Flow Performance, Analytics and Report
Campaign Performance, Analytics and Report
Sign up Performance, Analytics and Report
The Analytics Dashboard
Multi Metric Deep Dive
Product Performance Report
List Growth Report
Single Metric Deep Dive

Your dashboard gives you a clear overview of all the data you need so you can adjust your marketing strategies.

Are you looking to see if your message is getting across to your customers as you wish? Klaviyo can assist you.

You can A/B test your campaigns based on almost anything in Klaviyo;

the bounce rates
new subscribers
email open rates etc.

In addition to A/B testing info, you get the Return-on-Investment (ROI) based reporting.

This is one of the most crucial elements of the reporting feature since it gives you deep insights into how many sales you are getting from your email marketing efforts.

To track the behaviour of visitors on your website you are going to have to add tracking to your website. This step will enable you to see in real time what your visitors are looking at or clicking on.

Klaviyo will automatically track and report this to you so you can use the info to your advantage.

To get even more reporting you can link your Klaviyo account with your Google Analytics account.

Email Segmentation

“Don’t find customers for your product, find products for your customers.” – Seth Godin

A great quote indeed.

Many of us marketers find ourselves shoving unwelcomed products and messages down the throats of our customers.

This will cause them to choke and leave us forever through unsubscribing from our email lists.

The big problem here is poor email segmentation or no segmentation at all.

What a pity:(

The Klaviyo Email Segmentation feature is one of the best in the industry.

Did you know you know that Klaviyo dynamic segments update themselves automatically in real time? …………..Did you?

I guess now you now you know.

Divorce your current worn out ESP.

Join Klaviyo today.

Data Science

“Torture the data and it will confess to anything.” – Ronald Coase

Data science is a diverse field that uses mathematics, business acumen, algorithms and machine learning techniques to extract hidden knowledge and insights or patterns from any structural or unstructured data.

That is a mouthful!!!

Anyway, Klaviyo uses data science to enable you to grow your business faster with less money spent. Their data science engine helps you:

Predict when someone will buy and when. This helps you target them with your campaigns at the right time
Know the people who spend the most or are likely to spend the most. This will help you target those customers with VIP offers
Automatically segment your most frequent buyers. This helps focus your campaigns so you can increase their order value

New Klaviyo Features

Send SMS and MMS campaigns to your customers

At the beginning of 2020, Klaviyo announced that you can send text messages to your subscribers.

It has now previously announced that you can send SMS and MMS through campaigns as well!

SMS marketing is as powerful as email marketing, some statistics say even better.

You can now send text messages of:

promotions
deals
or whatever you want to send

Straight to your customer’s pockets.

With their segmentation tool you can also segment and track behaviour with their AI capabilities.

Klaviyo Pricing

The Klaviyo pricing model is a rather straightforward one.

You only pay for what you need depending on your contact size.

They actually have a calculator on their website to help you calculate how much you are going to pay.

Klaviyo starts with a free plan which consists of 1 to 250 contacts.

Their lowest plan starts from as little as $20 for 251 to 500 contacts.

Their most expensive plan sits at just $1 700 with contacts of between 145,001 and 150,000.

Are you looking to purchase a plan of more than 150 000 contacts? …… Then contact their support team today.

To give you an idea of how much you can expect to pay, I have created a table below.

Check it out.

Klaviyo Pricing Plans 2020 — Both Constant Contact Plan include the most important features.

Try Klaviyo for Free

Review Plans

Klaviyo Integrations

Klaviyo integrates with many awesome platforms. The most notable ones are:

Klaviyo integration with Shopify

The number one reason anyone would be using Klaviyo is that they run an ecommerce store and when I say ecommerce store I mean Shopify.

Klaviyo and Shopify integrate so seamlessly. Hassle free.

After just a few clicks you will have the power to collect thousands of data points that you are going to use to:

create hyper targeted campaigns
deliver unforgettable experiences
bring in more sales
and build better relationships

Billions (with a “B” mind you) of sales are made every year with the help of the Klaviyo/Shopify integration.

Klaviyo integration with WordPress (WooCommerce)

Klaviyo integrates with WordPress through a plugin called Klaviyo WooCommerce plugin.

If you are reading this section I would like to believe that you already have a WordPress website and that you are running your WooCommerce store there.

I will take you through how to integrate Klaviyo with your WooCommerce store.

Head over to “Plugins” and add a new plugin called “Klaviyo”. It should mention that it is for WooCommerce in the description.
Activate the plugin and pump to your Klaviyo account and grab your API key from the “Settings” area.
Go to the plugin settings and add your key to the “Public API Keys” area.
Fill in the settings you wish to use and don’t forget to tick the “Enable Klaviyo signup forms.”
Save the settings.
The next step is to head over to your WooCommerce account settings and create an API Key for your store.Go to “ > Advanced > Rest API >Add Key.”
In the description, the area, add “Klaviyo.”
Your username is “admin (#1 – admin@klaviyosupport.com)”
Permissions: “Read/Write”
Generate the key and keep the tab open.
Open your Klaviyo account and integrate it with WooCommerce at “Integrations.”
Go to the “WooCommerce Settings” still on Klaviyo
Add your store URL, from the previously opened tab I told you not to close, grab your “WooCommerce Consumer and Secret Key” and plug them in
Click “Connect to WooCommerce.”
The final step is to test if the integration is working properly.
Go to your “Checkout Page” and add your email
Go to your Klaviyo dashboard to look at the checkout metrics

You are supposed to see your activity there, if you do great.

Pros and Cons of Using Klaviyo

Everything in life comes with its Pros and Cons, Klaviyo is no exception.

Pros	Cons
Klaviyo is easy to use It’s drag and drop email design is great for beginners Their segmentation feature is world class The deliverability rate of their emails is off the roof. Klaviyo integrates with Shopify seamlessly Their reporting and analytics are some of the best in the industry	Integrating Klaviyo with Magento is difficult The price is a bit too aggressive Putting together workflows is a bit tricky The customer support works on working hours only Importing products into campaigns is a bit slow Lacks lead scoring

Klaviyo Alternatives

Klaviyo vs Mailchimp

Mailchimp like Klaviyo is an email marketing and marketing automation solution for small businesses.

Pros of using Klaviyo over Mailchimp

Klaviyo integrates with Shopify. Mailchimp recently divorced Shopify or vice versa, so if you are a Shopify, your best bet is on Klaviyo
Klaviyo’s AI capabilities are much more advanced than Mailchimp’s, meaning that you can offer a much more personalized service in Klaviyo than Mailchimp.

Pros of using Mailchimp over Klaviyo

Mailchimp is much more affordable
Mailchimp is much more popular than Klaviyo.

Klaviyo vs ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign is an all-in-one advanced marketing automation software and CRM that serves small and medium sized businesses.

Pros of using Klaviyo over ActiveCampaign

Klaviyo is far easier to use than ActiveCampaign
Klaviyo has more ecommerce features. They specialise in the ecommerce sector

Pros of using ActiveCampaign over Klaviyo

ActiveCampaign has more features.
ActiveCampaign is much more affordable than Klaviyo

Klaviyo vs Omnisend

Omnisend is an all-in-one marketing automation platform designed for ecommerce brands.

Pros of using Klaviyo over Omnisend

Klaviyo has webinar training sessions
Klaviyo has better behaviour tracking capabilities

Pros of using Omnisend over Klaviyo

Omnisend has better customer support
Omnisend has more email marketing features for ecommerce

FAQs

What is Klaviyo?

Klaviyo is a powerful email marketing and marketing automation platform that focuses on ecommerce brands. The company was co-founded by Andrew Bialecki and Ed Hallen in Boston Massachusetts in 2012. It was formed with the idea of personalising how brands communicate with their customers.

Is Klaviyo a CRM?

Klaviyo has an ecommerce CRM. With this you can monitor and track your customers every single move. You will get info on their purchase history, what they look at most on your site, what they are likely to buy next, their spending power and a lot more. This capability will help you to personalise your marketing campaigns so you can get a higher ROI.

Does Klaviyo work with Shopify?

Klaviyo and Shopify integration is easier done than said. They integrate so seamlessly within just a few seconds of clicking. Integration of the two will give you the power to collect thousands of data points that you are going to use to build better relationships and bring in more sales.

Is Klaviyo better than MailChimp?

The word “better” would mean different things to different people. Klaviyo is better when it comes to e-commerce but Mailchimp is better when it comes to mass mailing. My final verdict would be that both platforms are great in their own right.

Does Klaviyo have landing pages?

Klaviyo does not have landing pages. The only way around this is to create a subscriber page that will act as a landing page on your site. The more professional approach would be to integrate Klaviyo with a landing page provider if you really need a landing page.

Klaviyo Reviews

Customer Reviews

TrustRadius is one of the most popular review platforms out there.

I will go there to try and get some reviews about Klaviyo to help you make a clear choice on whether Klaviyo is for you or not.

Let’s go.

1. The first review I saw on that day was from a strong looking man called Robbie. He gave Klaviyo a rating of 10 out of 10. He had this to say;

“The best ecommerce ESP”

“Klaviyo is our core email marketing software used on each client we represent. Within those clients we use the software to send daily marketing emails, automated emails, and custom audience email blasts. It allows us to connect directly with our customer base. Then we can track the performance and impact of what each email, campaign, or outreach does.”

2. The second review I fell on was from a kind looking young man called Blake. He gave them a whopping 10 out of 10 too. This is just too good to be true. Let us see what he had to say after using the ecommerce solution;

“Klaviyo really understands what it takes to succeed in email marketing”

“We use Klaviyo within our ecommerce department for email marketing automation and monthly product newsletters. It provides an unparalleled level of user granularity and campaign customization. Our previous email marketing software was nowhere close to providing the functionality that Klaviyo provides. If you’re serious about email marketing, choose Klaviyo for your team.”

3. My third and final stop was at a review of a guy called Stephen who is the proud owner of Raw Athletics. He gave Klaviyo a 9 out of 10 and had this to say;

“Klaviyo is the email marketing software you need if you run an e-commerce operation – period!”

“We’re building it into a core part of our e-commerce marketing machine. We have a small catalogue of products but our target audience varies widely to the point where a unified message would never work. By using Klaviyo’s powerful segmentation features, we’re able to deliver more targeted messages to our prospective and current customers in order to drive more revenue and build a stronger brand connection with them.”

Klaviyo Review: Our Opinion

It has been a very long journey going through;

Klaviyo: The Ultimate Guide & Review for Small Businesses.

It is now my turn to give you an honest opinion on the software.

I referenced a statistic from Forbes at the beginning of this ultimate guide which said;

“90% of all Ecommerce start-ups fail in the first 120 Days”

I then went on to promise you to deliver you from “The Apocalypse” with a solution called Klaviyo. Let me try and deliver on my promise.

The biggest reasons for ecommerce sites failing is online marketing and poor search presence.

Email and Mobile Marketing (also called Owned Marketing) is a shortcut to your customers.

There is no need whatsoever to wait for years for the so-called Google to put you on page one of the search results like most are doing.

Klaviyo specialises in email and mobile marketing for ecommerce business.

I would gladly recommend any ecommerce brand out there to use them because they will help you in a lot of ways search engines won’t.

Klaviyo’s rich raw data leveraged from data science helps to build better relationships with customers as well as create more personalised campaigns.

“Better relationships with customers + more personalised marketing campaigns = More sales” – Me

I give Klaviyo a big 9.5 out of 10.

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