Mailchimp Enters E-commerce: What You Need to Know

Mailchimp Expands into E-commerce and Appointments

Over recent years, Mailchimp has undergone a significant transformation, evolving from a simple newsletter service into a comprehensive marketing platform. The company is now launching its own online stores tailored for small and medium-sized businesses, alongside a new service for scheduling appointments.

New "Websites & Commerce" Plans

These additions will be integrated into Mailchimp’s “Websites & Commerce” plans. A free tier is available, providing access to core functionalities. Users on this free plan will incur a 2% transaction fee.

A $10 monthly subscription removes Mailchimp branding and grants access to email and chat support, reducing the transaction fee to 1.5%. The “Plus” plan, priced at $29 per month, further lowers the transaction fee to just 0.5% per order.

Website and Store Features

All plan levels allow for the creation of websites with unlimited pages and no bandwidth limitations. SEO tools and Google Analytics integration are also included.

Users can construct product catalogs, manage orders, and configure taxes and shipping settings within the stores. This functionality, along with the appointment scheduling feature, is seamlessly integrated with the existing Mailchimp ecosystem.

Image Credits: Mailchimp

Availability

Currently in beta, the new e-commerce features will be rolled out to all Mailchimp customers in the U.S. and U.K. by May 18th. The appointment booking feature will become available to all users on April 28th.

A Strategic Evolution

The introduction of built-in commerce capabilities represents a substantial advancement in Mailchimp’s development. This move is supported by the fact that approximately 40% of Mailchimp’s customer base, exceeding 14 million, are already involved in commerce and have requested more integrated features.

Nearly 30% of users are currently utilizing Mailchimp’s existing commerce features and integrations. The company experienced a 61% growth in revenue from e-commerce customers between 2019 and 2020.

Given Mailchimp’s existing offerings of websites and domain registration, expanding into these new areas—facilitating direct sales through Mailchimp stores or managing appointment bookings—appears to be a logical progression.

Commitment to Existing Services

Mailchimp emphasizes that this expansion into new territory does not signify a departure from its core products or existing customers. Ben Chestnut, Mailchimp’s CEO and co-founder, assures users that the company remains dedicated to providing the best email marketing solutions.

“We’re not abandoning our smart marketing solutions,” Chestnut stated. “Our goal remains to have the best email marketing in the world.” The company is also focused on refining existing tools and adding new, visually appealing email templates in the coming months.

Image Credits: Mailchimp