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Smartly.io VS Substack

Compare Smartly.io VS Substack and see what are their differences

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A multilingual content platform supporting 200+ languages. Authors, readers, and translation investors create value together. featured
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Contents:
  1. ยป Base Details
  2. ยป Videos
  3. ยป Reviews
  4. ยป Alternatives

Smartly.io logo Smartly.io

Smartly.io is the leading Facebook ad optimization solution for agencies and performance marketers

Substack logo Substack

With Substack, anyone can start a publication that combines a personal website, blog, and email newsletter or podcast. It's quick and simple.
  • Smartly.io Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-09
  • Substack Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-26

Smartly.io

Website
smartly.io
Pricing URL
Official Smartly.io Pricing
Release Date
2013 January
Startup details
Country
Finland
State
Southern Finland
City
Helsinki
Founder(s)
Kristo Ovaska
Employees
250 - 499
Edit details

Substack

Website
substack.com
Pricing URL
-
Release Date
-
Startup details
Country
United States
Edit details

Smartly.io features and specs

  • Automation
    Smartly.io automates repetitive tasks such as ad creation, optimization, and reporting, freeing up time for marketers to focus on strategy and creativity.
  • Integrations
    It integrates with major social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, centralizing ad management.
  • Creative Optimization
    The platform offers tools for dynamic creative optimization, allowing users to automatically test and optimize ad creatives for better performance.
  • Scalability
    Smartly.io can handle large-scale campaigns efficiently, making it suitable for both small businesses and large enterprises.
  • Real-Time Reporting
    Provides real-time reporting and analytics, enabling marketers to make informed decisions quickly.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The platform is designed to be user-friendly, with a clean interface that makes it easier to navigate through different features.

Possible disadvantages of Smartly.io

  • Cost
    Smartly.io is a premium service that may be expensive for small businesses or startups with limited budgets.
  • Complexity
    The platform offers a wide range of features, which can be overwhelming for new users or those not well-versed in digital advertising.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its user-friendly interface, there is still a learning curve associated with mastering all the functionalities of the platform.
  • Limited Platform Support
    While it integrates well with major social media platforms, it may not support all advertising channels desired by some businesses.
  • Customer Support
    Some users have reported that the customer support can be slow to respond or not as helpful as expected.

Substack features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Substack offers a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for writers to publish and monetize their newsletters.
  • Built-in Monetization
    Writers can easily charge readers for subscriptions, allowing for straightforward monetization.
  • Direct Audience Connection
    Substack allows writers to build a direct relationship with their audience via email, which can lead to a more engaged readership.
  • Discovery and Community
    Features like staff picks and recommendations help writers get discovered by new readers.
  • No Upfront Costs
    Substack does not charge upfront fees; instead, it takes a percentage of subscription revenues, making it easier to start.
  • Content Ownership
    Writers retain full ownership of their content, giving them more control over their work.

Possible disadvantages of Substack

  • Revenue Share
    Substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenues, which can add up for writers with a large subscriber base.
  • Limited Customization
    The platform has limited customization options compared to building a custom website or using more flexible CMS options.
  • Dependency on Platform
    Relying on Substack means depending on its policies and infrastructure, which could pose risks if the platform changes its terms or features.
  • Competition
    As more writers join Substack, it can become challenging to stand out amidst the growing competition.
  • Email Deliverability
    Writers may face issues with email deliverability, as some newsletters may end up in spam folders.
  • Payment Processing Fees
    Besides Substack's fee, payment processors like Stripe also take a percentage, further reducing net earnings for writers.

Analysis of Smartly.io

Overall verdict

  • Smartly.io is generally considered a strong choice for businesses looking to streamline their social media advertising efforts. Its powerful automation tools and robust analytics capabilities make it a valuable asset for both small and large enterprises. However, its suitability may vary depending on specific business needs and budget considerations.

Why this product is good

  • Smartly.io is a well-regarded platform primarily for its capabilities in automated social media advertising and creative production. It integrates with major social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Snapchat, allowing users to create, manage, and optimize ads efficiently. The platform is known for its user-friendly interface, A/B testing tools, real-time analytics, and collaboration features, which help teams save time and improve their ad performance.

Recommended for

  • Businesses with significant social media advertising budgets seeking to optimize ad spend and performance.
  • Marketing teams looking for a platform that offers automation and real-time collaboration features.
  • Organizations that need to manage large-scale campaigns across multiple social media platforms.

Analysis of Substack

Overall verdict

  • Substack is a good choice for writers seeking autonomy and a straightforward way to monetize their content. However, it may not be the best fit for those who prefer working within the framework of a larger publication or those unfamiliar with the challenges of building and maintaining a subscriber base.

Why this product is good

  • Substack is a platform that allows writers, journalists, and content creators to publish and monetize their newsletters. It is praised for its ease of use, built-in subscription system, and direct-to-consumer model which enables writers to retain control over their audience and content. The platform has attracted both independent writers and established journalists seeking the freedom to monetize their work without traditional media constraints.

Recommended for

  • Independent writers and journalists
  • Content creators looking to monetize their work
  • Individuals seeking a direct relationship with their audience
  • Those who appreciate simplicity in publishing

Smartly.io videos

+ Add

How to Automate Facebook Advertising at Scale - Smartly.io

More videos:

  • Tutorial - Thomas Roberts, Smartly.io: how to scale facebook advertising
  • Review - Smartly.io Case Study for Hopper: Scale, automate and optimize hundreds of new offers every day

Substack videos

+ Add

Monetizing Podcasts and Newsletters - Chris Best of Substack and Jonathan Gill of Backtracks

More videos:

  • Review - E1016 Substack CEO Chris Best empowers writers via email newsletter platform, raised $15M from a16z
  • Review - Why EVERYONE should be on Substack | What it is, How it Works, $$$
  • Review - Beehiiv vs Substack (2024) - Which is Better?
  • Review - My Experience with SUBSTACK: An Honest Review of Substack

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Smartly.io and Substack)

Smartly.io

Substack

Sales And Marketing
100 100%
Sales And Marketing
0% 0
Blogging
0 0%
Blogging
100% 100
Marketing Tools
100 100%
Marketing Tools
0% 0
CMS
0 0%
CMS
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using Smartly.io and Substack. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Smartly.io and Substack

Smartly.io Reviews

We have no reviews of Smartly.io yet.
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Substack Reviews

25+ Medium Alternative Platforms for Publishing Articles
Substack offers writers of all experience levels the ability to write an email newsletter thatโ€™s profitable through subscriptions. Substack provides purpose-built web and newsletter publishing tools to enable writers to monetize their newsletters. It is a service often favoured by readers because itโ€™s a convenient all-in-one solution for writing a successful podcast that...
Source: forgefusion.io
10 Best Medium Alternatives for Reading and Publishing
What sะตts Substack apart is its sะตamlะตss intะตgration of contะตnt crะตation and subscription-basะตd monะตtization. Substackโ€™s usะตr-friะตndly intะตrfacะต, distribution tools, and support for various contะตnt formats make it a popular choice for indะตpะตndะตnt crะตators looking to connะตct dirะตctly with thะตir audiะตncะต and turn thะตir passion into a sustainablะต incomะต strะตam.
Source: www.geeksforgeeks.org
9 Best Medium Alternatives for Making Money With Your Writing in 2023
Substack and Medium differ primarily in their monetization methods. Medium pays creators based on reader engagement, while Substack enables writers to monetize directly through paid subscriptions to their newsletters. This business model allows Substack users to build a direct relationship with their readers via their email inboxes, whereas Medium interactions primarily...
Source: www.authorityhacker.com
11 Patreon Alternatives for Audience Monetization in 2023
Like a few of the other platforms weโ€™ve looked at, Substack takes a cut of your earnings rather than charging a 10% platform fee.
Source: www.uscreen.tv
Any good Mailchimp alternatives?
My question for you is, what is keeping you from making $31 per month from your list? Are you using any feature that Substack (free until you get paid) can't handle?
Source: www.indiehackers.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Substack seems to be a lot more popular than Smartly.io. While we know about 98 links to Substack, we've tracked only 1 mention of Smartly.io. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Smartly.io mentions (1)

  • [hiring] Mandarin speaking Full-time digital marketing specialist
    - Experience with PowerPoint, Excel (pivot tables and common formulas), and Microsoft Office. Experience using Smartly.io a plus. Source: about 4 years ago

Substack mentions (98)

  • SpaceX to buy Cursor AI coding agent operator Anysphere for $60B
    The thing is, even the center of the road academics who refrain from such comparisons are noting the similarity. The MAGA movement meets the traditional defining characteristics of fascio. We can be rigid and say that only Mussoliniโ€˜s political movement can be properly be called fascist. But if we call Hitler and the Nazis fascists as well, then we open the door to any movement that meets the criteria. And Trump... - Source: Hacker News / 18 days ago
  • AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible
    Yes, it's much different in other countries. See https://substack.com/@doks/p-198191751. - Source: Hacker News / 24 days ago
  • Show HN: Playing with genomics foundation model tutorial/explainer article
    Hi folks, I got curious about how genomics foundation models work and wrote an article explaining how they are trained + can be used. Feel free to use the following as learning resources if you wish to jump into ML for comp bio stuff, it may help: - Code: https://github.com/dillondesilva/nt-promoter-region-classification - Article/Tutorial:... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • CBP Directive 3340-049B: Border Search of Electronic Devices
    The vast majority of people from the developed world have no problems going through any border in the developed world. Your experience is probably representative, but that's not what we're talking about. My understanding is that de facto you have no rights at all in China. The Americans take this sort of thing very seriously, which is why it's in the news and talked about. Some guy gets imprisoned for 37... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • GitHub โ€“ DOS 1.0: Transcription of Tim Paterson's DOS Printouts
    There was never a serious claim DOS copied CP/M code. The controversy was mostly about legality of reimplementation of the API, plus some pretty vague claims about copying the design: https://substack.com/@nemanjatrifunovic/note/p-178321556. - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Smartly.io and Substack, you can also consider the following products

Facebook for Business - Facebook Business gives the latest news, advertising tips, best practices and case studies to meet the business goals.

Medium - Welcome to Medium, a place to read, write, and interact with the stories that matter most to you.

SocialPilot - SocialPilot is an app designed to help businesses and professionals with social media marketing.

Ghost - Ghost is a fully open source, adaptable platform for building and running a modern online publication. We power blogs, magazines and journalists from Zappos to Sky News.

Fomo - Fomo turns your site into the online equivalent of a busy store

Buttondown - Buttondown is the best way to start and run your newsletter

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