BuzzStream vs. GRIN

BuzzStream works for anyone that is working in the SEO field! It has literally saved me hours of time and is my go-to tool for all link building needs. The speed that I'm able to research a site, save the key information and launch a pre-crafted email is head spinning (In a good way)! This is one of the SEO tools that I can't live without--it makes link building and link tracking a whole lot easier. BuzzStream likely wouldn't be a good fit for anyone that isn't particularly working in the SEO field. I can't imagine this would replace a dedicated email tracking system or be used to send email drips.

Incentivized

GRIN is well suited for companies that are seeking an all-in-one solution for influencer program management and place a high value in repurposing UGC for marketing purposes. I would also say that GRIN makes sense for those who are aggressively scaling their influencer program and are planning on having at least 100-150 creators in the program. GRIN would be less appropriate for companies who may not have a large influencer program and are merely seeking to track affiliate link/coupon code performance.

Incentivized

• Communication Organization: It provides a simple communication format for even the most novice of users to understand. All messages are kept in nice order, even placed in folders if needed, to alleviate the pain of losing messages in normal email.
• Locating Contact Information: I love that BuzzStream aids in finding additional contact information for people. From social accounts to other emails, we can make sure we reach out to people via the correct channels.
• Building a Consistent Voice: BuzzStream allows you to save templates that have worked or failed when conducting outreach. These templates can have autofill parameters added to them and are accessible to all users.

Incentivized

• customer service on all levels
• streamlines resources (creator search, emails, Shopify orders, payments, etc) all on one platform
• The amount of customization and overall tools - sometimes this feels overwhelming but I'm grateful they are there to build on as I grow my experience with the platform

Incentivized

• The search function needs to be more accurate in returning results when searching for existing prospects the platform only display exact match results - www.websitename.com vs websitename.com. In reality, the two websites are the same prospects.
• Customer service assistance needs to be more instantaneous when seeking out help a response can take up to 24 hours.
• Importing large CSV files of websites takes time as well.

Incentivized

• Creator search tool - doesn't bring up viable creator options, which means we do primarily off-platform seeding.
• The landing page is clunky and not functional for reviewing creators - it adds a lot of time to my team's day looking through the creators with the way it's set up.
• Email templates have funny formatting, and the typeface always seems to get messed up.

Incentivized

I wouldn't be able to run as high of a profitable or functioning influencer program without it. GRIN seriously is the organizational tool that propels us towards success, it is not in any way going to do the work for you, but it does make the work more efficient, easier, and WAY more organized

Incentivized

Buzzstream is great to help identify sites to get links from, and it makes this process so efficient, easy and personal to all, the ones who are using it and the ones that are receiving. Flawless navigation, good outlook, 10/10!

Incentivized

The user interface of the platform is very well designed and extremely intuitive. You almost don't need an onboarding process because the workflow is so straightforward. The only item I would mention as a downside is the reporting. In order to get comprehensive reports, you need to go into each individual campaign. There is no aggregated report with all conversions.

Incentivized

Support is one of the best aspects of BuzzStream. I know their support team is small and somehow they are able to get back to us right away in a super helpful, friendly fashion. I've had many questions - sometimes they release a new feature, sometimes a feature isn't working correctly and they are quick to answer but also help explain it in a way that makes sense.

Incentivized

We have our own support rep who helped get us set up, and as odd one off questions have come up has continued to support us. The rep is super knowledgeably and has also helped with some creative ways to get what we need. They are also always super fast to help when anything comes up

Incentivized

I don't have any key insights here. If you have someone organized and aware of how the influencer workflow operates then it will be a very easy implementation process for you. I would just ensure you have all of your products setup in Shopify before starting the implementation with Grin.

Incentivized

BuzzStream stacks up quite well compared to its competitors. In particular, Hootsuite and HubSpot. BuzzStream has many of the same capabilities that its competitors do, at a fraction of the cost. We selected BuzzStream because it had a fairly flexible contract, and it was sufficient for our needs. It was a good intermediate-level tool.

Incentivized

I was looking around at Dovetale, which connected with Shopify, and although it may be an easy connection because it's within the Shopify website, it isn't as user-friendly. It also doesn't offer the same hands-on experience from the GRIN team, 24/7 customer support, or bi-weekly calls with your direct contact. It just doesn't feel like it's worth it to me for the "convenience."

Incentivized

• It's had a positive impact in keeping our entire agency organized. Especially when employees leave, all of their communication is in one place, so it's pretty easy to have someone take over the process.
• You can test different messaging for prospects and then determine the most successful.

Incentivized

• We are just getting moving with Grin but I am excited to grow our overall program.
• The Grin community has provided a wealth of insights that we have been able to implement.
• The addition of EMV data has been great for tracking success.

Incentivized