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Overview

What is Podium?

Podium, formerly Repdrive, is a ratings and review management platform from the company of the same name in Provo, Utah.

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

Users have reported a range of experiences with Podium, both positive and negative. On the positive side, many users find Podium to be a …
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Product Malfunctions

1 out of 10
September 08, 2022
Our company acquired this service as its parter with our dealer program. We had the miss-fortune to encounter massive issues within the …
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Simple View

6 out of 10
September 02, 2022
To answer customer enquiry. Set appoint when appropriate.
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Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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Podium Essentials

$249

Cloud
per month 3 users

Podium Standard

$409

Cloud
per month Unlimited users

Podium Professional

$599

Cloud
per month Unlimited users

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.podium.com/pricing/

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

Starting price (does not include set up fee)

  • $249 per month
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Product Details

What is Podium?

Podium (formerly Repdrive) aims to help businesses make interaction with consumers simple and convenient by focusing on familiar communication channels they already use. According to the vendor, increased interaction with customers makes businesses more visible, improves business operations, and drives purchase decisions. Podium serves 130,000+ users across nearly 25,000 businesses.

Podium Competitors

Podium Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

Podium, formerly Repdrive, is a ratings and review management platform from the company of the same name in Provo, Utah.

Podium starts at $249.

Birdeye, Yotpo, and Reputation.com are common alternatives for Podium.

Reviewers rate Usability highest, with a score of 9.9.

The most common users of Podium are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(90)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

Users have reported a range of experiences with Podium, both positive and negative. On the positive side, many users find Podium to be a useful tool for managing their online reputation and generating customer reviews. They appreciate its ease of use in sending review invites via text messages, which has yielded better results compared to email surveys. The software has helped businesses boost their online presence by addressing the problem of not receiving enough Google reviews. By using Podium, companies have seen an increase in their average rating on Google and have stood out among their competitors.

Furthermore, users have found value in Podium's ability to automate necessary communications and save hours per week that would otherwise be spent on manual tasks. The software allows for custom automated messages, such as reservation reminders, service ticket notifications, and review requests. This automation not only makes businesses appear more professional but also helps them stay organized and efficient. Podium's payment function is also appreciated by users as it simplifies the process of collecting payments for special orders and memberships.

However, there are also several challenges that users have faced with Podium. Some users have reported difficulties during the installation process and a month-long onboarding period. Additionally, there have been complaints about unhelpful customer support and language barriers when seeking assistance. Users have encountered issues with linking phone numbers to the company phone and experiencing problems with form submission when integrating with WordPress.

Furthermore, some users find certain features of Podium to be limited or unnecessary. For example, the reviews tab is deemed pointless as users can simply send customers a link to their Google My Business review tab. Another limitation is that once customer information is uploaded, it cannot be modified or deleted, leading to mix-ups and errors in automated texts.

Despite these challenges, many customers highly recommend Podium for its reputation management capabilities, review solicitation tools, and live chat feature. It has proven valuable for businesses across various industries, helping them improve their online presence, streamline their communications, and enhance their customer experiences.

Intuitive User Interface: Reviewers have consistently praised Podium's user interface for its simplicity and ease of use. Many users have stated that the software is intuitive and easy to navigate, allowing anyone to quickly grasp and utilize its features effectively.

Flexible Message Customization: A significant number of reviewers have highlighted the value of being able to customize messages on Podium. Users appreciate the flexibility to send mass texts or individual messages, tailoring their communication approach based on their specific needs and preferences.

Top-Notch Customer Support: Numerous users have commended Podium's customer support as being highly responsive and helpful. The availability of support via chat has been particularly appreciated by customers, who find it convenient to reach out for assistance whenever they encounter any issues or require guidance.

  1. Poor Customer Support: Several users have expressed dissatisfaction with the customer support provided by Podium, describing it as unhelpful and sketchy. They have mentioned that their issues were not resolved in a timely manner and felt frustrated with the lack of assistance.

  2. High Pricing: Some users found the pricing model of Podium to be poor, stating that the software is considerably more expensive compared to other systems like Reputation.com. They feel that the cost does not justify the features and functionality offered by Podium.

  3. Difficulties with Setup and Onboarding Process: Users have reported difficulties with the setup and onboarding process of Podium, suggesting that it should not charge until the setup is complete. They have mentioned facing challenges in getting started with the platform and believe that a smoother onboarding experience would greatly improve user satisfaction.

Users highly recommend using Podium as a valuable tool for businesses. Despite its cost, users believe it is worth the investment and suggest exploring all the features and options available on Podium's home page for better understanding. They also recommend ensuring that Podium can integrate with all the software used by the business.

Podium is praised as a great tool for tracking customer conversations, follow-up, and live chats. Users suggest using it to its full potential in order to enhance client interaction. Many reviewers believe that Podium is the best product on the market for customer communication and driving revenue.

Users highly recommend Podium for its user-friendliness, great support, and simplicity. They advise fully implementing Podium in the business and getting the team fully on board with using it for asking reviews. It is also recommended to have friendly competition within the team both for the number and quality of reviews.

Overall, users advise trying Podium and taking advantage of its free trial period to experience its benefits firsthand. They suggest using it to gather feedback, create an online presence, and increase online reputation. Users praise Podium's integrations with other tools and emphasize the importance of being accountable with review invites, sending them right after customer interactions.

Although there are a few users who advocate against using Podium and suggest alternative platforms, many others find it to be a valuable addition to their business toolbox.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-3 of 3)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use Podium, integrated with Service Titan as well as on its own to contact customers as well as to request reviews. It is one of my favorite contact methods, so I personally use it all day every day
  • Immediate contact
  • Request Reviews
  • Allows customers to choose how they contact, either by cell phone, or through Google very easy for customers
  • I get a lot of weird phone calls through podium maybe make it so calls cannot go through? Never ever answered a call thru podium. Always weird numbers. likely spam
  • Often times people CANNOT use the review link. This is an ongoing issue that we cannot resolve.
  • Sometimes folks can write in but we cannot respond nor see how they wrote in
Anytime a customer is at work or someplace they cannot take a call, they can often answer on Podium. This is by far my favorite means of contact also because I can go back and review all the back and forth between the customer and myself. People love communication without speaking to someone these days. Just seems to be the way of the world.

Love also being able to create campaigns and offer deals/coupons to folks. However with NYS law changing recently this has changed our ability to reach out as of late
  • Customer contact
  • Campaigns
  • reviews
  • Only when the link is broken that is really annoying, inhibits our reviews
used to use "Skipio" for texting and "social climb" for reviews, using all different systems for something one product can do, is just a pain! So it has been FANTASTIC!

We use Podium all day every day and we had to log in to multiple account systems to do all the things that Podium does alone, technically getting reviews on Google, Home Advisor and BBB through Podium is so nice!
25
Everything, from owner, to sales reps, to technicians, secretaries, financial support, managers, reps, appt setters everyone uses it
3
Although everyone uses Podium to ask for reviews, the folks that support the customers requests must have proper grammar and spelling and know enough about the schedule and company to respond. So there are 3 people, the COO, me (manager of sales) and the finance rep that respond in podium
  • Reviews
  • Customer contact
  • Campaigns
  • Campaigns to offer coupons
  • requesting reviews for all our available sites in one place
  • Alerting customers to when we are headed to their appt
  • During Covid we used it as a reminder to folks to let us know if anyone was not feeling well to let us know
  • Continued review
  • Reaching out to multiple customers with offers
Again, Podium has been so wonderful in the year and a half we have been using it, we are able to integrate it with our CRM and use alot of the available features. The most helpful has been getting TONS of reviews on MULTIPLE sites through Podium!
Yes
Skipio, for text campaigns
Social Climb, for reviews
  • Price
  • Product Features
  • Product Usability
  • Product Reputation
I looked at NUMEROUS options and after seeing all the benefits and the way it integrated with our existing software there was only one potential competitor and that was Sway, however we chose Podium for the benefits that sway did not offer
  • Implemented in-house
No
Change management was minimal
  • none
This was super easy to learn how to use and no one had an issue with it
We have always gotten wonderful support through the onboarding and any questions we have had. Only thing is they cannot seem to ensure the review link works for everyone
No, we have not needed it. The use of podium is easy and doesnt require us to need premium support
The first time the link for reviews was broken I had a rep that was diligent in fixing the link, however this is an ongoing issues. The rep
I got initially helped me to not only get the review link working but also walked me through setting up the review for Home Advisor and BBB
I am able to log in on my computer and my phone, making customer contact super easy. I watch Podium through the weekends and evenings and love that I can immediately respond to someone in need
  • Customer contact
  • Reviews when working
  • Only because laws changing in NYS the campaign feature is harder to use now
Yes
perfect. Just like the web page
Joshua Christopherson | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
At Achieve Today, we use Podium as a tool to help our customers write a review of their experience with their education easily. Our students love our solution and education, but sometimes sharing that experience with others can be daunting. Podium makes it easy.
  • Makes reviews easy
  • Manage reviews and respond
  • Track reviews across multiple sources easily
  • I really would love the ability to show all review sites for the customer to choose from as the first option, rather than taking them through the flow. Podium allows you to push customers to specific sites, which is valuable. But I would also like the option to switch to display all sites so the customer can choose.
I think every business needs to spend time managing their online presence in regards to customer reviews. No matter how great of a business you are, every once in a while, some customers will come along and try to damage your brand. Podium is the best resource to help the overwhelming majority of good customers voice their approval for what you do.
  • Fortunately, our business has a lot of raving fans. Podium has made it easier for them to have a voice.
I haven't seen a comparable product to Podium. They do the best job at this.
5
Support
Coaching
Marketing
2
Minimal. Podium is easy to use and learn. A small technical knowledge is useful.
  • Review Collection and Public Review Sites
  • Payment Collection for some clients
  • Payment collection for clients who don't want to share personal information with a sales rep over the phone.
It makes sense as an ongoing tool for our organization.
I've only needed to contact support a couple of times over the years. They have always been very responsive and helpful. Generally speaking, the product is very user-friendly and easy to use, so it doesn't require a lot of support. But on the occasion I need a little help, they are absolutely rock stars and quick to resolve questions.
No, there is no need to purchase premium support. I feel like that would be a bad sign if regular support and help wasn't part of the product. These guys do their job for what you pay for and they get things handled.
No
There isnt one specific time. I have needed some help and support a couple of times over the last two years we have used the product. Each time the support is prompt and well handled. I leave the shat with clear solutions every time and I am happy with the product.
Podium is easy to use and very clear. It works and I like that. Rarely does my team get confused about how to use it and the few times that has happened its a simple solution or small direction needed.
  • Review collection is my favorite
  • payment collection via text is a great tool
Yes
Excellent! Its simple and easy to use.
Its easy to scale to different departments as needed. We initially began using it to solve one problem and as new features became available it was easy to scale this and include other departments who could benefit from its tools.
We haven't had any outages or issues whenever we need it over the last few years of use.
It moves quickly and has no issues with delays. Performance is good as it is a web-based tool.
December 19, 2018

Best Review Software

Jorel Cook | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use Podium to request reviews from our clients to rate our company and gauge sentiment. It works better and has so many useful features that would be hard to live without. For example, after texting someone a review, we had no idea that people were trying to text back. It only makes sense that the customer should be able to text back to a review invite text that you just sent them.
  • Messaging with clients.
  • Review tracking is almost instantaneous.
  • Comparing your company to your competitors.
  • More research on why links may not work after sending to clients.
  • This feature is in the works for the app. Messaging through the app to clients, allowing us to respond quicker.
  • Maybe add reporting for the managers in the app.
I believe that it is the best review platform available, because of how simple it is to use.
  • As soon as we started getting more reviews from clients on Podium, we notice more new customers would mention our reviews when they called.
Their product is up to date and always improving. The other software we were using was more expensive and ancient in the software world.
9
Manager, Office Staff, Technician
9
Use of apps
  • capturing reviews
  • giving customers another way to communicate feedback
  • communicating if theirs issues
  • Messaging, our customers can text us photos or ask questions
  • web chat
  • lead followup
It has only helped improve our reputation online by giving us an easy way to invite our customers to give us feedback. This way we can make adjustments and gauge how we are doing for our customers.
Yes
Review Trackers. This product was nice, but focused on just notifying us if we got a review and sending email requests. Whit Podium we were able to text our customers, making it much easier to give us feedback and they can text us back with questions and photos. I didn't like the idea of texting someone a review invite and them texting back when no one would receive it.
  • Product Features
  • Product Usability
  • Positive Sales Experience with the Vendor
Product Features. As I've said, we are able to text invite our customers and we can continue a text conversation with them through Podium's messaging platform.
Nothing
  • Implemented in-house
No
Change management was a big part of the implementation and was well-handled
  • Employee adoption and use
We only had a hard time getting our technicians to remember to send the review invites.
Never had any hang ups, issues are resolved fast and best of all, the product works, so not many support requests.
We weren't able to get through to our BBB listing for leaving reviews and they quickly figured it out and fixed it.
  • sending review invites
  • replying to a review
  • replying to a customer question
  • Not sure
Yes
Very well. Super simple to use and flexible for different users in the organization.
No issues and very easy.
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