ARInsights ARchitect vs. GRIN

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
ARchitect
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
ARInsights’ SaaS platform is used by B2B tech and services companies for managing their analyst relations (AR) and influencer relations programs. The flagship solution, ARchitect, along with multiple complementary products, help improve AR professionals’ efficiency and productivity.N/A
GRIN
Score 6.3 out of 10
N/A
GRIN is a creator management software platform that offers a creator search of over 38 million influencers that is not an opt-in influencer network. GRIN states they believe that the connection between brand and creator should not have a middle-man, and therefore we take no commission. GRIN creator management platform helps brands to connect directly with creator prospects and manage creator relationships to scale. The eCommerce integration aims to make product seeding, discount codes &…N/A
Pricing
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
ARchitectGRIN
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Considered Both Products
ARchitect
Chose ARchitect
We thought ARchitect had the functionality and ease-of-use that was right for us. Simple as that.
Chose ARchitect
There isn't a comparative like-for-like product that I would compare ARchitect to; rather I would compare it to any other CRM system. The key differentiator is the database of analysts listed after that is really a case of comparing how interactions are listed and how emails …
Chose ARchitect
Prior to using ARchitect, we were using Salesforce. While we did have some customization added, it did not nearly have the robustness that ARchitect provides -- especially since it is designed for AR professionals. We've been using ARchitect for about 8 years and have never …
Chose ARchitect
There is no equivalent to ARchitect on the market. We, like many AR programs, used Excel spreadsheets and Word docs before getting ARchitect. Those general purpose tools are sub-optimal for AR management.
GRIN
Chose GRIN
I wish there was a place for screenshots. They sent us "influencers" with 0 followers, 0 posts, with animal pictures for a jewelry brand.
Chose GRIN
We selected Grin because of its much larger influencer base. That being said, changes to Meta soon after we onboarded have made that pool much smaller.
Chose GRIN
We have used both Everflow and ShareASale to manage influencer partnerships.

ShareASale:
Chose GRIN
We selected GRIN over the other competitors we vetted because of the advanced Shopify integration and the ease of use.
Chose GRIN
GRIN has been the most user-friendly influencer management software I have come across benefitting both the brand and the partner we onboard. The content tracking has been more accurate, the Shopify integration has been a HUGE win as well. No other platform I've come across has …
Chose GRIN
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 …
Chose GRIN
Although I have not used any other platforms that are direct competitors of Grin I have chosen to use Grin and not try other ones based almost solely on the level of customer support and overall knowledge of my customer success manager.
Chose GRIN
It's the easiest platform to use and I've used 3 others, ultimately canceling all and going with GRIN exclusively.
Chose GRIN
The user experience is much better on GRIN. It is much easier to learn and operate than other platforms.
Chose GRIN
GRIN is much more advanced and has way more capabilities! With Refersion, I would have to have a CSM pull a report vs. with GRIN I can pull any report myself.
Chose GRIN
I've used GRIN in 4 different roles across different products/services and is still my favorite among all the options.
Chose GRIN
Previously, I used an in-house platform for campaign management that my agency had created. It was honestly very good but not available for use by other brands besides the agency. GRIN is the closest platform I've found to my previous agency's platform.
Chose GRIN
Not applicable because GRIN is the first platform I've used for Influencer Marketing. Previously, I was only using Excel sheets and emailing through Outlook for influencer marketing. I'm glad to be able to use GRIN to scale our influencer platform and it has saved a lot of time …
Chose GRIN
Grin is very user-friendly, and has all the features you need to meet all your influencer goals.
Chose GRIN
GRIN has the most features I've seen compared to any other platform and their customer support and resources are unmatched!
Chose GRIN
The impact didn't have a custom application form/fields which was a big deal for us. Refersion is great for a smaller affiliate program, but not for the growth that we needed
Chose GRIN
We looked at Tribe Dynamics, which was cool but SUPER expensive. We also looked at Cohley, which had more of the influencers that wanted to play with just anyone. This is not what we want. We're seeking a more organic relationship.
Chose GRIN
We've been very happy with the Grin experience as it lets us invest in own our influencer relationships. We can always tap outside agencies for quick support and additional amplifications within their community, but our North Star is to create the best authentic 1-1 …
Chose GRIN
Grin has the ability to send products through the platform and links directly to Shopify - this is why I picked it. My influencers can submit requests for products directly in the platform and I can fulfill the requests through Shopify in the platform.
Chose GRIN
I've used AspireIQ and Mavrck before - AspireIQ doesn't connect to email and has a limited number of influencers to work with. GRIN can source anyone on the internet vs. AspireIQ which influencers have to sign up to be a part of. Mavrck is most similar to Grin, but it is much …
Chose GRIN
We haven't looked at other products because we were so happy with Grin!
Chose GRIN
We looked at:
FOHR as well as many other small and new platforms and GRIN by far was more advanced, user friendly, and easier to implement. GRIN was not just good for the short term, but I know will continue to support me and my team for the duration of our program.
Chose GRIN
Brandbassador is the only platform our previous manager was using. I did not have the opportunity to use it but from what I have been told by my associates is that this has better functionality and easier ability to communicate with the team.
Features
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Mobile Capabilities
Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Product A and Product B
ARInsights ARchitect
-
Ratings
GRIN
1.0
Ratings
0% above category average
Responsive Design for Web Access00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Mobile Application00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Mobile App Analytics00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Influencer Management
Comparison of Influencer Management features of Product A and Product B
ARInsights ARchitect
-
Ratings
GRIN
1.3
Ratings
14% above category average
Influencer search00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Influencer tracking00 Ratings2.00 Ratings
Report generation00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Campaign planning00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Small Businesses
Mention
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Score 9.4 out of 10
Mention
Mention
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Mention
Mention
Score 9.4 out of 10
Mention
Mention
Score 9.4 out of 10
Enterprises
Meltwater
Meltwater
Score 8.0 out of 10
Meltwater
Meltwater
Score 8.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(0 ratings)
1.8
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
1.0
(0 ratings)
8.8
(0 ratings)
Usability
7.0
(0 ratings)
8.1
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
6.0
(0 ratings)
9.3
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
ARInsights ARchitectGRIN
Likelihood to Recommend
If you have an AR program across the globe and want to track all interactions you have with them, this tool is right for you. As you can imagine the tool is only as good as the data you put in, so you do have to make it part of your work day to input the data. Say a team member leaves and you have to jump in to cover for them, you are able to see all the interactions they have had with analysts
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GRIN is the perfect way to manage your brand's advocates. Everything from the application process through the completion of the partnership can be handled on this platform. Additionally, our company just started utilizing the payment feature, which has streamlined our process for paying advocates.
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Pros
  • The Event Manager function is a great way plan, invite and send agendas to your analyst attendees.
  • Projects - although needing more work - is a great way to track progress during an evaluation.
  • Premium content is perfect for tracking mentions, sharing reports that are relevant to your constituents and reporting.
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  • Superb Customer Support
  • Seamless process of identifying quality creators
  • Robust data reporting to lets the data tell the story and guide smart decision marking
  • Great community of fellow GRINNERS to connect with and numerous workshops, webinars, and learning experiences at no additional cost
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Cons
  • We would like to see some project management functions to track RFI, log follow-up actions and assign tasks inside the team.
  • I'd be good to see email open state in the analyst interactions tab.
  • An easier way to report insights from interactions would be hugely useful.
Read full review
  • 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.
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Likelihood to Renew
As a freelancer I am unlikely to have the budget to use ARchitect on a regular basis I would however look at it seriously if asked by a client or if I was working in an agency with a significant AR practice I would look at it seriously.
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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
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Usability
It's super easy to use, and anything that I cannot figure out, their team usually helps me within hours of my asking!
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Once you have used Grin for a while it is super fast and super easy. The initial set up was a little clunky for me, but after I was familiar it was super easy to use, especially after I was more familiar with all the features
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Support Rating
In the instances I have had issues its been a little tricky to figure things out, some of the videos are helpful but getting email responses are not great compared to online chat and I have found that the response rates have been more than a day in some instances which is not as responsive as I would like compared to other platforms.I have seen ARInsights have made a number of new hires in the area of account management so I am sure that will have improved the support provided
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We have been happy with the support that has been provided from Grin. They have allocated to us a dedicated customer success manager and we communicate with them consistently about different features and strategies we should be monitoring and testing. We also did a webinar in partnership with them as a visual testimonial they could use to show to prospective customers.
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Implementation Rating
No answers on this topic
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.
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Alternatives Considered
Prior to using ARchitect, we were using Salesforce. While we did have some customization added, it did not nearly have the robustness that ARchitect provides -- especially since it is designed for AR professionals. We've been using ARchitect for about 8 years and have never looked back. Some examples of vast improvements: 1. Analyst firms/bios. With Salesforce, we needed to maintain all analyst bios -- something that ARchitect does. 2. Analyst coverage. We used to track all analyst coverage by visiting multiple analyst websites and manually pasting into spreadsheets. We now not only get a feed of coverage that can be exported into Excel, but we can also customize reports by topic. 3. Reporting. Salesforce did not provide the same reporting capabilities that ARchitect provides.
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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."
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Return on Investment
  • The Event Module has taken days if not weeks out of the prep process for big events.
  • ARchitect is a great way to allow communication with peers, without the need for extra emails, ect, because everyone on the team can see what each other is doing and who they are talking to about which topics.
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  • Grin has allowed us to grow our influencer program by at least 3 times the amount by making overall management easy and time efficient.
  • Because of the data and content captured through grin, we are also able to use it as a resource to run a more successful whitelisting program
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ScreenShots

ARchitect Screenshots

Screenshot of The database of 10,000+ contacts, where users can search for, discover, and gather information on industry analysts and other prominent B2B influencers.Screenshot of Interactions (inquiries, briefings, meetings, etc.) with analysts and B2B influencers, tracked and managed in a calendar view.Screenshot of A Content Summary that can be used to compare brand’s mentions with competitors’, with tools to identify, track, and analyze research reports, blogs, tweets, and media quotes by industry analysts and b2b influencers.Screenshot of ARchitect’s Emailer solution, with an email designer used segment target lists, schedule and execute campaigns, and report on results.Screenshot of Projects in ARchitect allow users to plan, organize and manage projects (such as vendor evaluations, product launches and analyst days), view progress and stay on track.Screenshot of Briefing books that include analyst bios, analyst research and media coverage, and prior interactions recorded in ARchitect, to prepare executives for their next analyst meeting.

GRIN Screenshots

Screenshot of Search 36M+ CreatorsScreenshot of Identify Influential CustomersScreenshot of Activate Unlimited CampaignsScreenshot of Track Creator ContentScreenshot of Send Email Templates + SequencesScreenshot of Report on Performance