Printfection vs. Small Improvements

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Printfection
Score 9.6 out of 10
N/A
Printfection is a swag management platform that aims to simplify the buying, managing, and distribution of swag and branded merchandise, from the company of the same name in Denver. They offer a suite of online swag management tools and APIs alongside custom printing, inventory management, and distribution. The vendor states their customers use the platform to drive more leads, reward customers, and engage employees.N/A
Small Improvements
Score 7.3 out of 10
N/A
Performance Reviews & 360s Provide employees with structured opportunities for reflection and assessment through performance reviews and peer feedback. Customize the questions, define who participates, establish a cadence that suits an organization’s schedule, and run reviews for different departments at the same time. Ongoing Feedback Praise coworkers for a job well done and request feedback at any time from anyone. Prepare for…
$2
per user, per month
Pricing
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Engagement and Retention Add-on
$2
per user, per month
Performance Starter Pack
$5
per user, per month
Feedback and Performance Suite
$7
per user, per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsWe also offer volume discounts if you have over 200 employees! Please see the calculator on our pricing page to calculate your exact price.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Considered Both Products
Printfection
Chose Printfection
In the past, I've used 4Imprint, but it's not showing up in the list above.
Chose Printfection
We selected Printfection because they were local, had excellent customer support, had a nice variety of products available, and fit within our budget.
Chose Printfection
Printfection was within our price range in comparison to the others, plus they have a centralized warehouse that allows for global shipping.
Chose Printfection
Our standing relationship with Printfection and our partnership with their customer success teams have been the largest selling point. They take care of us too well.
Chose Printfection
We did not evaluate any other companies - we are happy with Printfection and the selection of their products and the quality they offer. There are a lot of other swag management companies out there, but we already had a relationship with Printfection when I started in this role …
Chose Printfection
We used to use Canary for smaller orders only because at the end of the day we needed a "housing swag" solution. So with Printfections warehousing capabilities it was a no-brainer for us. Printfection allows you to order, print and get shipped (or store) items. We have trade …
Chose Printfection
I reserached swag platforms and narrowed it down to 3 that I wanted to learn more about. I based my choices on response time to demo requests, customer service, items, ability to meet the needs of my supervisor, etc. I learned that 2 out of the 3 platforms I found were both …
Chose Printfection
Pricing model was more flexible. They solved for our immediate need of custom branded swag and ability to ship internationally.
Chose Printfection
I had a poor interaction with their sales representative who didn't seem very interested in us or our business needs. Also their pricing seemed odd in that there was no monthly subscription but instead the postage costs were astronomical. I selected Printfection because I'd …
Chose Printfection
Swag.com was our previous swag company. I find Printfection has a superior customer support system as well as quick turnaround on new swag orders, and great communication when swag is shipped (I know when swag has been ordered, shipped, and delivered). I can also add a note to …
Chose Printfection
Printfection was easier to work with, cost effective, and offered more services
Chose Printfection
There were a couple of reasons we selected Printfection: price and contract/level of commitment (we are on a month-to-month plan). To be honest, there are products that integrate better with Salesforce and have more capabilities but we were looking for something that didn't …
Chose Printfection
Printfection met all of our requirements for an acceptable cost.
Chose Printfection
N/A - we have only used Printfection since I joined the company 10 months ago
Chose Printfection
We evaluated a couple of different options, Printfection won because we weren't limited like other companies when it came to SKUs of a particular item. We had men and women jackets we would send out, and other companies would require unique SKUs for each size which became …
Chose Printfection
We've always used Printfection!
Chose Printfection
The big thing for us with Printfection was being able to consolidate everything into one platform. We were using so many other swag tools, SwagUp, Swag.com, Merchology, iPromo, etc. We were able to take the items from those platforms, send them to Printfection, and get …
Chose Printfection
- The one-stop-shop solution
- Customer service
- The platform
Chose Printfection
They are much better- they have dedicated customer support and are constantly looping in other leaders so they can ensure you're happy with the process. THey are knowledgeable about their vendors and lead times so they can provide proper timely considerations for you and your …
Chose Printfection
The other solutions we vetted were more DIY and involved a bit more work on the end user. We wanted ease of use and distribution. Printfection was the most expensive option but the easiest to manage for a remote company.
Small Improvements
Chose Small Improvements
It's been so long since I've used another performance review software: SI is by far the easiest and most streamlined to use!

Previously we used Google Docs for 1-1 notes, but that gets clunky fast.
Chose Small Improvements
Lattice was able to link in with core OKRs whereas from my memory, Small Improvements didn't support this goal setting and tracking framework. While it was good for sentiment and management frameworks, it was unable to connect with the greater company vision as well as Lattice …
Chose Small Improvements
I have not used products similar to Small Improvements; most of my progress tracking existed within Excel and Google Sheets.
Chose Small Improvements
While still far from perfect, Lattice has much stronger goal-setting and 1:1 features (see my list of areas for improvement above).

At another company, we put all OKR in Confluence and used Google Drive (specifically Google Docs) for 1:1 notes and performance evaluations. While …
Chose Small Improvements
We looked at ADP Workforce Now and Workday HCM but weren't bought into those platforms and it didn't make sense for us to use those alternatives to Small Improvements.
Chose Small Improvements
Small Improvements is less capable compared to the competing platforms I have used due it slow and outdated looking UI, feature set, and ease of use.
Chose Small Improvements
The only other thing I can compare to Small Improvements is just general internal review processes in organizations. I have never used a tool similar to Small Improvements, and think it's a great idea. I really love that my company uses it, and think I'll continue to use it in …
Features
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Printfection
-
Ratings
Small Improvements
8.3
Ratings
10% above category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings7.00 Ratings
Subordinate goal setting00 Ratings7.50 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Printfection
-
Ratings
Small Improvements
9.3
Ratings
13% above category average
Performance plans00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Plan weighting00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Manager note taking00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings8.30 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Rater nomination workflow00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Workflow restrictions00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Reporting00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

iSpring Learn
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Score 9.6 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Sendoso
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Score 9.4 out of 10
Reviewsnap
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Score 9.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Sendoso
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Score 9.4 out of 10
Predictive Index Behavioral Assessment
Predictive Index Behavioral Assessment
Score 6.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Likelihood to Recommend
8.6
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.2
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
7.4
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.1
(0 ratings)
7.1
(0 ratings)
In-Person Training
8.2
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
8.2
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.2
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.1
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
8.3
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
PrintfectionSmall Improvements
Likelihood to Recommend
It is well suited for a one-stop shop that gets everything done in one place (sizing, order, warehousing, shipping, drop-shipping, ability to do one-off orders, support in the process). It is less appropriate if you need something very specific and what they have doesn't work for you or if you like to be very involved in the complete process. It is also less appropriate if price is a major factor.
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Small Improvements is well suited in any sector or organization given that it tracks employee performance, 1:1 meetings, employee recognition and so on. I've used other tools previously like ones built in-house, Excel spreadsheets and even competitors like Workday but Small Improvements is leaps ahead of those other tools in its ability to execute well on employee performance tracking, recognition and meetings.
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Pros
  • The swag catalogue has lots of items to choose from and they try to source anything else you need
  • Takes care of the logistical challenges of getting swag to offices, events and to customers
  • Their customer team are really hands on and helpful
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  • Goal Tracking: Enables users to chart goals, track progress, and provide details about what they want/expect to achieve.
  • Praise Wall: A public place to post positive and encouraging comments about other employees.
  • 360 Reviews: Users can request and gain 1:1 feedback; this can be anonymous if desired.
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Cons
  • Getting started, it took me a bit to navigate the various features of their platform as well as a few calls to customer support to help me find my way but after some practice I was able to navigate and found that the platform is pretty intuitive.
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  • Being able to edit projects more easily (and have a documented edit history) would be beneficial.
  • Possibly integrations with popular platforms (such as JIRA) to give expanded detail of project tracking.
  • Gantt charts would be a nice to have for a top level management view.
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Likelihood to Renew
We are currently extremely satisfied with printfection. The quality of swag is very good, but the customer service ranks high above any other swag company. I have been working closely with my Printfection manager (Tyler Rowland) and he has been more than helpful from the start.
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No answers on this topic
Usability
The product is really easy to use and manage. We love using Printfection. It's easy to order, ship and manage everything. I did remove one rating point because their set up for "giveaways" is a little cumbersome and I wish their platform notified you when products in your giveaways are running low.
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No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
Prinfection's availability has been great. There was one time when a product we needed wasn't available, but our Printfection rep made sure to get what we needed.
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No answers on this topic
Performance
Printfection's performance has been top-notch. We have been using Printfection for only about 8 months, and have not had any issues with performance.
Read full review
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Whenever I have a question or problem, I email and get a response by a knowledgeable rep (I believe we have a dedicated rep), that typically solves my issue at first pass. There's not a lot of back and forth. Also, they are FAST to respond. I'm really satisfied with their support team - I wish all companies' support teams were as speedy and helpful.
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The customer support is quick and thorough, they have access to our account to answers are tailored to our needs. They also have a good knowledge base and self-help site with some video tutorials and FAQs which saved us time as opposed to just calling or emailing support. For the times that we did reach out, it only took one response to get our issue resolved.
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In-Person Training
Tyler led some of our staff through training and was very helpful. Tyler was also always available for any questions after training was complete.
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No answers on this topic
Online Training
We completed online training with a Printfection rep leading us through the process. This made the whole experience easy and helpful.
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No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Their team is very helpful in getting set up and we felt like they worked with us on price and also getting our previous inventory we had at our offices set up in Printfection. The only down side of shipping in your items to Printfection is the photography of the items (which clients can see) is pretty terrible if you don't have clear product photos prior to sending the items to Printfection warehouse.
**All items purchased through Printfection the product photos look better (so this issue won't be the case with those who aren't shipping existing swag to their warehouse)
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No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
I reserached swag platforms and narrowed it down to 3 that I wanted to learn more about. I based my choices on response time to demo requests, customer service, items, ability to meet the needs of my supervisor, etc. I learned that 2 out of the 3 platforms I found were both under Custom Ink which I have used in the past. So I know the items are of good quality. The main deciding factor was the staff. Both companies had nice staff. But Printfection did a superb job of not making me feel like a cutomer but a friend. I didn't fee like I was a sale but a partner.
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While still far from perfect, Lattice has much stronger goal-setting and 1:1 features (see my list of areas for improvement above). At another company, we put all OKR in Confluence and used Google Drive (specifically Google Docs) for 1:1 notes and performance evaluations. While it may seem cumbersome to conduct something like a performance review process via Google Docs, I appreciated the flexibility that it offered. I also still think that shared Google Doc is a perfectly fine tool for 1:1 notes (it even has assignable tasks now), and Confluence is a perfectly fine tool for defining OKR and tracking progress. Keep it simple (c).
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Scalability
Only a few of our departments will be using Printfection, (like HR and Customer Success), but both departments find Printfection flexible and scalable.
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No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
  • Printfection is far more expensive than what we were previously using and we haven't seen a huge ROI yet in terms of influence on pipeline.
  • Our employees are more engaged using Printfection than they were with our previous tool.
  • Printfection helps with product design and research which saves me a ton of time when selecting new items.
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  • Before we had Small Improvements, personal goal setting was completely disorganized. Some managers made sure it was done, likewise many did not.
  • Having past goals collected in one repository has been a blessing. I couldn't imagine not having Small Improvements or something comparable.
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ScreenShots

Small Improvements Screenshots

Screenshot of Provide employees with structured opportunities for reflection and assessment through Performance ReviewsScreenshot of Decide whether or not you want manager to approve nominations for 360 FeedbackScreenshot of Share agenda items, meeting notes, and follow-up discussions with 1:1 MeetingsScreenshot of Create templated 1:1 meeting agendas for your managersScreenshot of Identify goals, set success measures, and track the results with ObjectivesScreenshot of Give public kudos to your colleagues with Praise