Recently I made a significant shift in my operations - transitioning from GatherUp to Senja for my clients. This wasn't a decision made on a whim, but a long-term, strategic move influenced by several factors - pricing, widget options, and customer service experiences.

I’ve been a reliable GatherUp customer for almost a decade and it was once a reliable platform for my business. Unfortunately, I’ve seen a massive decline in its service quality and support since its acquisition by Traject. The platform still offers a robust suite of features, but is it worth it when paired with poor customer service and increased pricing?

Another point of contention with GatherUp is its focus on the Net Promoter Score (NPS). While NPS was once considered a vital metric for assessing customer satisfaction and loyalty, recent studies have debunked its importance. A Harvard Business Review article titled "Where Net Promoter Score Goes Wrong" provides an insightful critique of the NPS, arguing that it is not the definitive measure of customer experience or predictor of growth that it is often made out to be.

Enter Senja, a breath of fresh air in the customer feedback and reputation management space. One of the standout features of Senja is its affordability. With competitive pricing, Senja provides a cost-effective alternative to GatherUp without compromising on the quality of features. Speaking of features, Senja offers cool widget options that are not only really well designed, but also fast-loading. Page speed is crucial for websites today, where every second counts in retaining a visitor’s attention.

One of the super cool features of Senja is the ability to turn testimonials into videos. This feature allows businesses to leverage the power of video content, which is known for its high engagement rates, to showcase positive customer feedback. The Senja team is also just really great at design - I didn’t realize how stale the GatherUp widgets were until I discovered what Senja had available.

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There are some downsides to switching to Senja. For instance, GatherUp offers a more comprehensive dashboard where clients can respond to reviews and connect to social media platforms. However, this wasn't a deal-breaker for me as most of my clients rarely used the dashboard.

Another area where GatherUp outshines Senja is in email outreach. Unlike GatherUp, Senja doesn't send out emails, which meant I had to build the request email automation via MailerLite. While this initially seemed like a drawback, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. MailerLite offers great free plans, and even their paid plans start at a very affordable $9 a month. I was able to easily connect these automations to my clients’ CRM/OMS systems, making the review request process automatic. And MailerLite has automations available on the free plan!

Building a similar request and follow-up system as GatherUp was surprisingly easy with MailerLite. I was even able to recreate the feature where a person cannot be asked multiple times within a certain time period, ensuring that customers are not overwhelmed with requests.

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The switch from GatherUp to Senja has been a positive move for my clients and me. While GatherUp has its strengths, the combination of Senja's affordability, innovative features, and the flexibility offered by MailerLite for email automation makes it a compelling choice for businesses seeking a customer feedback and reputation management solution. I’m also saving a considerable amount of money on this new setup.

When you work with clients, it seems like the journey of finding the right tools for your agency is a continuous one - and it's important to stay open to change and adapt as the landscape evolves. I hope my experience and insights can help others make an informed decision for your business or agency. In the end, the goal is to provide the best possible service to our clients, and sometimes, that means making tough decisions and switching to a platform that better suits our needs. For me, that platform is Senja. It's not perfect, but it offers a range of features and benefits that make it a worthy alternative to GatherUp.

I'm excited to see how Senja continues to evolve and improve in the future. For now, it's a step in the right direction, and I'm looking forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on my clients' businesses. Remember, the key to success in any business is adaptability - especially in these times. We must be willing to change and evolve with the times, and that includes the tools and platforms we use. So, here's to new beginnings with Senja, and to the continued success and growth of our clients.