The stage is set for an epic showdown between two of the biggest tools in UGC production.
In one corner, you’ve got Insense, a platform that streamlines the production and distribution of UGC.
And in the other corner is Billo, a UGC marketplace.
Which tool will come out on top?
There’s only one way to find out.
Join us as we go on a detailed adventure analyzing both tools, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses.
Ready?
Let’s go!
Disclaimer: The information below is accurate as of November 10, 2023.
What Is Insense?
Insense is a creative platform where marketers and brand owners like you can get a steady supply of user-generated content.
How do you get this UGC?
By working with creators who are right for your brand and have experience producing top-performing content.
Now after getting UGC on Insense, you can decide to:
- Partner up with the creators to post it on their social media channels.
- Run whitelisted ads from the creators’ handles on TikTok, Instagram, or Facebook.
Basically, with Insense, you can do more than receive UGC for your marketing strategies.
And it’s used by different professionals from e-commerce experts to marketers, creative strategists, media buyers, and more.
That said, let’s take a moment to look at Billo too.
What Is Billo?
Billo is software for sourcing UGC videos for your brand. This platform describes itself as a ‘marketplace for user-generated content’.
In other words, they’re fully dedicated to all things UGC. With Billo, you can test different video types to find the one that works best during ad creation.
Kinda like you do with A/B testing.
So, how does it work?
First, you will need to create a task on Billo for creators to see.
Then, choose your preferred creator and send over the product you’d like them to create content for (if it’s a physical product).
After that, the creator sends over quality videos you can publish.
Both Insense and Billo sound like great tools you can use. But before you make any decision, you need to look deeper so you don’t leave any stone unturned.
That’s what we’re gonna do next, go over the pros and cons of both tools.
Insense: Pros & Cons
Sometimes, one of the ways to know if a tool is the right fit for you is by reading what other users have said about it.
That’s what we did here.
So in this section, you’ll find the advantages and disadvantages of Insense based on online reviews.
Let’s begin with the pros.
Insense pros
Here are some of Insense’s top advantages:
- Easy setup: Getting started on Insense is pretty straightforward. In fact, you can be on your way to receiving UGC in just three easy steps after signing up.
- Fill out the creative brief.
- Get connected with the right UGC creators.
- Start receiving content.
See what we mean?
- Wide creator and influencer network: Insense also happens to have an extensive database of UGC creators across different industries like health and wellness, beauty, and more. So whichever one you need, Insense has you covered.
- Several pricing options: With Insense, there are different pricing plans to choose from. And a couple of them are UGC-specific, such as the UGC plan and UGC+ Creator Ads option.
- Product seeding: Let’s say you’re a startup working on a tight budget, you can find creators on this content creation platform who are willing to receive products in exchange for UGC.
Insense cons
But, Insense isn’t without a few disadvantages though. Here are some of them:
- No API offering: At the moment, Insense doesn’t have an API to help you interface with other tools. However, there are integrations with other tools you can use like Videowise and Sendlane.
- No free trial: What you have instead is a free demonstration of how the product works.
Now, let’s take a look at Billo’s advantages and disadvantages too.
Billo: Pros & Cons
So, what are the reviews saying about Billo?
Aside from the fact that it helps brands get fresh e-com videos, here’s an overview of what they said:
Billo pros
Let’s start with the advantages:
- Simple onboarding process: Billo has a straightforward onboarding process with multiple customization options to align the campaign with your brand voice.
- Specific offering: Billo is quite clear about what it has to offer — UGC videos. It’s a good way to manage their clients’ expectations.
- Affordable content: This UGC platform prides itself on providing high-quality content at a lower cost.
- Photo-offering: In addition to videos, you can request custom photographs from their network of creators.
Billo cons
Some of Billo’s main drawbacks include:
- Limited content options: Videos produced by Billo creators are only useful for advertising and not your everyday social media content. So it’s either testimonials, mashups, or unboxing videos.
- Slow support: It can take a while for Billo’s customer support to respond to your issue or request.
- Limited creator category: Billo has creators across three business types: e-commerce, apps, and agencies. So, it might be difficult to find creators that fall into any other categories.
Now, let’s compare Billo and Insense to see what’s different and what they both have to offer.
We start with their features.
Comparison Point #1: Main Platform Features
To properly compare both tools, we once again looked at what users had to say about each of them.
…Starting with their major features.
But first, a graphic comparing the features of both tools.
…Starting with their major features.
Insense features
When it comes to UGC campaigns, there’s a lot Insense has to offer. Here are a few of the main features you can leverage.
- Favorite creator list: When finding creators and micro-influencers on Insense, you can build a list of your favorite creators. This way, you can partner with them for long-term collaborations.
Why is this important? Well, so you don’t have to go through the stress of finding the right creators to work with for each new campaign.
- Creator ads: You’ve hired a creator to produce UGC for you. But that’s not all you can do Insense. You can ask creators to post the content on their social media platforms for organic reach. Then, with this particular feature, you can promote the content as an ad directly from the creator’s profile.
- Direct chat: A closed chat where you can message creators before hiring them to discuss everything. From payment negotiation to engagement status, terms of collaboration, and more.
- Advanced audience insight: After you’ve found creators for your campaign, how do you know they’re the right fit for your brand before hiring them?
Well, one way to know is by looking at the creator’s audience insight and metrics. And that’s what this feature is about, helping you discover real-time insights needed to make the right choice.
Billo features
To make the most of Billo, here are some features you’ll find useful:
- UGC library: If you can’t afford the luxury of finding creators, sending briefs, and all that, you can leverage Billo’s UGC library. You just browse through their catalog of videos and photos to find one you like. Then, you can buy and download it.
- Creator portfolio: Now if you decide collaborating with creators is a better option for your campaign, you can look at their portfolio before hiring them. This way, you know if they’ve got the experience needed for the project or if they’re the right fit for your brand.
- Creator showcase: This feature shows you Billo’s top-performing creators and their full videos. It’s like a creator marketplace so you can find one who’s a good fit for your campaign.
Which is better?
When it comes to features, it seems that Insense has more features than Billo.
While Billo’s features are tailored to getting UGC, Insense helps you get UGC content and ensures it gets more visibility and engagement organically.
It’s clear what you can do with both tools now, right?
Cool!
So, on to the next comparison point.
Comparison Point #2: Pricing
Pricing is such an important factor to consider when choosing a tool.
Knowing how much they cost will help you structure your budget accordingly.
To help you with that, here’s a graphic of Billo and Insense’s pricing structure:
Now, let’s talk about them in detail.
Insense pricing
There are two types of plans on Insense: a self-service and a managed service plan.
The self-service tier is simply you running campaigns on Insense. You’ve got three options with this plan.
They include:
- Trial version: This plan gives you a test run of the different features on Insense for one month and it costs $500/mo. If you like what you see, you can then decide to opt for other plans or end the engagement.
- UGC plan: Wanna scale your UGC production? This plan is for you. It costs $400/mo, $1,200 per quarter and you’ll get unlimited campaigns and a personal success manager.
- UGC+creator ads: This is the most popular plan on Insense and it begins at $450/mo and $1,350 per quarter. You’ll get an unlimited supply of UGC, creator licenses, creator ads, audience insight, etc.
- Advanced plan: Starting at $1,500/mo, this plan offers personal support on creative strategies, chat management, and more.
Okay, so what does the managed service plan mean?
Simple, that you just relax while the Insense team manages your UGC campaign. All you have to do is review and approve the creatives.
There are three tiers for this plan:
- Package 1 costs $2,800/mo for 6x UGC video ads.
- Package 2, $3,500/mo for 12x UGC video ads.
- Package 3 starts at $4,200/mo for 18x UGC video ads.
Billo pricing
Billo offers three pricing plans.
- Launch plan: Costs $500 and you’ll get up to 6 videos.
- Grow plan: Costs $1,000 for about 15 videos.
- Scale plan: Costs $2,500 for up to 40 videos including a dedicated manager and priority support.
All of them only require a one-time payment that’s valid for one year.
Now both Billo and Insense don’t have a free trial for users. However, Insense does have a demo so you get to experience how the platform works.
Which is better?
When it comes to pricing, it seems that Insense is once again the better tool.
Why?
Well, they have multiple options for you to choose from. If you decide to run campaigns yourself, there’s a service for that. And if you’d prefer to just outsource the whole process, you’ve got an option for that too.
What else?
Even though there’s no free trial, Insense offers a free demo for prospects interested in using their app.
Another thing to note when choosing a UGC management platform is what kind of creators they have.
And that’s what we’re gonna look at in the next section.
Comparison Point #3: Creators
Getting user-generated content is the main reason you’re searching for the best UGC platform, right?
But to source UGC, you need creators.
That’s why it’s important to know what kind of creators the platform you’re interested in has.
You won’t wanna be matched with a celebrity influencer when what you need is a simple UGC creator.
Anyway, here’s a comparison of both platforms and the kind of creators they’ve got.
Let’s start with Insense.
Insense creators
You’ll find two types of creators on Insense: UGC creators and micro-influencers.
The difference between them?
UGC creators are kinda experts in producing UGC for social media and they’ve got a following that trusts them.
Brands like UGC creators because they come off as just regular people who found a product they enjoy and thought to share with their audience.
So, they’re not too ‘salesy’ but they’re effective in increasing your return on ad spend (ROAS).
Micro-influencers, on the other hand, are upcoming social media celebrities who have a following of people who trust them. As such, they’re able to influence their audience’s decisions with ease
Bottom line is these are the kinds of creators on Insense and there are over 20k of them, all well-vetted.
Billo creators
Now Billo, on the flip side, has a community of 5,000+ vetted creators. As it’s a UGC marketplace, you’ll only find UGC creators on the platform.
For Billo, you have UGC creators producing UGC and that’s it.
Which is better?
When it comes to creators, Insense is one step ahead of Billo. They’ve got a larger community of vetted creators. Plus, you have the option of working with either UGC creators, micro-influencers, or both.
***
So far, we’ve touched on three comparison factors to consider when choosing a UGC platform.
Insense is currently leading the charge.
Let’s see if the next factor — additional services — will redeem Billo.
Comparison Point #4: Additional Services
It’s always a good sign when the software you’re using offers additional services.
Why?
Because it provides you with different options and functionality, making the tool more useful.
Here’s a graphic showing what additional services Insense and Billo are offering:
Insense additional services
On Insense, you have access to three services for a seamless campaign. They include
Post-production: With this service, you’ll get ready-to-use UGC after creators send in their content. You won’t have to bother about doing additional editing in-house.
Additional brands for your plan: For most plans on Insense, you're typically entitled to one brand. So if you wanna add more brands (up to 30) to your plan, then this is the add-on for you.
Fully managed service: This service lets you leverage UGC ads without the work associated with it. You just let the Insense team handle new concepts, hire creators, and edit post-production.
Billo additional services
On Billo, you get access to two additional services:
Post-production: With this service, Billo’s editors will refine your UGC so it looks professional and ready to publish.
Storyboard writer: Here, you get to use Billo’s AI tool to create storyboards for your UGC videos.
Which is better?
When it comes to additional services, it seems that Insense has more to offer. Its additional services provide more room to scale when you want.
On the flip side, Billo seems designed more for the production of UGC assets.
***
There you have it, a detailed analysis of Insense and Billo. As mentioned in the intro, it was a showdown, right?
Well, just one more thing and we can call it a wrap.
A Better Alternative to Billo
If you’ve been looking for how to start and scale your UGC marketing campaign, then Insense is your best option.
The reason is simple: we’ve got more features you can leverage and getting started is straightforward.
What’s more, aside from just getting UGC, you have options for organic posting and launching whitelisting campaigns.
You can experience this for yourself.
Book a demo with Insense today and get ready to take your campaign to the next level.
