Loyalty, advocacy and referrals
Asked as “customer loyalty and referral platform”, and as “customer advocacy and referral program tool”, on behalf of a mid-market B2B software company. 24 first choices recorded across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, six models each.
Standing · first-choice share
25%
Contested · Smile.io 25%
25Influitive AdvocateHub25Smile.io12SlapFive38others
25% of first choices, contested.
The standing
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, over all six models, for a mid-market B2B software company. Ordered by share.
ProductFirst-choice shareNegative rateLabelsQuadrantSince September 2026
01
Influitive AdvocateHub25%22%18accepted challengernewNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 25% now.
Influitive AdvocateHub25%22%18accepted challengernewNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 25% now.Show the three products at 0%, ordered by negative rate
07
Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals0%41%17criticized challengernewNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now.
Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals0%41%17criticized challengernewNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now.The floor is 12 points of share, measured: how far the models move a leader on their own when the same questions are asked twice with nothing changed. A larger change is movement; a smaller one can't be told apart from repeat variation, and both are shown. Each index measures its own floor from its own repeat, over its own categories, so the floor differs from one index to the next. How the floor is measured
Bars are the share of first choices, 0 to 100Every product with at least 10 labels here. Every product name links to its product page.
Head to head
All ten head-to-head pages: the top five products, each against each
Recommended versus criticized
Every product with at least 10 labels here, on both axes. The 30% line names a quadrant, not the verdict above: that one needs more than 40%.
Criticized challengerCriticized default
Negative label rate →
01
02
03
04
05
0607
08Accepted challengerEndorsed leader
0%First-choice share → · lines at 30% share and 25% negative40%
Key
01Influitive AdvocateHub25%
Influitive AdvocateHub25%02Smile.io25%
Smile.io25%03SlapFive12%
SlapFive12%04Referral Rock4%
Referral Rock4%05Talon.One4%
Talon.One4%06LoyaltyLion0%
LoyaltyLion0%07Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals0%
Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals0%08ReferralCandy0%
ReferralCandy0%What they warned about
Zero of six models held their first choice under the paraphrase. Claude Opus 5, Claude Opus 4.8, GPT-6 Astra, GPT-5.6 Sol, Gemini 3.1 Pro and Perplexity Sonar Pro changed. A high negative share on a product with few labels is a warning. A low share on a product with many labels is salience, not sentiment.
Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals41%
7 of 17 labels negative · 5 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“*Verdict:* Avoid if you want a lightweight, flexible, month-to-month tool.” Gemini 3.1 Pro, negative prompt
ReferralCandy43%
6 of 14 labels negative · 4 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“Avoid platforms that charge a high flat monthly fee *plus* a percentage ... (e.g., ReferralCandy charges $39/month + a 10.5% commission fee” Gemini 3.1 Pro, budget prompt
LoyaltyLion27%
3 of 11 labels negative · 3 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“*Verdict:* Avoid if your order volume is low or if you need advanced flow logic but have a strict tech stack budget.” Gemini 3.1 Pro, negative prompt
Influitive AdvocateHub22%
4 of 18 labels negative · 3 of 6 models
“Historical support and service-change concerns... I would avoid a long commitment unless it provides recent customer references” GPT-6 Astra, negative prompt
What they cite
Six of the six models returned a source list in this edition: six return the pages they cited.
Sites the answers cite
32 of 36 answers in this category came back with a source list, from 6 of 6 models: citations where the model returns them, or the search results it consulted. 562 links across 211 sites, every framing counted. Ranked by the number of answers carrying the site or page. None of the 36 answers across every segment cited this index's own page for the category.
vendor site · Open Loyalty13 answers · 20 citations · 3 models
12 answers · 20 citations · 5 models
vendor site · Influitive11 answers · 15 citations · 5 models
vendor site · Yotpo11 answers · 15 citations · 5 models
vendor site · ReferralCandy9 answers · 13 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Referral Rock9 answers · 9 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Capterra7 answers · 11 citations · 3 models
7 answers · 8 citations · 3 models
vendor site · HubSpot7 answers · 7 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Extole7 answers · 7 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Guideflow7 answers · 7 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Klaviyo7 answers · 7 citations · 3 models
Pages the answers cite
The ten pages named in the most answers, by full address. A page here is one the models returned with a recommendation, not one the index endorses.
9 answers · 3 models
7 answers · 4 models
6 answers · 2 models
5 answers · 4 models
5 answers · 3 models
5 answers · 2 models
5 answers · 3 models
5 answers · 4 models
5 answers · 2 models
5 answers · 3 models
Search against answers
Each company's standing in the answers beside its site's footprint in Google search, one row a site: the products the models named on it with their shares, and the share they add up to; monthly searches on Google, and DataForSEO's estimate of AI search demand (modeled from search signals, directional, not a count of queries to any assistant), for the most-searched of the company's and its products' names (the name is in each row's hover text); estimated monthly organic visits to the site; and its best position in Google's top ten for “best customer loyalty and referral platform”, “customer loyalty and referral platform”. US estimates from DataForSEO and Google's Ads Transparency Center. A small company's site, or a mid-sized company's site for its flagship, is marked company; a product on a large parent's site (Google, Microsoft) has no site figures. A column with no figures for this category is left out, and an empty cell means none were seen, not none exist. Two measurements side by side: neither is read as the cause of the other.
| Company and products | Share | Own site cited | Name searches, Google | AI search demand, est. | Organic visits | Paid search a month, est. | Google ads, last 30 days | Best Google position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Influitive AdvocateHub influitive.com | 25% | 86 | 10 | 0 | 4,094 | |||
| Smile.io smile.io | 25% | 108 | 260 | 26 | 8,962 | $1,468 | 12 | |
| SlapFive slapfive.com | 12% | 11 | 170 | 0 | 76 | |||
| Cello cello.so | 8% | 42 | 165,000 | 28,081 | 3,191 | 3 | ||
| Referral Rock referralrock.com | 4% | 222 | 720 | 10 | 18,599 | 1 | ||
| PartnerStack partnerstack.com | 4% | 401 | 4,400 | 68 | 27,495 | 16 | ||
| Referral Factory referral-factory.com | 4% | 157 | 480 | 2 | 5,115 | 3 | 7 | |
| Talon.One talon.one | 4% | 32 | 1,000 | 1 | 18,382 | $291 | 17 | |
| UserEvidence userevidence.com | 4% | 10 | 480 | 4 | 1,085 | 9 | ||
| CustomerGauge customergauge.com | 4% | 99 | 210 | 0 | 22,116 | $254 | 17 |
Google's top ten for the two searches hold 16 sites; 3 of them are among the sites the models cited here (klaviyo.com, referralcandy.com, yotpo.com). The first result for “best customer loyalty and referral platform” is influencermarketinghub.com.
How they answered
Six framings of the same buying question, each sent to every model in a fresh session with search on. One row per model, so a row shows whether it held its answer under rewording, what it named when cost was the constraint, and what it argued against. Computed from the raw judge labels.ShowHide
How they answered
Six framings of the same buying question, each sent to every model in a fresh session with search on. One row per model, so a row shows whether it held its answer under rewording, what it named when cost was the constraint, and what it argued against. Computed from the raw judge labels.
ShowHideModelDirect“What is the best customer loyalty and referral platform for a mid-market B2B software company?”Paraphrase“Which customer advocacy and referral program tool would you recommend to a mid-sized B2B software company?”Comparative“What are the top loyalty, advocacy and referral platforms and how do they differ?”Budget-constrained“What is the best customer loyalty and referral platform for a company with a limited budget?”Scale-constrained“We are a 500 person company evaluating a customer loyalty and referral platform. What should we look at?”Negative“Which loyalty, advocacy and referral platforms should I avoid or be cautious about?”
Claude Opus 5PartnerStackagainst: Open Loyalty, ZinreloSlapFive, UserEvidenceChangedagainst: Influitive AdvocateHubno first choiceagainst: Influitive AdvocateHubReferral Factory, Smile.ioagainst: CrewFire, Friendbuy, Kangaroo, Lootly, ReferralCandyno first choiceagainst: Fivestars, ReferralCandy, Viral Loops
Five alternatives
Base.ai, Cello, FirstPromoter, Influitive AdvocateHub, RewardfulFour alternatives
Base, PartnerStack, ReferenceEdge, Referral RockSix alternatives
BON Loyalty, Bloop, GrowSurf, Loyalzoo, Stamped, UpPromoteClaude Opus 4.8Cello, Influitive AdvocateHubagainst: Extole, Mention MeInfluitive AdvocateHubChangedInfluitive AdvocateHubSmile.ioagainst: Yotpo Loyalty & Referralsno first choicenothing named
Five alternatives
Antavo, FirstPromoter, Open Loyalty, Referral Factory, SaaSquatchTwo alternatives
Referral Rock, SaaSquatchEleven alternatives
Bazaarvoice, Extole, Friendbuy, LoyaltyLion, Mention Me, Open Loyalty, ReferralCandy, SlapFive, Smile.io, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsGPT-6 AstraInfluitive AdvocateHubSlapFiveChangedSmile.ioSmile.ioagainst: Yotpo Loyalty & Referralsno first choiceagainst: Influitive AdvocateHub, ReferralCandy, Smile.io, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
Three alternatives
Cello, Referral Rock, impact.com AdvocateTwo alternatives
Influitive AdvocateHub, Referral RockThirteen alternatives
Antavo, Base.ai, Extole, Friendbuy, Influitive AdvocateHub, LoyaltyLion, Mention Me, ReferenceEdge — Point of Reference, ReferralCandy, Talkable, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals, impact.com AdvocateOne alternative
RivoSix alternatives
Antavo, Friendbuy, Referral Rock, Salesforce Loyalty Management, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsGPT-5.6 SolInfluitive AdvocateHubSlapFiveChangedno first choiceagainst: Epsilon Loyalty, Talon.OneSmile.ioagainst: ReferralCandyno first choiceagainst: Influitive AdvocateHub, LoyaltyLion, ReferralCandy, Smile.io, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
Three alternatives
Base.ai, Cello, Referral RockThree alternatives
Base.ai, Influitive AdvocateHub, Referral RockTwo alternatives
Growave, Joy LoyaltyGemini 3.1 ProCello, Referral RockInfluitive AdvocateHubChangedFriendbuy, LoyaltyLionSmile.ioagainst: ReferralCandyTalon.Oneagainst: LoyaltyLion, Mention Me, Smile.io, TrueLoyal, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
Three alternatives
Deeto, Influitive AdvocateHub, PartnerStackThree alternatives
Base, Referral Rock, SlapFiveNine alternatives
Annex Cloud, Bazaarvoice, GrowSurf, Influitive AdvocateHub, Mention Me, ReferralCandy, Smile.io, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsFive alternatives
FaveCard, FirstPromoter, GrowSurf, Square Loyalty, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsFour alternatives
LoyaltyLion, Mention Me, Referral Rock, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsPerplexity Sonar ProCustomerGaugeagainst: Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsInfluitive AdvocateHubChangedno first choiceLoop.fans, Smile.iono first choiceagainst: Antavo, Comarch Loyalty Management, LoyaltyLion, Loyoly, Talon.One, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
One alternative
ZinreloFour alternatives
Advocately, Referral Factory, Referral Rock, SlapFiveThree alternatives
Joy Loyalty, Loyalzoo, Square LoyaltyBold is the first choiceAlternatives are counted; the count opens them.What the answer argued against
The record
One row per call: the version string exactly as returned, whether the model searched, sources cited, and latency.
Thirty-six rows: every prompt, every model, every answer.
| Prompt | Model | Version string | Time (UTC) | Searched | Sources | Latency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct recommendation | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 16:38 | yes | 39 | 62 s |
| Direct recommendation | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 16:40 | yes | 28 | 55 s |
| Direct recommendation | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 18:50 | yes | 5 | 24 s |
| Direct recommendation | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 18:52 | yes | 4 | 42 s |
| Direct recommendation | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-09 16:42 | yes | 8 | 33 s |
| Direct recommendation | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 16:41 | yes | 19 | 7 s |
| Paraphrase | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 16:45 | yes | 22 | 64 s |
| Paraphrase | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 16:46 | no | 0 | 14 s |
| Paraphrase | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 18:53 | yes | 4 | 22 s |
| Paraphrase | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 18:54 | yes | 6 | 34 s |
| Paraphrase | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 16:59 | no | 0 | 26 s |
| Paraphrase | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 16:47 | yes | 19 | 3 s |
| Comparative | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 16:50 | yes | 35 | 83 s |
| Comparative | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 16:54 | yes | 29 | 111 s |
| Comparative | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 18:57 | yes | 14 | 68 s |
| Comparative | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 19:01 | yes | 21 | 120 s |
| Comparative | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:00 | yes | 6 | 35 s |
| Comparative | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 16:55 | yes | 20 | 7 s |
| Budget constrained | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 19:03 | yes | 39 | 52 s |
| Budget constrained | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 17:04 | yes | 37 | 341 s |
| Budget constrained | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 19:04 | yes | 4 | 25 s |
| Budget constrained | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 19:06 | yes | 3 | 27 s |
| Budget constrained | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:02 | yes | 9 | 33 s |
| Budget constrained | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 17:05 | yes | 20 | 7 s |
| Scale constrained | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 17:08 | yes | 26 | 74 s |
| Scale constrained | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 17:09 | no | 0 | 25 s |
| Scale constrained | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 19:08 | yes | 6 | 56 s |
| Scale constrained | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 19:10 | yes | 5 | 70 s |
| Scale constrained | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:03 | no | 0 | 37 s |
| Scale constrained | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 17:09 | yes | 20 | 10 s |
| Negative framing | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 17:14 | yes | 38 | 110 s |
| Negative framing | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 17:16 | yes | 27 | 52 s |
| Negative framing | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 19:13 | yes | 5 | 56 s |
| Negative framing | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 19:15 | yes | 8 | 62 s |
| Negative framing | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:04 | yes | 16 | 38 s |
| Negative framing | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 17:17 | yes | 20 | 8 s |
Normalization in this category
Every judgment call made between the raw labels and the numbers above, listed so it is visible and reversible.
ShowHide
Category-scoped readings
Comarch read as Comarch Loyalty Management
Impact read as impact.com Advocate
Influitive read as Influitive AdvocateHub
Influitive (AdvocateHub) read as Influitive AdvocateHub
Yotpo read as Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
Yotpo (Loyalty & Referrals) read as Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
impact.com read as impact.com Advocate
Unresolved, counted raw
None awaiting human review.
Discontinued, still offered
No shut-down product was recommended here.