Drift
Drift is a conversational marketing and sales platform that uses AI-powered chatbots and real-time messaging to help you engage website visitors and convert them into qualified pipeline.
Gladly
Gladly is a customer service platform that centers support around people rather than tickets by consolidating all conversations into a single lifelong timeline for every individual customer.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Drift | Gladly |
|---|---|---|
| Website | drift.com | gladly.com |
| Pricing Model | Freemium | Subscription |
| Starting Price | Free | $180/month |
| FREE Trial | ✘ No free trial | ✘ No free trial |
| Free Plan | ✓ Has free plan | ✘ No free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2015 | 2014 |
| Headquarters | Boston, USA | San Francisco, USA |
Overview
Drift
Drift helps you transform your website from a static brochure into a 24/7 sales engine. Instead of forcing your potential customers to fill out long forms and wait days for a follow-up, you can engage them the moment they show interest. The platform uses AI-powered bots to qualify leads, answer common questions, and even book meetings directly on your sales team's calendars while you sleep.
You can create personalized experiences for your most important accounts by recognizing them the second they land on your site. By connecting your marketing and sales workflows, you ensure that high-value prospects never hit a dead end. Whether you are a mid-sized company or a large global enterprise, the platform helps you shorten your sales cycle and provide a more human buying experience for your customers.
Gladly
Gladly transforms your customer support by moving away from traditional, disconnected tickets and focusing on people. Instead of managing isolated cases, you see a single, lifelong conversation timeline for every customer across every channel. Whether a customer reaches out via email, voice, text, or social media, your team has the full context of their history in one view, eliminating the need for customers to repeat themselves.
You can manage all communication channels from a single interface, allowing your agents to switch between chat and phone calls without losing track of the conversation. The platform also includes built-in self-service tools and AI capabilities to help you resolve common queries faster. It is designed specifically for B2C brands that want to build deeper relationships and drive revenue through personalized service experiences rather than just closing tickets.
Overview
Drift Features
- AI Chatbots Deploy intelligent bots that qualify your website visitors and answer their questions instantly at any time of day.
- Live Chat Jump into conversations personally when high-value prospects are active on your site to build immediate rapport.
- Meeting Scheduler Let your prospects book meetings directly into your calendar through the chat interface to eliminate back-and-forth emails.
- Intel and Insights See exactly which companies are visiting your site so you can reach out to key accounts with personalized messages.
- Real-time Notifications Get alerted on your desktop or mobile device the moment a target account lands on your website.
- Video Messaging Record and send personalized videos to your prospects within the chat to stand out from the competition.
Gladly Features
- Lifelong Conversation Timeline. View every interaction a customer has ever had with your brand in one continuous thread across all support channels.
- Channel-Agnostic Interface. Switch between voice, email, SMS, and chat seamlessly within the same window without ever losing the customer's history.
- People-Match Routing. Route customers to the best-suited agent based on their specific needs, past history, or even their loyalty tier.
- Integrated Payments. Process transactions and handle exchanges directly within the conversation timeline to turn support interactions into sales opportunities.
- Collaborative Tasks. Assign tasks and mention teammates within a customer's profile to resolve complex issues faster without leaving the platform.
- Self-Service Sidekick. Deploy AI-powered threads and help centers that allow your customers to find answers themselves on any device.
Pricing Comparison
Drift Pricing
- Basic live chat
- Welcome messages
- Mobile and desktop apps
- Basic reporting
- Standard integrations
- Everything in Free, plus:
- Custom chatbots
- Intel and Deanonymization
- Salesforce integration
- Meeting scheduling
- Real-time notifications
Gladly Pricing
- All channels included (Voice, Email, Chat)
- Self-service capabilities
- Standard reporting and analytics
- Knowledge base access
- 10-seat minimum requirement
- Everything in Hero, plus:
- Advanced reporting and insights
- Workforce management integrations
- Dedicated success manager
- Enterprise-grade security features
Pros & Cons
Drift
Pros
- Significantly increases the speed of lead qualification
- Integrates deeply with major CRMs like Salesforce
- User-friendly interface for both admins and agents
- Reduces friction in the customer buying journey
Cons
- High entry price point for small businesses
- Complex bot flows require significant setup time
- Reporting can be difficult to customize deeply
Gladly
Pros
- Eliminates the frustration of customers repeating their story
- Unified interface significantly reduces agent training time
- Strong focus on driving revenue through support
- Excellent visibility into the entire customer journey
Cons
- Higher price point compared to basic ticketing tools
- Minimum seat requirements may exclude very small teams
- Reporting can be complex to set up initially