Shopify Collabs (Formerly Dovetale) vs Sprout Social vs Influencer Hero: Features, Pricing and Key Differences
The main difference between Shopify Collabs, Sprout Social, and Influencer Hero lies in their core purpose and how each platform serves influencer marketing workflows for D2C brands. Shopify Collabs is a lightweight, Shopify-native tool built for eCommerce brands—especially startups—looking to manage influencer gifting. Sprout Social, on the other hand, is a robust social media management and analytics platform with an added influencer identification and tracking layer designed primarily for enterprise-level marketing teams.
Influencer Hero combines the best of both worlds—offering an all-in-one influencer marketing solution that includes influencer search, outreach automation, CRM, affiliate tracking, and post-performance analytics—tailored for D2C brands scaling influencer programs beyond seeding into structured paid and affiliate campaigns.
In this article, we’ll dive deep into the comparison between Shopify Collabs, Sprout Social, and Influencer Hero, exploring their features, pricing, pros, and cons to help you decide which platform best fits your brand’s goals and influencer marketing strategy.
Shopify Collabs (Formerly Dovetale) vs Sprout Social vs Influencer Hero Comparison
Feature
Shopify Collabs
Sprout Social
Influencer Hero
Influencer Discovery / Database
Basic discovery via the Collabs Network — creators can apply to collaborate or be invited by merchants. Limited to Shopify-connected creators and lacks detailed filters.
Influencer discovery through social listening and content analytics; identifies potential partners based on engagement and brand mentions, not a dedicated influencer database.
450M+ creator database across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and more, with advanced filters (niche, location, engagement rate, follower range). Includes verified contact details, automated outreach, and performance metrics.
Core Focus
Simplifying influencer gifting and affiliate tracking for Shopify eCommerce merchants.
Social media management, analytics, and brand monitoring for large organizations, with influencer marketing as an add-on.
All-in-one influencer marketing platform — discovery, outreach, CRM, affiliate tracking, and analytics — designed for scaling D2C brands and agencies.
Best For
Small to medium Shopify stores and startups testing seeding or affiliate partnerships.
Enterprise brands or agencies managing multiple social platforms, prioritizing analytics, reporting, and brand reputation.
D2C eCommerce brands or agencies managing multi-platform influencer campaigns with affiliate programs and automated workflows.
Campaign Management & CRM
Basic gifting workflows and affiliate link tracking within Shopify; lacks influencer segmentation and long-term CRM.
Campaign tagging and monitoring within reports; no dedicated influencer CRM for relationship or gifting management.
Complete CRM for influencer management — tracks communication, gifting, affiliate codes, UGC content, and payments in one place. Includes automated outreach and reporting.
Customer Support
Standard Shopify merchant support (email, help center, and forums); no specialized influencer program guidance.
Premium support for enterprise clients with dedicated success managers and onboarding for custom plans.
Dedicated onboarding and customer success manager included in all paid plans, plus live chat and account-level support.
Pricing
Free for Shopify users; no subscription fee, but standard affiliate commissions and discounts apply.
Standard Plan: $649/month — up to 1,000 creators. Pro Plan: $1,049/month — up to 5,000 creators. Business Plan: $2,490/month — up to 10,000 creators. Custom & Agency Solutions: tailored pricing for enterprise-scale outreach.
1. Influencer Discovery and Database
Shopify Collabs gives you access only to creators connected to Shopify, which works well for small brands doing product gifting but limits scale. Sprout Social doesn’t have a dedicated influencer database — it identifies creators through social listening and mentions, better suited for brand awareness tracking.
Influencer Hero offers a searchable database of 450M+ creators across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Pinterest, including verified contact info, making it ideal for scaling outreach and affiliate programs.
2. Core Focus
Shopify Collabs is centered on affiliate management and gifting for eCommerce sellers. Sprout Social focuses on social analytics, scheduling, and brand monitoring, with influencer tools as a secondary layer. Influencer Hero, however, was built specifically for end-to-end influencer marketing — from finding creators to managing outreach, collaborations, and affiliate performance in one unified platform.
3. Best For
Shopify Collabs fits Shopify startups or small D2C brands that want to test influencer gifting. Sprout Social is designed for enterprise teams and agencies that prioritize analytics and brand reputation. Influencer Hero works best for growing D2C eCommerce brands looking to automate influencer search, outreach, and ROI tracking at scale.
4. Campaign Management and CRM
Shopify Collabs offers basic tools to manage gifting and track affiliate sales but lacks an influencer relationship management system. Sprout Social helps track engagement and mentions but doesn’t include gifting or affiliate workflow automation. Influencer Hero includes a full influencer CRM, where you can manage communication, product sending, content tracking, affiliate codes, and payments — all in one dashboard.
5. Customer Support
Shopify Collabs relies on standard Shopify support with no influencer-specific guidance. Sprout Social provides priority onboarding and support for enterprise clients but less flexibility for smaller teams. Influencer Hero offers dedicated success managers, hands-on onboarding, and live chat across all paid plans — a major plus for brands new to influencer marketing.
6. Pricing
Shopify Collabs is free to use, but its simplicity comes at the cost of advanced campaign control. Sprout Social starts at $1,599 per user/month (annual contracts only), which can add up quickly for teams. Influencer Hero’s plans start at $649/month, offering transparent monthly pricing, higher creator limits, and more functionality for D2C brands focused on measurable ROI.
Which Tool Is Best for You? Why Brands Choose Influencer Hero Over Shopify Collabs (Formerly Dovetale) and Sprout Social
If your brand sells online — whether through Shopify, WooCommerce, or Amazon — Influencer Hero is hands down the better choice. It’s purpose-built for eCommerce and D2C growth, combining influencer discovery, automated outreach, gifting management, affiliate tracking, and real-time ROI reporting in one streamlined platform.
Shopify Collabs, on the other hand, is great for small Shopify merchants testing influencer gifting or affiliate links but falls short once you need detailed analytics, CRM tools, or large-scale outreach. Sprout Social is best suited for enterprises and agencies focused on analytics, brand monitoring, and competitive benchmarking — not influencer campaign execution.
In short: Choose Influencer Hero if you want to automate influencer marketing, track actual sales impact, and manage everything from one dashboard — the smarter, faster, and more scalable solution for growing D2C brands.
Shopify Collabs (Formerly Dovetale) Overview
Shopify Collabs is a free influencer marketing tool built directly into the Shopify ecosystem. It helps eCommerce brands — particularly startups and small D2C stores — manage influencer gifting, affiliate partnerships, and creator collaborations without needing an external platform. By syncing with your Shopify store, Collabs allows brands to recruit creators, send products, and track affiliate sales, all within their existing eCommerce workflow.
Shopify Collabs Standout Features
Seamless Shopify Integration: Shopify Collabs connects directly with your Shopify store, syncing your products, discount codes, and inventory. For Shopify merchants, this makes it easy to send gifts or affiliate codes to creators without switching platforms.
Collabs Network Access: Through the Collabs Network, creators can apply to collaborate with brands that match their niche. This feature helps small and mid-sized eCommerce startups attract influencer partnerships organically, without cold outreach.
Affiliate Code & Link Tracking: Collabs lets you create custom affiliate codes and links for each influencer. You can easily track which creators drive sales, giving D2C brands a basic view of ROI and influencer performance.
Automated Gifting Workflow: Brands can send products to creators directly from their Shopify store. For startups testing influencer gifting or seeding, this automation saves time and keeps product fulfillment and marketing in one place.
Creator Application Management: Collabs includes a built-in dashboard to review and approve creator applications. This is particularly useful for Shopify merchants managing multiple small creator partnerships at once.
Best For
Shopify Collabs is best for small to medium Shopify brands and D2C startups looking to launch or test influencer gifting and affiliate programs without investing in a paid influencer platform.
Pricing & Contract Length
Cost: Free to use for all paid Shopify plans (Basic, Advanced, and Plus).
Fees: Only a 2.9% processing fee on influencer payout transactions.
Contract Length: No contract; available as part of your Shopify subscription with month-to-month flexibility.
Pros
100% free for Shopify users.
Direct integration with Shopify stores and order data.
Streamlined influencer gifting and affiliate management.
Low learning curve — simple for beginners.
Ideal for testing influencer collaborations before scaling.
Cons
Limited influencer database and targeting options.
No CRM or campaign management pipeline.
Lacks advanced reporting, analytics, and UGC tracking.
Restricted to Shopify users only — no multi-platform support.
Not suitable for scaling or managing multiple influencer relationships.
Free Tools
Shopify Collabs itself is a free tool for all Shopify merchants, with no subscription fees. It doesn’t offer additional standalone free tools beyond its built-in gifting and affiliate management features.
Sprout Social Overview
Sprout Social is an enterprise-focused influencer marketing and social analytics platform designed to help brands manage campaigns, monitor brand safety, and measure ROI across multiple social channels. While it’s not a full end-to-end influencer platform, Sprout Social excels in data visibility and performance management, making it popular among enterprise marketing teams and agencies handling large-scale campaigns.
Sprout Social Standout Features
Brand Fit Score & Influencer Vetting: Sprout Social uses a proprietary Brand Fit Score to evaluate influencer relevance based on audience demographics, engagement rate, and historical performance. This is ideal for enterprise teams that prioritize data-backed influencer selection over manual vetting.
Advanced Reporting & EMV Tracking: One of Sprout Social’s biggest strengths is its Earned Media Value (EMV) and engagement reporting. It helps marketing teams and agencies measure ROI by quantifying the financial value of influencer mentions and campaign reach — crucial for corporate brands with large ad budgets.
Content Approval Workflows: Designed for teams that require multiple stakeholders’ input, Sprout Social provides structured content review and approval flows. This ensures compliance and consistency across influencer posts, especially for regulated industries like beauty, finance, and healthcare.
Competitive & Benchmark Analysis: Sprout Social lets you compare your influencer performance and brand mentions with competitors. D2C brands and enterprises use this to identify positioning gaps, assess market share, and measure engagement benchmarks within their vertical.
Social Listening & Sentiment Analysis: This feature allows brands to track conversations, hashtags, and influencer mentions to assess public sentiment. It’s especially valuable for consumer brands or PR teams monitoring influencer-driven campaigns or viral content.
Best For
Sprout Social is best for enterprise marketing teams, agencies, and established brands that need deep analytics, content approval workflows, and brand safety controls to manage large-scale influencer and social campaigns.
Pricing & Contract Length
Based on available demo and industry data:
Standard Plan: $1,599 per user/month (billed annually) — includes core influencer tracking, reporting, and limited outreach tools.
Professional Plan: Custom pricing (annual contract) — adds campaign management, EMV tracking, and competitive benchmarking.
Enterprise Plan: Fully customized quote (annual contract) — includes integrations, team-level permissions, and advanced reporting APIs.
Sprout Social typically requires an annual contract, with no monthly billing options for enterprise accounts.
Pros
Strong analytics and EMV reporting capabilities
Detailed influencer vetting via Brand Fit Score
Secure content approval workflows for large teams
Great for compliance and brand safety
Reliable customer support and enterprise training
Cons
No built-in influencer outreach automation
No native affiliate tracking or eCommerce gifting tools
Requires annual contracts with high entry pricing
Limited flexibility for small or mid-sized D2C brands
Minimal focus on UGC management or creator storefronts
Free Tools
Social ROI Calculator: Sprout Social offers a free tool that helps brands estimate the impact of their social content and measure how it contributes to overall results.
Image Resizer (Landscape): This free tool allows brands to resize images to fit the specific dimensions required for various social media platforms and placements, ensuring consistent and optimized visuals.
Free Social Media Templates: Sprout Social provides free access to a library of pre-made templates that help brands quickly create engaging social media posts, even without a design team.
If you need additional features, such as advanced analytics, campaign management, or reporting, a paid plan will be required.
Influencer Hero Overview
Influencer Hero is an all-in-one influencer marketing platform built specifically for D2C and eCommerce brands to manage every stage of influencer collaboration - from discovery and outreach to gifting, affiliate tracking, and performance analytics.
Influencer Hero integrates influencer search, CRM, affiliate tracking, and UGC management into one streamlined dashboard. It’s used by both Shopify and non-Shopify stores, helping teams automate outreach, measure ROI, and scale influencer programs without relying on multiple tools or manual tracking.
Influencer Hero Standout Features
450M+ Creator Database with Verified Contacts: Influencer Hero gives brands access to a global database of over 450 million creators across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and more. Each profile includes verified contact details, engagement data, and audience insights. For D2C brands running high-volume outreach or international campaigns, this ensures efficient scaling without needing third-party tools.
Automated Outreach & Influencer CRM: Manage outreach sequences, follow-ups, and relationship tracking in one place. The integrated CRM lets brands categorize influencers (gifted, paid, affiliate, etc.), store communication history, and track deliverables — ideal for brands managing hundreds of creators simultaneously.
Affiliate Tracking & Discount Code Management: Built for eCommerce performance marketing, Influencer Hero allows brands to generate custom affiliate links and discount codes while tracking influencer-driven sales in real time. This data-driven approach helps marketers identify top-performing influencers and optimize ROI.
UGC & Content Management: Brands can store, tag, and reuse influencer-generated content directly inside the platform. This is particularly valuable for Shopify, Amazon, or WooCommerce sellers who repurpose UGC in ads or product pages for higher conversion.
Analytics & Post-Tracking Dashboard: Influencer Hero provides real-time campaign analytics — tracking impressions, engagement, sales, and ROI across platforms. For performance-driven marketers, this enables precise reporting to measure the direct impact of influencer partnerships on revenue.
Best For
Influencer Hero is best for Shopify, WooCommerce, and Amazon D2C brands looking to scale influencer and affiliate programs with built-in automation, tracking, and integrations — all without enterprise-level pricing or complexity.
Pricing & Contract Length
Based on sales and demo data, Influencer Hero offers the following plans:
Standard Plan: $649/month – includes influencer discovery, outreach, CRM, and affiliate management.
Pro Plan: $1,049/month – adds advanced automation, UGC library, and expanded platform integrations.
Business Plan (Enterprise): $2,490/month – includes multi-store management, API access, and full customization.
Contracts are monthly or annual, with savings available for annual commitments.
Final Thoughts on Shopify Collabs (Formerly Dovetale) vs Sprout Social vs Influencer Hero
When comparing Shopify Collabs, Sprout Social, and Influencer Hero, it’s clear that each platform caters to a different stage of influencer marketing maturity. For brands that want both scalability and control, Influencer Hero stands out as the most complete solution.
It bridges the gap between eCommerce practicality and performance-driven influencer marketing - combining a massive 450M+ creator database, built-in CRM and outreach automation, affiliate tracking, and post-campaign analytics all in one intuitive platform. Whether you’re running a Shopify store, a WooCommerce brand, or managing influencer campaigns across multiple channels, Influencer Hero gives your team the ability to track real sales impact, not just impressions or reach.
Book a free demo today to see how Influencer Hero can help you grow your influencer program and boost your brand’s sales through data-driven creator partnerships.
FAQs
What’s the main difference between Shopify Collabs, Sprout Social, and Influencer Hero?
Shopify Collabs focuses on influencer gifting and affiliate setup within Shopify, while Sprout Social centers around enterprise-level analytics and social listening. Influencer Hero, on the other hand, delivers an all-in-one influencer marketing platform — covering discovery, outreach automation, CRM, affiliate tracking, and content analytics — designed for both small D2C brands and scaling enterprise teams.
Which platform is best for eCommerce and Shopify brands?
Influencer Hero is built specifically with Shopify, WooCommerce, and Amazon integrations, making it the best option for eCommerce brands looking to automate influencer collaborations and directly track ROI. While Shopify Collabs simplifies influencer gifting, it lacks the depth of analytics and campaign management tools that Influencer Hero provides.
Does Sprout Social or Shopify Collabs include influencer outreach and CRM tools?
Neither Sprout Social nor Shopify Collabs includes automated outreach or full CRM capabilities. Brands using those platforms often need additional tools for managing relationships or sending collaboration offers. Influencer Hero eliminates that need entirely — with built-in AI-powered outreach sequences, centralized CRM tracking, and automated follow-ups that save teams hours per week.
How do pricing and contracts compare across the three platforms?
Shopify Collabs is free to use but offers limited features and reach. Sprout Social starts at $1,599 per user/month with annual contracts, tailored for large corporations. In contrast, Influencer Hero starts at $649/month, offering flexible monthly billing and a complete feature suite — making it ideal for growing D2C and mid-sized brands that need enterprise-grade power without enterprise pricing.
Which platform offers the best ROI tracking and performance analytics?
Shopify Collabs focuses mainly on affiliate links and gifted collaborations, and Sprout Social provides engagement and social listening data. Influencer Hero goes further, connecting influencer performance to real clicks, conversions, and sales revenue, allowing eCommerce marketers to measure true ROI and optimize their influencer partnerships for profit.
