GrowthZone vs ACS

StarChapter

Glue Up

Novi AMS

StarChapter is an association management software for local chapters, combining membership management, website content, event registration and email marketing

Glue Up is an all-in-one engagement platform combining event management, membership management, community management, email marketing, CRM, finance tools, project management and mobile apps. Users can manage contacts and members from a single platform. Organizations can also connect social media accounts and reach out to a larger audience using channels, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or other social media.

Novi AMS is a cloud-based association management solution designed to help associations manage members, dues, events, accounting, & more. The only AMS approved by Intuit for the QuickBooks App Store, our 2-way, 24/7 sync saves 10 to 40 hours per week in admin time.

Membership and Business Development Coordinator

When live customer service is not up, sometimes your inquires do not get responded to within a week's time which is tough when it is urgent

The customer service is not up to par to the other programs and systems that we use on a daily basis.

Director of Memberships & Social Media

I don't have many issues with Growth Zone and when we have had problems in the past, a customer service representative was able to help us clear those problems up pretty easily.

Director of Administration

GrowthZone really wants to put out a great product and meet its customers' needs; the initial conversion was pretty smooth.  

GrowthZone AMS empowers small to mid-size member-based organizations to grow membership, build trust, and deliver value. With tools like a contact database, marketing automation, event management, and billing, it streamlines operations, keeps organizations mission-focused, & strengthens connection.

Access Controls/Permissions

Accounting

Accounting Integration

Activity Dashboard

Activity Tracking

Alerts/Notifications

Application Management

Attendance Management

Attendance Tracking

Calendar Management

Campaign Management

Chapter Management

Committee Management

Communication Management

Contact Database

Contact Management

Content Management

Credit Card Processing

Customizable Branding

Customizable Fields

Customizable Forms

Customizable Reports

Customizable Templates

Data Import/Export

Discount Management

Document Storage

Dues Management

Electronic Payments

Email Marketing

Email Reminders

Email Templates

Enrollments/Onboarding

Event Calendar

Event Management

Event Scheduling

Event Ticketing

Forms Management

For Nonprofits

Fund Accounting

Fundraising Management

Invoice Management

Job Board

Member Accounts

Member Communication

Member Communities

Member Database

Member Directory

Member Portal

Membership Management

Membership Renewals

Membership Signup

Member Types

Mobile Access

Mobile App

Newsletter Management

Payment Processing

Personalization

Promotions Management

Real-Time Analytics

Real-Time Reporting

Recurring/Subscription Billing

Registration Management

Reminders

Reporting & Statistics

Search/Filter

Self Service Portal

Social Marketing

Surveys & Feedback

Third-Party Integrations

Volunteer Management

Website Integration

Website Management

By industry, GrowthZone reviewers are most commonly professionals in non-profit organization management (45%). The most frequent use case for GrowthZone cited by reviewers is membership management (57% of reviewers).

Users and use cases

GrowthZone is a membership management program with key features that include member administration, dues tracking, event calendar management, and more.

Proprietary

GrowthZone

Web-based

Android

iPhone

iPad

MemberClicks

WildApricot

MemberLeap

Salesforce Sales Cloud

iMIS

YourMembership

Neon CRM

Hivebrite

 ChamberMaster

GrowthZone AMS

 MemberSuite AMS

Recurring technical difficulties

Chamber Director

GZ is cumbersome and not user friendly - mistakes happen or changes need to be made, and it should be easy to fix them.  

89% of reviewers feel negative about Bugs and Issues. Reviewers report frequent frustrations with technical glitches, such as errors in profile updates, login problems, and issues with financial transactions. Some users say troubleshooting can be challenging due to limited visibility into problems and difficulty reaching support. They mention that administrative tasks and configurations sometimes behave unpredictably or are cumbersome to fix. Users indicate that occasional crashes, mapping errors, and lack of an undo function disrupt their workflow. They feel these recurring issues hinder their ability to manage events and members smoothly.

Straightforward user experience

89% of reviewers feel positive about Ease of Use. Reviewers say the software is intuitive, organized, and easy to navigate, which helps them complete tasks efficiently. Users appreciate that information is clearly laid out, making onboarding and daily operations less stressful. Some reviewers report that transitioning from other systems was smooth due to the platform’s simplicity. They find that most features are self-explanatory, reducing the need for extensive training. Users indicate that the ease of use contributes to increased productivity and less frustration when managing their organization’s activities.

Comprehensive event coordination tools

Director of Professional Development

I especially love the options to customize events exactly how I want them and it immediately integrates into our website.

Communication/Technology Director

I also really think the event pages are great and it makes it easier for us to promote our classes/events.

95% of reviewers feel positive about Event Management. Reviewers appreciate that the software streamlines organizing and tracking events, members, and related activities in one place. They say the integration with their website and database keeps information up to date and reduces manual work. Users indicate that customizing event pages, syncing calendars, and managing RSVPs are straightforward, which helps boost event attendance and efficiency. Some reviewers find that the ability to link events with member data and billing simplifies their workflow and improves communication. They value having a single platform for event promotion, planning, and execution.

Marketing Technology Manager

Then I have to scroll down, select text, scroll up to make the change, scroll down to see whether the change I made is correct, scroll further down to edit more text, etc. And our users don't have access to any text editing tools to make their content look decent.

Executive Officer

I also appreciate the way it helps strengthen engagement with members — from tracking involvement to sending reminders and updates — it keeps everything streamlined and organized. Plus, the reporting and automation features save so much time, which lets us focus more on growing and serving our members instead of just managing data.

Director of Operations and Stratigic Initiatives

There are a number of additional items we need to be able to track for grant reporting that could use fields - NAICS codes, logging assistance time with a member, number of employees, gross sales, and demographic information are all items we need.  

Some training could be offered virtually, open to all customers (rather than our weekly Q&A with our assigned trainer). And by the way, looking for recorded videos in the knowledge base is not a substitute for holding a Zoom training session that participants can log in to and interact with an instructor...

Managing Director - CEO

Perhaps the most impressive thing about GZ from my perspective is that it is already apparent to me that they listen to their users, and that they are constantly making improvements and keeping users in the loop on what features and fixes are coming down the pipe.

Member Services Manager

It is easy for me to manage my member base, send out communication, log billing and print billing, manage my contacts, etc!

Contractor

When updating web pages, the resizing of photo placement added to website can be difficult and perhaps it is user error.

Membership and Programs Manager

The donor and donation management have helped us grow and expand our outreach efforts.  

Administrative

These issues didn’t outweigh the benefits, but they did slow our adoption and required extra time to integrate GrowthZone into our workflow

Membership

For example when a card is declined I am unable to change the card number and this stops me in my tracks.

In fact, the whole environment is well designed with reporting being a key feature to provide additional metrics for an association.

It makes it so much easier to manage members, events, and communication without having to jump between different systems.

Good when it works, but frustrating and time-consuming when I'm working with member submitted content or reports - most of my daily process.

It has streamlined the billing process and is easy to navigate for our members.  

It can at times be hard to reach someone to find a solution for an issue.  

Education and Finance Coordinator

It's helped us amalgamate our CRM database with our billing & payments.

Director of Membvership

the ACH options seems cumbersone and other finanacial options are not as clear as they should be but not major issues

Director of Member Relations and Engagement

I was in the chat several times a day, i took all courses offered (more than once) and documented everything i discussed with the customer service team.   If it would not have been the TREMENDOUS customer support, i would not have succeeded in getting the client up and running as quickly as i did. AND they never spoke to me in a tone that would have indicated "you should know this".

Finance-Membership Services

Event check-in is very cumbersome with a 2-part system - takes too long to check people in when you have a long line

Business Research Assistant

The biggest disappointment for me is that it is not automatically linked to my Microsoft Outlook account.

The ability to easily send emails to our database via lists - while also analyzing open rates is great.  

Association Executive

They walk us through every step, answer our questions quickly, and make sure we actually understand what’s happening—not just check boxes.

Principal

It is impossible to reach a real person in customer service. When I reach out via telephone or chat it is always for something that is time sensitive, and that I cannot find in the Knowledge Center.

I also wish there had been more hands on training when I was setting up (I have been a user for several years) but as a single employee entity we weren't able to devote as much time and now that we have more time and need more in depth training is sometimes cost prohibitive.

Tickets are created but follow up is hit or miss.  

That person will send images of step by step directions to fix my problem.

That being said, since we are using GZ more broadly than we did a year ago, we have been able to drop other memberships (Mail Chimp, Event Brite, etc).  

Membership Development Representative

I like that I can add notes, link task after making updated notes.

Community Engagement Coordinator

I can create a flyer on Canva and easily upload the documents to GrowthZone.   

They really listen to our needs and tailor things so it fits us, instead of just giving a one-size-fits-all plan.

I am not reaching out unless it is something that is important to the operations or our association and it is very aggravating to stay on hold forever and sometimes never reach a support person or get a call back. If the question is not urgent, I'm happy to use email.

Member Services Coordinator

the process of adding files - going to the cloud and scrolling to find a name can take a while

Director of Membership

Having to update the same information in multiple locations when a member updates their info.

Line spacing, in particular, is not consistent and on occasion is not reflective of preview drafts.  

Administrator

Having a mostly automated way to send invoices once a year has been great for us.  

Executive Director

I don't understand why GZ has elected to CLOSE on a Wednesday.....most likely one of the busiest "Chamber" days of the week, leaving many in the lurch, awaiting responses in a more timely manner.

Senior Coordinator

It also has nice features such as marketing automation and sponsor ads.

Sometimes, my issue happens after hours, but then I chat the next day and it gets fixed.

Membership Director

The price has increased, without notice, since we signed our agreement but hasn't the cost of everything increased!

Easy tracking of events, members and visibility of the Info Hub to members.

I actually have an item right now that is too complicated to put in either a chat or email that I need help with however I don't have 2 hours to sit on hold.

Membership coordinator

Not designed for non-profit, so many terms are hard coded that don’t go well with our situation.

Chief Executive Officer

The training staff is very helpful and informative.

Office Manager

The customer service was always helpful and the wait time was not extremely long most times.

The learning curve was quite difficult at first, but to be fair, I didn't participate in many video trainings.

The Chamber's experience is overall extremely positive. When I have questions through the Chat Box, all representatives are patient and helpful.

I am a new user of GrowthZone. As I am delving into its features, I am becoming more and more impressed with the intuitiveness of the platform.

GrowthZone vs ACS Comparison (2026)

GrowthZone

ACS

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives