Buzzfeed was one of the very first quiz maker<\/a> software tools out there. Launched way back in 2006, they\u2019re a true legend in the space \u2013 but they\u2019ve pivoted to become a news and media company, instead of a pure quiz creator. They still offer free quiz builder tools though \u2013 so we wanted to see how Riddle is the best alternative to Buzzfeed<\/p>\n\n\n\n We should mention at the top that this is a little bit of an \u2018apples and oranges\u2019 comparision \u2013 Buzzfeed made its name as a B2C (business to consumer) quiz maker, putting easy to use and create tools in the hands of consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You\u2019ve probably seen Buzzfeed quizzes from people ranging from a 13 year old (\u201cHow much do you REALLY know about Little Mix?\u201d) to 67 year old history geeks (\u201cTest yourself on this Roman mythology quiz!\u201d). Riddle is a quiz maker designed by and for businesses \u2013 this means our focus is completely different. For example, we\u2019ve built extensive white label features (custom fonts<\/a>, CSS editor<\/a>, add your branding<\/a>) as well as GDPR-compliant lead generation and data capture<\/a>. Okay, so quiz maker tools have two general business uses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Audience engagement:<\/strong> quizzes, polls, and surveys are awesome at capturing visitors\u2019 attention so they interact more, stay longer, and share their quiz results on social media to get more traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lead generation and data collection:<\/strong> most quiz creator software lets you add an optional form to collect each user\u2019s email address and quiz responses. Paired with an email marketing tool like MailChimp or SalesForce, you can segment leads and send out targeted follow up messages based around each lead\u2019s tastes and answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every quiz builder like Buzzfeed and Riddle have to decide how they want to develop their product \u2013 software coders are a scarce commodity. On the engagement side, quiz developers have to decide how to create innovative quizzes, lists, polls, and more to engage their audience and get more traffic through social sharing on Facebook, Twitter, and other networks. Every Buzzfeed quiz has zero lead generation capabilities \u2013 while Riddle has been designed around quiz lead generation from the ground up. People often use \u2018quiz\u2019 as a general term for all sorts of interactive content formats \u2013 including surveys, polls, personality tests, and more. One thing is for certain, more is almost always better \u2013 you\u2019ll have a much deeper and more varied tool kit for your marketing needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Buzzfeed does well \u2013 they have seven formats, including their popular personality test and checkbox list. At the risk of (ahem) sounding a bit immodest, Riddle does much better \u2013 we have 15 types, including unique quiz types like our multi-poll<\/a>, our branching logic \u2018journey\u2019<\/a>, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We won\u2019t discuss each of these different types of quizzes in great detail; instead, we\u2019ll focus on a high-level look at the most popular types. We liked the Buzzfeed quiz format \u2013 at least for basic quiz use cases. It\u2019s super easy and intuitive to just dive in and create a quiz. We like how you can add a correct answer explanation in your Buzzfeed quiz\u2014it\u2019s great to provide feedback for users as they interact with your quiz. But overall, most marketers require limited quiz-wide settings, like deciding when (or if) you share correct answers. Many marketers like to delay that until after a lead form to increase their quiz opt-in rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also love some of the other formats for each Buzzfeed quiz you create\u2014especially their \u2018checklist quiz\u2019. This one\u2019s pretty slick: Each user is presented with a range of choices, and they get a result based on how many they choose. Riddle\u2019s quiz maker features almost every one of these formats \u2013 plus a heck of a lot more. Take a look at just some of the options we support \u2013 for quiz creators!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Plus we include loads more marketing-focused features \u2013 including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s just scratching the surface \u2013 you can learn more in our blog post around creating the perfect online quiz.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n We were pretty surprised at the approach the Buzzfeed quiz team took with their personality test. You match each response with a result type \u2013 but there\u2019s no flexibility, and each answer can only used for one result type (e.g. either Yoda OR Darth Vader, but not both).<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s a remarkable lack of flexibility, but it’s probably based on Buzzfeed’s targeting of a less tech-savvy consumer audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By comparison, Riddle uses a more flexible, weighted assessment system, with a range of 21 options for each choice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n 0: No association \/<\/strong> 1-7: Weak association \/<\/strong> 8-14: Medium association \/<\/strong> 15-20: Strong association<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you move the slider for each response, each \u2018tick\u2019 increases the points assigned for that response. A tick on #12 (medium) is worth less than a tick on #13 (medium), for example. We\u2019re not going to beat around the bush here \u2013 Buzzfeed\u2019s poll options are much more limited than their quiz. Riddle, by comparison, offers six different online opinion poll options, ranging from our single-question classic opinion poll to our multi-question \u2018multi-poll\u2019<\/a>, audience sentiment widget \u2018reaction poll\u2019<\/a>, and loads more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Check out the multi-poll on Riddle \u2013 you can ask unlimited questions, give single or multiple votes (\u2018Pick your top X choices\u2019), or rank your favorites!<\/p>\n\n\n\n And here\u2019s our \u2018reaction poll\u2019 \u2013 quick to create, it lets your audience quickly give their feedback to any question. Our publishing partners like the BBC use these to boost engagement (25% of page visitors click and vote) and interactivity in their long-form articles (like this BBC Sport post around video replays in football<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n This one is easy \u2013 you can only add images to your Buzzfeed quiz. And somewhat annoyingly, you can\u2019t add images in every text block \u2013 only in the main images and some of the question answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By comparison, Riddle\u2019s quiz builder supports a wide range of video, audio, and image search options. You can search, find, and embed content using:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online quizzes live and die by how well they capture and hold your audience\u2019s attention. We highly recommend looking for a quiz maker that gives more creative freedom \u2013 and goes beyond just letting you upload images.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every quiz maker is different \u2013 with their strengths and specialties, just like your business. You\u2019ll want to evaluate Buzzfeed and Riddle \u2013 and decide which suits your needs best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But our takeaway? Buzzfeed has justifiably made a name for itself as a rapid, easy-to-create quiz creator \u2013 designed for consumers. It hasn\u2019t really evolved over the past few years \u2013 as Buzzfeed is now a news and media business. If you\u2019re looking for a flexible, powerful lead generation and engagement plaform, you should check out Riddle<\/a>. Free 28-day trial \u2013 with access to all of our features and technology (and no credit card required).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Buzzfeed\u2019s quiz business has very much become a sideshow for their new media company\u2019s direction. It\u2019s clear that the Buzzfeed quiz tools haven\u2019t continued to evolve over the past few years \u2013 so their functionality is pretty limited compared to other quiz makers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And of course, we\u2019re a quiz maker first, last, and always \u2013 not a media company \u2013 so our marketing platform is continually evolving at lightning speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\nQuiz builder for engagement or lead generation?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Some go all-in on engagement, others on leads \u2013 but each quiz maker has unique strengths and weaknesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lead generation is a natural fit with quizzes, and you can add an optional sign\u2013up form between the questions and the user\u2019s results. This is a great opportunity to present a special offer or reason to sign up for more information, and then send that data to your email marketing tools for automatic follow-up messages to convert a lead into a happy customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can create your own forms and then automatically send all leads and quiz data to any marketing software.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBuzzfeed vs. Riddle \u2013 how many kinds of quizzes?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s clear that Buzzfeed quiz creator tools are designed for a B2C audience \u2013 Buzzfeed quizzes are really easy to use, but their tools lack many of the key features and flexibility that today\u2019s marketers and content teams require.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBuzzfeed vs. Riddle \u2013 quiz maker overview<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Buzzfeed quiz creator<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
However, marketers and businesses might find it difficult to make a quiz that reflects their brand, with the flexibility to ask more complicated questions. For example, you can see here \u2013 each Buzzfeed quiz maker only supports:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
The checklist quiz is great for light\/fluffy quizzes like \u201cHow many cities have you visited?\u201d \u2013 based on how many places you\u2019ve been, but also for more serious business needs. For example, marketers could ask things like \u201cHow cyber-secure are you?\u201d \u2013 and segment all quiz takers and return a general risk assessment based on how many protections their business has in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\nRiddle quiz creator<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Buzzfeed personality quiz creation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Riddle personality quiz creation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the personality quiz, our system counts up the points for each result type \u2013 then assigns the user the particular result with the most points.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBuzzfeed poll creation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Polls are essentially surveys that give each user the results after they vote. Buzzfeed offers quick and easy, single-question poll units.<\/p>\n\n\n\nRiddle poll creation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Buzzfeed quiz add images<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Riddle quiz add images (and so much more)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Buzzfeed vs. Riddle: customization and white labelling options<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Feature<\/strong><\/th> Buzzfeed<\/strong><\/th> Riddle<\/strong><\/th> Comments<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead> 5-star customer service on all plans<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: zero customer support<\/td><\/tr> Scored quizzes (with right\/wrong answers)<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Personality tests (each result based on all answers)<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No weighting of answers to different results.<\/td><\/tr> Standalone lead generation form<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Four types of polls<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed has standard polls – no other formats.<\/td><\/tr> Surveys (with data export)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Social stories (where quiz meets blog post)<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Social sharing (Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Messenger, LinkedIn)<\/td> Yes*<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed \u2013 basic social sharing, but no customization of share messages.<\/td><\/tr> Conditional logic<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Multilingual<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Quiz layouts: multiple layouts<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Single and multiple correct answers<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Free text responses<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Score as you go – or at end of quiz<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: score as you go<\/td><\/tr> Correct\/incorrect answer explanations<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Custom ‘correct\/wrong’ messages and other quiz text fields<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Random question and answer order<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Rich text formatting: include links, lists and emojis<\/td> Yes*<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: basic formatting options.<\/td><\/tr> Hide vote totals<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Automatically close polls (by date\/time)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Unroll quizzes – display all ?’s at once<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Show multiple personality results (X% for #1, Y% for #2, etc.)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Quiz statistics – track starts, completes, leads, shares<\/td> Yes*<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: Limited stats \u2013 views and shares only.<\/td><\/tr> Detailed quiz stats – by question and results<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Optimize quizzes using ‘engagement graph’<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Add multimedia<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Timed quizzes<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Upload your own images<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Google image search<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Classy stock photo library<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Giphy – search\/use animated GIFs<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Twitter – embed any tweet<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Sound files<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> YouTube videos & set start\/end points<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> In-tool image editing (crop, filters, text)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> 16 types of lead fields<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Optional or mandatory forms<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Connect to any marketing tool (on all plans)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Connect to any data system with webhook (all plans)<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Send leads to Google Documents<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Import your own forms<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: No lead generation<\/td><\/tr> Display your videos or ads<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Full creative control – all plans<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Select background patterns<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Accessibility features (hearing\/vision-impaired)<\/td> Yes<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Customize social text<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Add your own branding<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> CSS editor – full control over your quiz styling<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Team templates – save\/apply your own style combinations<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> WordPress plug-in<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Google AMP support<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Drupal plug-in<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Customize embed width<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Lazy loading images – improve quiz speed<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Include quiz text to enhance your SEO<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> Buzzfeed: no embed or WordPress options.<\/td><\/tr> Refresh ads on quiz page<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Doubleclick and other pixel support<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Facebook pixel support<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Google Tag Manager<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Display your banner ads below your quiz<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Place your own video ads<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr> Multi-user team features<\/td> No<\/td> Yes<\/td> <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n\n\n\n Riddle is the best alternative Buzzfeed \u2013 a summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As such, it lacks many of the critical features marketers require of a quiz maker \u2013 including white labelling, lead generation, and extensive customization options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n