Ironclad vs LinkSquares: A Buyer’s Guide

Two prominent contenders come up when you’re evaluating CLM partners: Ironclad vs LinkSquares. Both offer robust capabilities with significant differences in strengths, weaknesses, and approaches to contract management problem statements.

To help you make an informed decision, this comparison buyer’s guide maps out the key differences between the two platforms. Uncover their key capabilities and shortcut your research time to make a confident decision faster.

What is Ironclad Used For?

Ironclad is popular with enterprise and legal clients for its end-to-end CLM capabilities from start to finish. While it is a one-stop solution to all contracting needs, it comes at a high price, and its complex setup and UI can be a barrier to scaling and non-legal teams. Users also note that its metadata tags need manual edits, making customizations on the fly difficult.

What is LinkSquares Used For?

LinkSquares initially established itself as a leader in contract storage and search. Its repository is secure and searchable. However, as it grew to expand its product portfolio to cover other phases of the contract lifecycle, it accidentally created friction at every contracting step. Users report its limited AI functionality, complex implementation, and add-on costs for even the most rudimentary features.

Best Suited For

Ironclad vs LinkSquares vs HyperStart: At a Glance

Both Ironclad and LinkSquares are premium contract lifecycle management platforms with distinct high costs and long implementation periods. Both require intensive implementation time and development support: Ironclad’s support team is responsive but expensive, whereas LinkSquares offers free support reported as ‘pushy’ and ‘salesy’. Both require you to contact sales to take the platforms for a test drive.

Alternatively, HyperStart is far more affordable and accessible to smaller scaling teams. HyperStart’s 30-day free trial gives you enough breathing room to test the platform with sample contracts. The support team is available at no extra cost.

Ironclad vs LinkSquares: Feature Comparison

Let’s parallelly compare the two platforms next. Each caters to specific pain points at different contract touchpoints. At the end of this section, you’ll have the information you need to request tailored demos for a more informed decision. We go over the top 9 criteria to help you examine the way your organization works so you can find the CLM platform to fit, accelerate, and improve your current workflows.

1. Pre-sign

Manually tracking down business approvals for high-risk deals is time-consuming and resource-intensive. Contract pre-execution tools offer a solution by automating drafting, reviews, and approvals, and the redlining and negotiation process.

A good CLM maximizes efficiency and is equipped with custom granular workflows that are compliant with your internal standards. It offers control and transparency to ensure every step is smoothly executed. 

Ironclad

Ironclad’s Workflow Designer streamlines contract approvals by eliminating manual back-and-forth. However, its reliance on the DOCX format makes it unintuitive to non-legal teams. The lack of a Word plugin limits its effectiveness as users have to download and upload files to collaborate on them. Besides, the platform limits users from sending notifications to multiple recipients in batches, which hinders you from working with complex approval chains.

LinkSquares

LinkSquares contract creation workflows offer limited conditional logic. The editor has been reported to be glitchy, and the lack of automation makes the pre-execution process cumbersome. Furthermore, contract creation is template-based with restricted manual routing without automation. Approvals and collaboration processes rely primarily on email rather than on the platform, adding an unnecessary layer of context-switching to the process.

HyperStart

With HyperStart, as your contract management software you can use self-serve templates with unlimited conditional logic. The browser-based Word editor allows for real-time editing, streamlining the legal review process. You can also set up custom granular controls and workflows to align with your organization’s internal governance standards.

The redlining functionality gives you a quick initial review in seconds, cutting review time by 75%. Besides, you have access to a comprehensive approval history and an executive summary of key terms so you can send contracts for signatures without the need for extensive background checks.

2. E-Signature

You’re going to need unified, secure, and compliant electronic signing functionality baked into your CLM platform. Evaluate the different signing options, focus on meeting specific needs, and choose which works for you.

Ironclad

Ironclad is most flexible in the signing process with multiple options including native eSignature, Clickwrap, and integrations with third-party providers. Besides, its pay-per-completed contract makes the pricing model competitive. Some users report that Ironclad doesn’t allow you to batch-process contracts for eSignatures.

LinkSquares

LinkSquares, on the other hand, offers integrations for eSignature. The Adobe plugin is incapable of adding multiple recipients. The signature hub does not allow you to auto-send reminders. And the intended recipients do not get notified.

HyperStart

With HyperStart CLM, you have the flexibility to choose between hand-drawn and OTP-based signing options or continue signing on your preferred tools like DocuSign or AdobeSign. We are ISO 27001:2013, ISO 27018, SOC 2, and GDPR certified, allowing you to collect legally-binding signatures safely. You only pay for the contracts you get executed.

3. Post-signature

When the contracts are executed or digitized post-upload, they must be understandable, trackable, accessible, and reportable. The true value of the contract is unlocked in the post-execution stage. It requires robust security measures for sensitive data, two-factor authentication, and enterprise-grade encryption.

You’re also going to need a dashboard and reporting mechanisms to monitor contract obligations, milestones, and renewal deadlines. Auto-extracted metadata combined with CRM integrations can quickly link contract data to your sales outcomes.

Ironclad

Ironclad’s repository is both secure and exceptional for its AI engine. However, users report that the search capabilities are limited and smart tags need manual updating in the backend with developer support. The dashboards and reports also churn basic charts which aren’t dynamic or effective.

LinkSquares

LinkSquares users report that search makes retrieval difficult if you’re handling multiple contract types and families and that the contract organization structure is flat. The reporting functionality generates standard reports which aren’t especially useful for decision making. Besides, there is also the cost of adding smart tags or any advanced feature that makes the platform inaccessible to smaller teams.

HyperStart

HyperStart CLM provides powerful tools to understand, search, locate, retrieve, and unlock full contract potential. With Optical Character Recognition, scanned paper documents become fully searchable digital assets for your business. You can also auto-generate interactive dashboards and analytics reports to visualize contract data to build stronger cases for key decisions.

Our AI models have processed 1 billion + documents with 99% accuracy. You can keep track of out-of-box terms that make sense for your business. The sales teams can effortlessly track renewals and obligations without leaving their CRM. 

4. Usability & Adoption

Your CLM needs to be easy to use and adopt from demo to deployment. Interfaces should seamlessly integrate with your organizational workflows and processes. Accessible and byte-sized training resources are also crucial to business-wide adoption.

Ironclad

Ironclad users often rely on support to set up or edit workflows and smart tags. The support team is highly responsive and training resources are readily available. Furthermore, Ironclad was built by legal professionals for legal professionals. Non-legal users often find the platform difficult to navigate on the fly without training material.

LinkSquares

Users have reported that the LinkSquares product is largely intuitive and friendly. However, the product structure is broken into three distinct parts at different costs: Finalize, Sign, and Analyze. This creates a broken product experience if you are specifically invested in end-to-end CLM capabilities.

HyperStart

HyperStart users can start putting in their contracts as soon as the implementation is delivered. The aim is to offer a friction-free experience from start to finish. In case you run into roadblocks, the support team is quick to respond and dedicated to resolving them. This makes HyperStart a great alternative to Linksquares and Ironclad.

5. Implementation

Implementation typically takes a month or more in the industry. A streamlined intake and setup process are crucial to realizing quicker time-to-value. Each vendor usually assigns a dedicated manager to guide you through onboarding and support requests. It is important to ensure you align the time, money, and data you invest with overall business efficiency and contract KPIs.

Ironclad

Ironclad claims to deliver 80% efficiency across the business. It automatically understands and collects 194+ contract properties. Although they promise implementation in 4 – 6 weeks, users have noted that the process is laborious, often requiring additional support and expertise especially when handling high volumes of data. So, if you’re seeking a more efficient solution, explore this curated list of top Ironclad alternatives available in the market.

LinkSquares

While most LinkSquares users report smooth and top-tier service through implementation, some acknowledge that it takes upfront time, effort, and structure. The process takes longer than is advertised but support tickets are usually responded to in 24 hours.

HyperStart

HyperStart gets you up and ready quicker than any other contender. Unlike other CLM solutions that take weeks and months to implement, HyperStart can be deployed in just seven days.

Recently, Qapita transitioned from their previous CLM provider to HyperStart after facing challenges in scaling their contract operations. The company was looking for a solution that could manage its high volume of contracts while providing seamless integration and advanced features.

With this requirement, Qapita made the switch to HyperStart, allowing the company to manage its contract lifecycle. The implementation of the software proved smooth and efficient. Here’s a testimonial from the Company Secretary at Qapita:

Implementation was very smooth. Using the bulk upload feature, all contracts were integrated into the system within minutes. I could also see the AI-extracted metadata on the tool immediately, which was impressive.

Mayuri Jaltare

Company Secretary, Qapita

6. Integration

Integrations with your existing business systems reduce back and forth, uncover vendor performance, help access contract history, and ensure that you never miss a renewal again. For instance, sales teams can seamlessly create, track, and manage contracts without leaving their CRM or switching between tools.

Ironclad

Ironclad offers a robust ecosystem of integrations with all popular platforms like Salesforce, HubSpot, and Coupa for frictionless data flow and collaboration across departments.

LinkSquares

Users have it that the platform allows for easy integrations. The Salesforce integration, however, requires technical expertise on your end to set up and control.

HyperStart

HyperStart currently offers limited integrations, but we’ve partnered with all popular tools to fit your workflows and systems. While the ecosystem is limited, you can request the product team for specific integrations and we’ll get back to you on what is viable.

7. Pricing

Both Ironclad and LinkSquares are priced for enterprises and larger organizations. You pay more for both implementation and support fees. While the pricing is not available on their websites, here are estimates of the basic plans on Salesforce AppExchange to give you an idea.

HyperStart is designed specifically for scaling teams, making it ideal for small-and-mid-size organizations. Our straightforward pricing tiers that take into consideration both the number of users and contracts aim to make sure the quote is thoughtful for every stage of your growth.

8. Industry & Roles

In many mid-size organizations, the legal-to-stakeholder ratio can be 1:100 or more. It is essential to identify which teams are most dependent on legal reviews. Discuss process improvements both internally and with potential CLM providers to directly enhance legalops efficiency.

Sales and procurement teams can also be empowered to manage obligations, gate-keep auto-renewals, and generate contract reports independently without needing your constant oversight. You may also consider automated renewal tracking notifications and dynamic reports.

Pinpoint contractual touchpoints that impact stakeholders and make sure your partner can handle issues with speed, ease, and accuracy.

Ironclad

Users report that Ironclad’s AI lacks sufficient functionalities for procurement teams.

LinkSquares

Users report that the smart values are limited and are deficient in industry-specific clause requirements.

HyperStart

At HyperStart, we understand that the value of a CLM is measured by how effectively it empowers your teams. Here’s how the platform impacts non-legal users:

Feature Comparison: HyperStart vs Ironclad vs LinkSquares

Next Steps

A good CLM platform can significantly impact your business efficiency and growth. Before you decide, identify your pain points, review your current workflows, deliberate with your internal teams, and consider your future. When you’ve defined your needs specifically, it’s time to compare solutions focusing on features, scalability, implementation, and overall costs and value.

At HyperStart, we’re committed to delivering superior value at a fraction of the cost. The platform stands out for quick implementation times, a relentless product team, and a powerful AI engine. The 30-day free trial allows you to explore the platform so you can check it out for yourself and make an independent decision.