Start with the work your archive must cover
A headline subscription price tells you little until the scope is clear. Give every vendor the same inventory: platforms, account types, account owners, expected activity, reviewer roles and contract period. Include optional services as separate lines so you can compare the archive itself.
Record the currencies, tax treatment, billing cadence and quote expiry. If one proposal is annual and another monthly, compare the same period and commitment. Do not assume a monthly equivalent means the contract can be cancelled each month.
Estimate activity using an ordinary period and a known busy period. Include replies, reactions and changes where the vendor bills for them; the number of posts your team publishes may be a poor proxy for the number of captured records.
Ask what makes the price change
| Cost driver | Question | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Accounts | What counts as an account, and are channels or account types priced differently? | Priced inventory and rules for adding or removing accounts. |
| Records or activity | Which captured events count, over what period, and how are revisions treated? | Written counting definition and an example usage report. |
| Users and roles | Are reviewers, administrators or external users charged separately? | Role and seat assumptions in the quote. |
| Storage and history | Are media, retained history or historical capture priced separately? | Included capacity, exclusions and additional charges. |
| Optional services | Which integrations, analytics or public-access tools are additional? | Separate prices and dependencies for each required addition. |
A pricing model is not inherently cheaper for your organization. Apply each model to your own inventory and activity. Request a written explanation of what happens when usage exceeds the quoted scope.
Compare normal operation, a busy month and exit
| Scenario | Include | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary operation | Subscription, onboarding, required additions and staff review time. | What recurring and one-time costs apply? |
| Busy period | Higher activity, temporary reviewers and urgent exports. | Are there charges, plan changes, limits or service impacts? |
| End of contract | Notice, export, legacy access, overlap and approved storage. | How long will records remain accessible and who pays for that access? |
For a hypothetical 12-month comparison, calculate 12 times the monthly subscription, plus one-time fees, required additions, scenario charges and transition costs. Use the quoted annual amount instead when that is the actual contract basis. Keep internal staff effort separate from the vendor invoice so decision-makers can see both.
Do not invent an overage rate or assume zero. Mark unknown costs as unresolved and assign someone to obtain the answer before approval.
Use the current pricing page for Brolly figures
Brolly's published US plans are based on new records captured per month, with unlimited accounts, users and storage. Archive and Monitoring are included; Insights, Protect and selected integrations are optional. Check current Brolly pricing for plan amounts, included scope and terms rather than relying on a copied price in a comparison document.
Brolly does not currently import third-party archives. Include your legacy-access plan when costing a transition, even if the new subscription meets your requirements.
Pricing basis reviewed October 14, 2026 against Brolly's pricing page. Your proposal and contract should confirm the scope for your organization.
Resolve unknowns before ranking the quotes
First check mandatory coverage and evidence requirements. Then compare costs for proposals that can meet those requirements. A low price does not resolve an unsupported account type, an untested export or an unacceptable exit condition.
- Record the quoted term, currency, expiry and renewal mechanism.
- Separate included services from optional additions.
- Attach each scenario calculation and the vendor's written assumptions.
- Assign an owner and due date to every unresolved cost.
- Keep the approval and the accepted limitations with the final proposal.
Pair the commercial comparison with the evaluation guide so price and observed capability inform the same decision.
Common questions
How much does social media archiving cost?
It depends on account scope, activity, required features and contract terms. Compare current quotes for the same inventory and period, then test busy-period and exit assumptions.
Is per-account or per-record pricing better?
Compare both against your own account count and activity. Ask what each vendor counts and model a busy month before deciding.
Should we include staff time?
Yes. Record internal search, review, export and administration effort separately from vendor charges. A timed evaluation is stronger evidence than an assumed saving.
Put the guide to work
Use the existing fillable RFP workbook to record your scope, commercial assumptions and vendor responses. The download form is on the RFP guide.