According to a recent CMO Council report, the #1 budget expenditure for CMO’s this year will be on Dashboard Reporting Utilities. This is not surprising to us here at Reynolds DeWalt as this is something that our clients are constantly asking about. However the traditional thought is that in these tight financial times, the Dashboard is required to justify their campaign expenditures (ROI). I would argue that while this may be a factor, it is not the only one.

So then, what is the reason for them? One simple word….. data. It is becoming increasingly apparent to the CMO that data is easily available to them. Technology has evolved to the point where you can measure traditional (TV, Radio, Newspaper), emerging (Digital Print, Web, eMail, and Mobile), and online (Banner Ads) in a single location. Now you are not just doing a cost justification/analysis, you can take it to the next level.

That next level is user preferences. Some users prefer mobile communications, some telephone, and yet some you will not glean any data from. This preference data is what can really make future campaigns powerful. Actions taken when and how they are appropriate will always be the most effective. At the end of the day these Dashboards are making the CMO’s look good as their campaigns are more and more effective.

Of course, at the end of the day, that is what we are about here at Reynolds DeWalt; making CMO’s the rock stars of their organizations.