VIDEO: Geckoboard Data Dashboard: Product Spotlight

Welcome TechnologyAdvice viewers to this week’s spotlight. Joining us today is Paul Joyce, CEO of Geckoboard, a data dashboard tool. Thanks so much for joining us today Paul, first question is can you describe Geckoboard in one sentence. Teams use Geckoboard to create premium dashboards that allows them to import their data from multiple sources at a glance. What differentiates Geckoboard from other data dashboard tools? We’ve got a real commitment to designing data for human beings first.

Our competition ranges from spreadsheets and static reports that you email around to other dashboard solutions. In almost every case there’s little or no regard or thought given to how the data is actually being consumed by the person at the other end of that. This is mainly because people are unaware of how we’re wired to interpret visual stimulus. We’ve taken a lot of time to try to understand how the brain and visual coretext work together so we can realize optimize the experience of consuming and understanding data at a glance. this removes cognitive barriers and makes understanding data really quick and easy by everyone in the business Tell us about your ideal customer We have thousands of customers that range from tiny startups that you've never heard of, government agencies, and huge brands.

It really spans the full spectrum of company size. tHe one thing and they have in common is they want to do more with the data they already have. They want to communicate the right data to the right people at the right time. Many already have efficient systems for communicating data such as emailing spreadsheets or created their own dashboard. Now they want to take communicating data seriously and to the next level. What is Geckoboard pricing model?

We price our product based on the number of dashboards and users you have. You can get started for less than 60$ per month and grow from there. Are there any limitations to Geckoboard? “I think the primary thing is that Geckoboard is not an analysis or BI tool. I think some of the people starting the trial are coming to it initially. It doesn’t allow you to drill in and slice and dice data. It exists only to communicate a core set of important data that is meant to be understood quickly and easily.

That’s not a feature set we’re looking to build out. What’s a best practice for implementing Geckoboard? When you start with geckoboard I think the temptation when starting with any dashboarding system is more is more. We would say given the way that were wired, given the way that humans respond to large amounts of data and information, best just start with a core set of metrics, maybe 5-8 key metrics that are really important to you or your team or your whole company.

You can then use different dashboards for different purposes but don't go too much on the data overload. Our most successful customers put their dashboards on large screens in their offices. Not only is that a very efficient way of distributing data to a large amount of people but something very special happens when you change the way people consume data. Instead of them going to their laptop or phone to look at data suddenly its up in a public arena or a communal arena and a lot of our customers reported acting like a watercooler.

Somebody will go past and look at a number and say hey this has changed recently, has something happened. Someone can chip in from the other side of the office. You decouple that relationship between an individual and how they consume data. When things like that happen, it’s incredibly motivational and allows people to approach problems and spot things earlier than they normally would. I would say if possible, always put it up on a large screen in your office.