Power reports impossibly confusing!
February 06, 2013
Power reports impossibly confusing!

Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Software Version
Custom Plan
Modules Used
- Power Reports
Overall Satisfaction
Pros
- Very simple integration, engineering-wise
- Best for supporting non-technical users in running ad-hoc queries of metrics and funnels
Cons
- Complicated queries of your data that aren't strictly activity levels and funnels and cohort reports
- Very difficult (or impossible) to track specific states of people and events (for example, if a purchase is refunded, you won't get an accurate picture of how many purchases you actually delivered)
- The Power Reports functionality has some horsepower, but is unbelievably confusing to set up
- We are able to pinpoint weak points in our conversion funnel, allowing us to focus our efforts where it matters
Product Usage
4 - The CEO checks business metrics, the sales team runs funnel analysis, the account management team tracks retention metrics, and the engineering team integrated the software.
- Tracking key business metrics
- Doing ad-hoc funnel analysis of site activity
Evaluation and Selection
We used Google Analytics to track basic site metrics. We also used some internal-built tools for some key business metrics. But we had nothing comparable to KISSmetrics in place beforehand.
We spoke to MixPanel support over email, described our use case, and they were very good about telling us they could not yet support it.
We are also currently evaluating Keen.io as a supplement or alternative to KISSmetrics. They offer more power, but no functionality geared toward non-technical staff.
We are also currently evaluating Keen.io as a supplement or alternative to KISSmetrics. They offer more power, but no functionality geared toward non-technical staff.
Implementation
- Implemented in-house
N/A
Training
- Self-taught
Yes, it is fairly straightforward. The online documentation is good for the engineering integration. The web interface is good enough for most purposes that no training is necessary.
Configuration
The product cannot be used without implementing the KISSmetrics code and setting up meaningful Events to send the right data to them.
Support
No - We are very budget-constrained. But their team has been very responsive and helpful over email and phone.
Usability
Reliability
Integration
Vendor Relationship
The biggest sticking point for us was the ability to do a certain relatively complicated analysis on our data. We were told that Power Reports could handle the use case, but they typically only come with the $500/mo or more plans. As a small startup, we were looking at a budget of more like $50/mo.
The KISSmetrics team was very helpful and we worked out a deal within our budget that included the Power Reports functionality. It seems they are very willing to work with growing startups to make sure you can grow with KISSmetrics.
The KISSmetrics team was very helpful and we worked out a deal within our budget that included the Power Reports functionality. It seems they are very willing to work with growing startups to make sure you can grow with KISSmetrics.
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