Domo Review Summary:
Domo is a cloud BI solution that is targeted at larger businesses, and majors on ease-of-use, social sharing of information and transparent access to diverse data sources. The actual analytic capability is on a par with most other offerings of this genre, but since the platform is geared toward business users the emphasis is primarily simple analytics made available in the simplest way possible. For more complex analytics users will need other tools, but Domo will address the general need for reporting and data visualization for many business users who simply want to see their data in an easily digested format, and with least possible effort. Support for mobile devices and a native iPad app enhance the availability of information considerably.
The User Experience
Connecting to data sources is a very straightforward affair in Domo. This process is enhanced by 1-Click Apps which provide reporting templates based on industry, role, domain and data source. In effect they suggest what should be measured and how it should be represented. Obviously the resulting reports and charts can be modified as needed, but they do provide a good launch pad for further refinement. Card Builder works in a similar manner, allowing users to select data and then recommends a visualization for the data. The Analyzer provides filtering and sorting functionality so that cards (graphs, reports, charts) present data in the required format. The Page is the equivalent of the dashboard, containing multiple Cards. Pages can contain subpages. Cards can also be grouped into Collections. It is easy to see here that Domo is providing plenty of opportunity to manage objects in a way that suits the individual user, and to provide a leg-up in the creation of various reporting objects.It is not particularly sophisticated, but it is well organized and easy to use – the usual trade-off.
Data
Domo Connectors do all the hard work of providing access to a diverse set of data resources. This includes on-premise applications, databases and cloud based data. There is a large number of these connectors, satisfying the needs of most businesses out-of-the-box. To some extent the Connectors are intelligent and will notify users when the password to a data source has expired. The uploading of data into the Domo database can be scheduled or executed immediately, as required. The merging of data from several different data sources can be accomplished by using Magic – a largely automated, self-service tool with a drag-and-drop graphical interface, that supports functions such as joining, cleaning and transforming data – the usual ETL functions that have traditionally needed technical assistance. The DataFusion utility is a simpler way to join data, and if needed the DataFlows capability allows the use of SQL for ETL processing. Data is uploaded to Domo using the WorkBench, and if security is a major concern data can be de-identified and/or encrypted.
Social
Domo supports user profiles so that the role of colleagues is understood and they can be easily reached. Publication Groups support the sharing of information with individuals and groups, and this can be accomplished by sending Cards or a slide-show of Cards via scheduled emails. DomoBuzz is essentially a simple social network so that discussions around topics can be shared and notifications received when a relevant topic is being discussed. Tasks support the creation of projects and can include access by other interested parties. Action items are defined with corresponding deadlines, and action items can email all concerned.
Applications
Domo Apps provide solution templates for senior roles in the typical business. These include:
- CEO: Competitive Benchmark – with measures of financial health and competitor comparison.
- Sales: All Reps Scorecard App – sales rep comparisons, rep performance.
- Marketing: Campaign Engagement App – aggregated, historical data from prior campaigns, engagement statistics, lead conversion.
- Finance: P&L – income statement comparisons, gross profit margin and operating margin reporting, alerts for spending anomalies.
Solutions also exist for retail and TV Forensics specifically, but also most other industries.
Alternatives
Domo is really more an executive information system than general purpose BI. It trades off sophistication for ease-of-use and will satisfy business management who need to see regular dashboards and reporting – but it is not primarily a data visualization and exploration platform. Products which are often compared with Domo include:
Tableau is a general purpose data visualization platform, and in this it excels. It does not come with the collaboration features of Domo, but could certainly be configured to act as an executive information system.
Qlik Sense probably offers the best data visualization and discovery toolset available today. Again it does not come with the social and collaboration features of Domo, but it can be extended to provide very advanced charts, dashboards, and other functionality. A very hot contender in reality.
Birst is a complete cloud based enterprise BI solution with a sophisticated data architecture. Its scope is much broader than Domo, and it is capable of satisfying many more types of user.
About Domo
Domo is a privately held business with US$450 million in funding.