– View other Bime tips here

– Take a look at our other tutorial and demo videos here

In this month’s newsletter:

Read it here!

“In a very short time, suddenly true scalability for every IT service appeared within their reach.”

The choices for the list were evaluated partly based on the “social data flow”, a positive reflection of the buzz around Bime and the positive press we received in 2011. Scott writes extensively about Bime’s Deja Vu data cache, which allows users to host their data in the cloud allowing them to use it online, anytime.

To read exactly what RWW wrote about Bime and to view the complete list of top 10 enterprise cloud apps and services of 2011, click here.

SMBs will ride Big Data wave in 2012, we tell Mashable

A great end to the year, onwards and upwards for Bime in 2012 !

Put your visualizations in a logical order

The visualizations which show the key metrics should be at the top and to the left of the dashboard as this is where research shows the user will direct most of their attention (as shown). Make sure that related visualizations, or visualizations where a comparison can be made are placed next to each other. The dashboard should be arranged to make the end user consume the dashboard in the order the dashboard creator intended it to be consumed. In Bime changing the layout of visualizations on your dashboard could not be easier, once in the edit mode simply drag-and-drop.






1. Be space efficient







Try to minimize the amount of ‘unused’ space on the dashboard. Bime makes this easy to do with some simple built in customizable features. Why not try these few simple tweaks to optimize space on a dashboard.

• Delete unnecessary legends
• Put labels inside of the visualization itself rather than below or by the side
• Rotate your labels to fit more labels into a smaller area
• When using an ‘explosion’ measure use the cover view instead of the tile view


















2. One screen?

Ideally a dashboard would always fit one screen without the need for scrolling, switching between pages etc. to allow the user to dig into the data, quickly and easily. However, this doesn’t mean visualizations should be crammed onto one page at all costs. If a dashboard doesn’t fit one page, the next best thing is to organize the dashboard so the viewer has only one scrolling bar, either to scroll down or to scroll across, but preferably not both. Alternatively in Bime several dashboards can be linked together to be listed under different tabs but under the same heading. This is usually only advisable if there are natural divisions in your data.

3. Size your visualizations adequatly

If possible, make your visualizations big enough so that all information on the visualization can be viewed without having to make further clicks on specific points to find out the underlying data. If the space you have allocated for a visualization isnt enough then that visualization will require its own scrolling bar, this makes it more difficult for the user to get the information quickly – ideally, visualizations should be made large enough so they don’t require their own scrolling bars. However, making your visualizations too large can often result in making the overall dashboard inconveniently large, therefore a trade off may be required.

Remember, it is important to have the end user in mind, how will they be consuming the dashboard? For example if the end user will be viewing the dashboard on the Bime mobile app then it may be a good idea to consider making the visualizations larger.

4. Align the elements of your dashboard

In all forms of web design, designers often use a grid system, leaving small gaps between elements on the page to ensure the lines on the page align where possible (see the example below from The Guardian homepage). In Bime users have the option to utilise the free flow grid layout setting or let Bime automatically align size and position of visualizations on a dashboard.



5. Utilize color

Color can be used to show patterns, set the overall mood or just make the dashboard look sleeker and the user has several different options of how to use color on the dashboard. Using different colors to the rest of the dashboard can draw attention to certain parts and using similar colors can also tie two parts of a dashboard together. Generally, a complimentary color scheme can drastically improve the appeal of your dashboard as a coherent color scheme draws the whole dashboard together and makes it look more professional. A good starting point is to identify colors which are prominent in any images or visualizations you have used on your dashboard and then use a color scheme to compliment these colors. However, the color scheme of your dashboard can also be used to provoke certain emotions or use colors which are related to the information you are trying to show on the dashboard. Different colors can be used as running themes throughout a dashboard to represent different groups, such as with this football dashboard from our showcase in which throughout, red represents the English league and blue the French.



Certain color combinations will be more pleasing on the eye, the color wheels below are taken from a Kissmetric blog post on the subject.



6. Keep your dashboard updated

In Bime, if selected, the built in cache, Deja Vu, will take a snapshot of your data therefore if your original data source is on premise the user is still able to share the dashboard created from this data, online. The deja-vu is updated automatically every time the dashboard is loaded and saved and can be scheduled to update automatically at regular periods, for example daily. In Bime all the data on the dashboard can easily be re-loaded from the query cache, from the data cache and from the data source. It is also possible to allow users to update the cache to allow them to view a perfectly up-to-date version of the dashboard.

7. Make sure you provide context to your data

In Bime the stunning range of visualizations bring the data to life and as they say ‘a picture (or interactive visualization!) is worth a thousand words’. However, again it is important to think about the end user, what information do they need to consume the dashboard? Make sure the dashboard includes adequate labels, legends and provide enough data on the dashboard to allow the user to get the information they need.

8. Allow interactivity on your dashboard

Which interactivity features may be useful for the end-user to get the most out of the data? The user may want to look at slightly different metrics to the owner of the dashboard or look at the underlying data behind a visualization on the dashboard. In Bime dashboards are interactive and everyone viewing the dashboard can click on a specific data point to view the numbers associated with that point. Additionally, in the premium version of Bime, the owner of the dashboard can choose to allow external viewers the ability to drill through, drill down and decompose the data.

9. Use text efficiently

Make sure that the text you have used on your dashboard, such as visualization headings, helps to explain the dashboard, graph titles are important and should signal exactly what that visualization shows. Use text to direct and assist the user in certain parts of the dashboard using rich text including font size, type and hyperlinks.

10. Avoid overloading the user

One of the main purposes of a dashboard is to provide a clear summary of the data, quickly and clearly. Therefore be selective with visualizations and only provide information which is needed for analysis. If it is essential to include extremely detailed visualizations in the dashboard then it can sometimes be useful to add them nearer the bottom and put the visualizations which provide a more general overview at the top so as the user works there way through the dashboard, layers of detail are gradually revealed. Alternatively in the example just mentioned, if they just want to look at the dashboard quickly then the key metrics are summarized as soon as they click to open the dashboard at the top of the page.

This is obviously only an express guide to dashboard design. What killer tips do you have for designing stunning dashboards? To view our selection of showcase dashboards, click here

BIME is a dashboarding and data visualization tool that helps you shine new light on your data. Click here to go to our Pricing & Plans page and sign up to turn your data into dollars!

USA Today => Married couples who run tech start-ups

Shoestring Venture => The Startup Bible Blog

Entrpereneur.com => 5 tools for smarter business intelligence




Find out more about the team behind Bime on the about us page.

As always, we’d love to hear from you, contact us at: rachel@wearecloud.com and for press press@wearecloud.com



]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/bime-features-in-several-publications-including-usa-today/feed/ 1 http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/bime-news-mobile-v3-5-forrester-pricing-report-line-chart-tips-user-dashboard/ http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/bime-news-mobile-v3-5-forrester-pricing-report-line-chart-tips-user-dashboard/#comments Tue, 29 Nov 2011 17:21:23 +0000 jonathan http://bimeanalytics.com/?p=12765 Each month we bring you some of the latest news from Bime HQ in our monthly newsletter. Didn’t get this month’s newsletter? Sign up by clicking here.
In this months newsletter:
• Bime V3.5 : Bime is going mobile
• Bime interviewed for Forrester BI report
• Bime Tip : Optimizing the use of line charts
• Dashboard of the Month : On-line retailer, Laptopper, monitor their web-analytics

Read it here!






]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/bime-news-mobile-v3-5-forrester-pricing-report-line-chart-tips-user-dashboard/feed/ 0 http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/forrester-study-the-6-steps-to-negotiating-a-better-bi-deal-research/ http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/forrester-study-the-6-steps-to-negotiating-a-better-bi-deal-research/#comments Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:27:24 +0000 jonathan http://bimeanalytics.com/?p=12680 On the 14th November, Boris Evelson (pictured), senior analyst for Forrester Research, published a report for their clients entitled:

Six Steps To Negotiating A Better BI Deal – Use Forrester’s Approach To Help You Get More For Your Money”.

The report is summarized on the Forrester’s website:
“Many business intelligence (BI) vendors do not publish list prices. Some do not even provide list prices under a nondisclosure agreement to their customers and prospects. Plus, BI pricing and licensing models differ greatly from vendor to vendor, keeping many BI software buyers from having a frame of reference when evaluating proposals from BI vendors.

To help organizations know whether they are getting a good deal from their BI software provider, Forrester assembled a list of industry-average BI deal prices for typical small, mid-size, and large enterprise business scenarios. Extrapolate and adjust these averages to fit your deal specifics and then use them as the starting point for BI contract negotiations.”

Bime was among 25 vendors interviewed and vendors were divided into 5 different categories including cloud BI (4 vendors in total including Bime).
Here are a list of the BI vendors interviewed: Actuate, Altosoft, Attivio, Bime (We Are Cloud), Birst, Endeca, GoodData, IBM, Information Builders, JackBe, Jaspersoft, LogiXML, Microsoft, MicroStrategy, Pentaho, QlikTech, Quiterian, SAS, SpagoBI, Tableau Software, and Tibco Spotfire.

Boris Evelson especially liked the price transparency of the public cloud vendors, the most reactive of all the actors: a sign of the new wave of agile BI of these actors.

More information here…



]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/forrester-study-the-6-steps-to-negotiating-a-better-bi-deal-research/feed/ 0 http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/dr-who/ http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/dr-who/#comments Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:02:43 +0000 jonathan http://bimeanalytics.com/?p=11973 It’s not every day you see a data visualization on the popular TV series, Dr Who. Our Dr Who dashboard contains Dr Who villain data from 1963 to 2010, including motivation to end the world…

Did you know? The Doctor has fought more than 300 villains and monsters in his time. Find out who they are – and which appeared most, as well as when they first hit the screens. However, the data doesn’t include villains exclusively in Doctor Who books, audio books and spin-off shows – only the televised serials and only enemies (as opposed to protagonists).






The infamous Dalek has appeared more times than any other Doctor Who villain.


Have some interesting data you want to analyze? Start now.

This particular data was sourced from: The Guardian Data Blog.

Data Format: (Online) – Google Spreadsheet.

Click on the image below to access the dashboard.



]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/dr-who/feed/ 0 http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/october-bime-by-gartner-and-two-customer-testimonials-newsletter/ http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/october-bime-by-gartner-and-two-customer-testimonials-newsletter/#comments Wed, 26 Oct 2011 13:32:24 +0000 jonathan http://bimeanalytics.com/?p=12275 Each month we bring you some of the latest news from Bime HQ in our monthly newsletter. Didn’t get this month’s newsletter? Sign up by clicking here.
In this months newsletter:
• Bime recognized in Gartner Who’s Who report
• Client Testimonial: Spicy Lemon, Dutch anti-virus software distributor
• Client Testimonial: Bugseye, Australian business consultancy
• Dashboard of the Month: Analyze your email campaign

Read it here!



]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/october-bime-by-gartner-and-two-customer-testimonials-newsletter/feed/ 0 http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/steve-jobs-1955-2011/ http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/steve-jobs-1955-2011/#comments Thu, 06 Oct 2011 09:19:23 +0000 jonathan http://bimeanalytics.com/?p=12026 Apple chairman, co-founder and long time CEO, Steve Jobs, passed away yesterday, he was aged just 56. All of us at Bime HQ were extremely saddened by his death.

Apple has set up a webpage on their website as a tribute, with an email address where people can share their thoughts, memories and condolences. Steve was also a big inspiration to us here at Bime HQ. Below we have listed just a few of our favourite quotes.

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”

We love the above quote by Steve and this philosophy is central to our work on Bime as we always strive to continually improve.

“We made the buttons on the screen look so good you’ll want to lick them.”

Again, another fantastic Steve Jobs quote and we completely agree, as well as having a great product under the bonnet, that product should look as sexy as possible and be enjoyable to use.

Lastly here is his fantastically inspirational 2005 “connecting the dots” Stanford address speech.

R.I.P. Steve Jobs, an inspiration and a great loss to the industry.

]]> http://bimeanalytics.com/blog/steve-jobs-1955-2011/feed/ 0