How Do You Build Dashboards in Salesforce Marketing Cloud (SFMC)?
Get from scattered reports to an auditable, role-based dashboard suite in SFMC and Salesforce—covering email, journeys, journeys/campaign attribution, and data quality—so leaders can act on trusted metrics daily.
To build dashboards in SFMC, define audiences, questions, and decisions first. Then standardize a metrics taxonomy, connect the right data sources (Data Views, GA4/first-party analytics, Sales/Service Cloud objects), and publish role-specific dashboard pages (executive, channel owner, operations). Validate with QA checklists and alerts before rollout so numbers match source-of-truth and drive action.
Dashboard Success Factors in SFMC
Step-by-Step: Build a Trusted SFMC Dashboard Suite
Follow this sequence to define KPIs, wire data, and publish dashboards that leaders actually use.
Plan → Model → Connect → Build → Validate → Publish → Operate
- Plan questions & users: List weekly decisions and who makes them (Exec, Marketing Ops, Channel, CX). Prioritize 5–7 KPIs per page.
- Model metrics & taxonomy: Lock definitions (Delivered = Sent − Bounces), naming, time windows, and campaign/UTM standards.
- Connect data: Use SFMC Data Views (Sent, Open, Click, Bounce, Unsub, Journey, Contact events). Join to Salesforce Opportunities/Cases for revenue/retention and to web analytics for conversions.
- Build visuals: Executive overview, Email performance, Journey health, Audience growth, Data quality, and Revenue attribution tabs.
- Validate & reconcile: QA sampling vs. native SFMC reports and CRM. Add anomaly thresholds and freshness badges.
- Publish & secure: Role-based access, filter controls (brand, region, timeframe), and saved views for recurring reviews.
- Operate & improve: Weekly review cadence, backlog for new charts, and change logs when metric formulas evolve.
SFMC Dashboard Maturity Matrix
| Capability | From (Ad Hoc) | To (Operationalized) | Owner | Primary KPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metric Definitions | Multiple, conflicting | Single taxonomy, versioned & documented | RevOps/Analytics | Adoption, Discrepancy Rate |
| Data Integration | SFMC only | SFMC + CRM + Web + Orders with IDs aligned | Data Engineering | Data Freshness SLA |
| Executive Rollup | Channel-level reports | Revenue & retention rollups with attribution | Marketing Analytics | ROMI, Revenue Influenced |
| Ops Monitoring | Manual checks | Automated alerts (bounces, unsub spikes, journey errors) | Marketing Ops | Time to Detect/Resolve |
| Access & UX | Static links | Role-based pages, filters, saved views | Platform Admin | Monthly Active Viewers |
Client Snapshot: From Disconnected Reports to Executive Trust
Standardizing metrics and wiring SFMC Data Views to Salesforce opportunities produced an executive dashboard with weekly ROMI updates and alerting on deliverability and journey failures—driving faster creative fixes and better audience hygiene.
Keep dashboards aligned to decisions, not just data. Build with a living glossary, ID strategy, and QA routines to maintain trust.
Frequently Asked Questions about SFMC Dashboards
Ship Dashboards Leaders Trust
We’ll define your glossary, wire SFMC↔Salesforce data, and publish role-based pages with alerts and QA so your team can decide quickly.
Get the Revenue Marketing eGuide Check the Revenue Marketing Transformation