How it runs for marketing agencies and consultancies
The numbers agree with the monthly reporting pack because they come from the same closed ledger, not from a separate spreadsheet that drifts.
What are financial dashboard services?
Financial dashboard services design, build and maintain a visual view of your key financial metrics from your accounting, billing and payroll systems. The provider defines each KPI with you, connects the data, refreshes the figures, and checks that every number ties to the ledger. The result is a page you open any day, not a report you wait for.
What we handle for marketing agencies and consultancies
- Fee revenue versus retainer run-rate and pipeline conversion
- Gross margin by client after freelancers and media pass-through
- Utilization and effective hourly rate by team from Harvest data
- DSO and aged receivables with promises to pay from DunningDesk
- Cash runway that excludes client media funds held in the operating account
The KPI that matters here
Dashboard refreshed within 2 business days of each close with every tile traceable to a ledger account or time report.
Agencies compliance notes
1099 contractor reporting
Agencies rely on freelancers, and the IRS requires Form 1099-NEC for nonemployee compensation above the annual threshold, which is $2,000 for payments made in 2026. We collect W-9s at vendor setup, code every contractor payment, and hand your preparer a reconciled 1099 report each January. Your firm reviews and files; we do not sign.
Retainers and deferred revenue
A retainer billed before the service period is a liability until the work is delivered. We keep a deferred revenue schedule that releases each retainer to income as hours are logged or the month ends, so your P&L matches the work actually performed.
WIP and unbilled revenue
Work delivered but not yet invoiced is an asset that lenders and buyers ask about. We reconcile unbilled hours from Harvest or your PM tool against the ledger monthly, so WIP is real, aged and collectible.
Gross versus net for media
ASC 606 and IFRS 15 ask whether the agency is principal or agent for media it buys on a client's behalf. We apply the treatment your CPA or accountant chooses and keep the pass-through account reconciled to platform statements so the answer is documented.
Agencies software we work in
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Frequently asked questions
Which KPIs matter most for an agency dashboard?
Net fee revenue, gross margin by client, utilization, DSO and cash runway are the five most owners use weekly. Retainer run-rate and churn come next for agencies with recurring clients. We start with those tiles and add service-line or office splits once the base data is clean and reconciled.
Can the dashboard exclude client media money from our cash?
Yes, that is one of the first tiles we build. Media funds received but not yet paid to platforms sit in the pass-through liability, and the dashboard shows operating cash after that liability. This stops a healthy-looking bank balance from hiding the fact that most of it belongs to client campaigns.
Which tools do you use for agency dashboards?
Fathom, Syft or Reach Reporting on top of QuickBooks Online or Xero for the financial tiles, with time data loaded from Harvest, Toggl or your PM tool. If you already use a BI tool, we supply the reconciled data on a schedule instead. The tool is yours; we maintain the definitions and check the numbers.
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