Marketing agency dashboard: client results and margin

A marketing agency dashboard should separate client campaign results from the agency's cost of delivering them. Put spend and agreed client outcomes in one view, then fees, labor, outside costs, and contribution in another. Connect the views by client and period so a strong campaign result cannot hide an expensive engagement.

Set the reporting contract before the layout

Start with the decision: which campaigns need a client discussion, and which engagements need a pricing or delivery discussion? Use the marketing agency KPIs definitions for the management measures instead of inventing new versions inside the dashboard.

Write the period, currency, lead definition, attribution rule, and cost allocation rule at the top of the workbook. This example is a US agency's September 2026 report in USD. A lead is a deduplicated inquiry meeting the client's agreed qualification rule. Attributed sales value follows the supplied campaign export; it is not proof that advertising caused the sales.

Keep cost per lead distinct from customer acquisition cost. The former divides campaign spend by leads. The latter requires customers and the agreed acquisition-cost boundary, so a campaign dashboard cannot substitute one for the other.

Use closed-period data for the worked report. In an ongoing month, label both the export timestamp and any incomplete finance or time records rather than presenting the result as final.

Step 1: preserve the campaign rows

Create a sheet named Campaigns with columns A:F: client ID, campaign, period, spend, qualified leads, and attributed sales value. One row represents one client-campaign-period combination. Do not place monthly agency fees on these rows, because a client with several campaigns would then repeat the same fee.

Preserve the original export next to the working sheet. Record any removed duplicate or excluded campaign so the reconciliation remains explainable. A blank outcome field means unknown until someone confirms otherwise; it does not automatically mean no outcomes occurred.

Step 2: summarize campaign outcomes by client

On a sheet named Summary, place client IDs in A2:A4. Set B1 to the period text, September 2026. In B2, sum spend for the client and period:

=SUMIFS(Campaigns!$D$2:$D$5,Campaigns!$A$2:$A$5,$A2,Campaigns!$C$2:$C$5,$B$1)

Use the same formula with sum range E2:E5 for leads in C2 and F2:F5 for sales value in D2. Fill each formula down. Google Sheets documents SUMIFS as a sum subject to multiple criteria, which is why both client and period appear in the formula.

Calculate cost per lead in E2 and return on ad spend in F2:

=IF(C2=0,"",B2/C2)
=IF(B2=0,"",D2/B2)

Cost per lead = Campaign spend / Qualified leads

ROAS = Attributed sales value / Campaign spend

Google Ads' ROAS documentation describes conversion value per cost. For this workbook, the numerator is the supplied attributed sales value; keep that definition visible rather than mixing it with a platform's differently defined conversion value.

Money ratios are rounded to two decimal places and ROAS to three. The total cost per lead is 40,000 / 310 = $129.03. Total ROAS is 93,000 / 40,000 = 2.325×. Neither total is the simple average of the client ratios.

Covirage is not affiliated with Google.

Step 3: calculate agency economics separately

Use a Finance sheet with one row per client-period after summarizing the approved finance and time exports. For this example, assigned labor follows the agency's written allocation policy. Outside delivery costs include the contractors and purchased work assigned to each engagement; corporate overhead remains outside this contribution view.

With fees in B, labor in C, and outside delivery in D, enter these formulas in E2 and F2, then fill down:

=B2-C2-D2
=IF(B2=0,"",E2/B2)

The total contribution is $24,000 − $12,500 − $2,500 = $9,000. The total margin is 9,000 / 24,000 = 37.5%, with client margins rounded to one decimal place. These figures describe assigned delivery economics; finance must still reconcile other agency expenses before reporting net profit.

Step 4: assemble the review and prove the totals

Display client outcomes above agency economics, using the same client order. Put the period, source timestamp, and metric definitions beside the panels. A practical layout has a client selector, an outcomes table, an economics table, and a short action list with an owner for each item.

Client B warrants a delivery review because its contribution margin is the lowest in the table. Client C warrants a campaign review because its cost per lead is the highest. Those are separate questions; differences in client objectives also mean that cross-client rankings need context.

Tie campaign spend to $40,000, qualified leads to 310, and attributed sales value to $93,000. Tie the economics panel independently to $24,000 of fees and $15,000 of assigned delivery costs. If the source rows change, both the dashboard and these control totals must change together.

For spreadsheet presentation choices, use the spreadsheet marketing dashboard guide. For alternative panel arrangements, see marketing dashboard examples. Neither layout choice changes the reconciliations.

Where it goes wrong

• Fees repeat for each campaign. Client A has two campaign rows. Repeating its fees would raise the agency total from $24,000 to $33,000 without another dollar of fee revenue.
• Attribution periods differ. Campaign reports and CRM exports can recognize outcomes on different dates. State the chosen basis and do not add unlike periods.
• Ratios are averaged. Divide summed value by summed spend and summed spend by summed leads.
• Missing records become zeros. Flag incomplete time or outcome records before interpreting weak performance.
• Contribution appears on a client-facing view. Review which fields belong in each audience's report and check the exact file that will be shared.

Compare your client and cost files in Covirage

Upload a sample of your own campaign export and client finance workbook, or bring a Google Sheet. Covirage maps the columns, its tools compute and check the client comparisons, and the external AI model explains the results with every figure traced to its rows. Create a free Covirage account; account creation takes about a minute, then you set up your business and bring your own data.

See how this file-based work fits self-service analytics.