There are certain words that the marketing business has latched onto hard.

“Guru,” “maestro” and “growth-hacker” all come to mind.

Or “superstar,” “superhero” and of course, “ninja.”

What whimsy.

So, as you might imagine, I was a bit leery when I started checking out NinjaCat.

And after looking more closely, I’m still not sure what’s so “ninja” about it.

This platform is an all-in-one tool aimed at helping agencies prove their value to clients.

In other words, it’s a comprehensive reporting tool that connects with over 750 integrations and allows users to customize their reports.

Reports can contain Facebook Ads data, Google Analytics, Bing traffic, and that’s only the beginning.

Is NinjaCat the badass marketing machine it claims to be?

What Is NinjaCat?

No, NinjaCat isn’t some strange new species created purely for its meme potential. Or with a natural propensity for being sneaky.

The tool has a singular focus: reports, reports, reports. But, several functions make NinjaCat a well-reviewed product.

Since the best way to describe NinjaCat is by looking at its key features, let’s take a look, shall we?

NinjaCat Review: Does It Earn the Ubiquitous “Ninja” Moniker?

PPC Reporting

NinjaCat’s PPC reporting tool offers a snapshot of your PPC efforts, helping you justify ad spends to your clients and give them a presentable view of what, exactly, they’re paying for.

A PPC report at this scale takes a long time to prepare—we’re talking days, or even a week, here. You can use this feature to compare how Facebook Ads compare with Google or Bing, broken down by region, number of clicks or impressions.

Budget, Client, Campaign and KPI Monitoring

NinjaCat’s interface features a few different sub-tabs that fall under “monitoring.” These allow you to look at a client’s overall performance, see if they’re meeting their KPIs and where they’re at regarding budget.

Universal API

The main selling point of NinjaCat is the fact that it combines with 750+ integrations, making it ideal for marketers.

So, you can pull data from Facebook Ads and Google AdWords, as well as from several other sources to monitor everything from social media performance to call tracking and PPC campaigns.

White Label Dashboards

All NinjaCat subscriptions come with the white labeling feature, meaning you’ll be able to add your company logo and create your own dashboard theme and email templates. So, with that in mind, users can create their own dashboards, custom tailored to each client.

To set up a custom dashboard:

• Click your name in the upper-right corner
• Go to Agency settings, then click “White Label”
• Go to the dashboard theme and add your agency logo, change the color scheme, typography and more.

Your white label dashboard will include a snapshot of what’s going on with each individual client—impressions, clicks, conversions. Again, none of this is fixed—you can add, move or remove various metrics however you see fit.

Call Tracking

Not only does the reporting functionality provide a service to existing clients, it’s also a great way to seal the deal with prospective clients. You’ll be able to demonstrate a level of in-depth reporting that’s bound to impress.

The call tracking feature is pretty darn cool. Link the tool to your phone app of choice and track call conversions and ROI, alongside web conversions and other metrics.

Automatic Deployment

Because NinjaCat sets out to help you manage client relationships, the automatic deployment feature is one of my favorite parts of the tool. You can select the Reports tab, and go to settings to get started.

And as you can see in the example, you can select the frequency at which you’d like to send this information to clients—weekly, biweekly, every third Thursday, whatever.

Then, you can update the email settings. You have the option of adding recipients to be linked to any given report and may select automatic deployment. Then, just set it and forget it.

Crossing the Barriers to Entry

Like a lot of tools—Pitchbox comes to mind—setting up NinjaCat is a little complicated.

You’ll need to schedule a call before gaining access to the free trial. The product is aimed at agencies, so I had to pretend more or less that I was evaluating this product for a potential client.

You know, I fully get that the people behind NinjaCat don’t want to give their product away for free, nor do they want to waste precious time on conference calls.

NinjaCat is not for the commitment-phobic. The product, of course, is aimed at larger agencies—so they do a lot of vetting before you’re able to sign up and require that users pay for the service on an annual basis and put down an extra months’ worth of service to cover the onboarding process.

Upon signing up, users must partake in three one-hour training sessions, and then they’re ready to go.

Ease of Use: The NinjaCat Experience

NinjaCat sets out to address the pain point so many digital marketers face; the fact that reporting takes forever. It’s tedious, it’s time-consuming and it’s not always pretty.

So, does NinjaCat eliminate reporting that “sucks,” as it claims to?

It seems to.

I didn’t get a chance to explore the whole tool myself but based on my conversation with Scott from the sales team, NinjaCat is a straightforward and flexible tool. The best parts of it are the easy-to-access (and customize) reports, as well as the fact that it works with Google Drive.

Because you can pull from so many different sources, all from one platform, you’re not caught downloading a million PDFs or opening a bunch of tabs and manually entering data for later review. In other words, NinjaCat does stand to be a major time saver.

Who Is NinjaCat For?

As we mentioned, NinjaCat is a reporting tool. And it was built for marketers juggling multiple clients at a time.

But, upon requesting more details from NinjaCat themselves, I was quickly informed that the entry-level plan starts at $12,000 per year.

This plan supports firms dealing with up to 100 clients, and pricing goes up from there. The recommended enterprise plan is $2,500 a month, and all plans require a deposit upfront—essentially, first and last month’s payment.

Outside of larger companies with multiple clients across multiple reporting platforms, NinjaCat might be a lot of money for a tool that doesn’t bring anything but reporting to the table.

It’s clear that this tool is the best fit for agencies that can afford the extra fees and have enough clients to cover the cost. Evaluating this from the perspective of a smaller operation, I can’t imagine this feeling like a good way to spend marketing dollars.

How NinjaCat Compares to Competitors

People who need accessible data from Google AdWords, Facebook, Bing and Analytics in one place are definitely in luck. Tools like Google Charts, Databox and Raven Tools all provide high-level reporting at a lower cost—and have similar reviews from users.

Raven Tools, for example, offers Moz and Majestic data, plus backlink reporting and site auditing. And, the most expensive plan costs just $399 a month.

Google Charts, on the other hand, is a bit more simplistic, but it’s free, and you can customize and save client reports as you see fit.

If you’ve been scoping out NinjaCat and it meets all of your needs but you can’t justify the cost, Databox seems like a good alternative. This program caps out at $249 a month, but reports on fewer accounts. So, while it probably won’t work for major marketing firms, small companies who want high-level internal reporting will do better with this option. You might also check out Klipfolio and Geckboard.

Do you only care about key SEO metrics like keyword rankings and backlinks? Then the Monitor Backlinks SEO tool may cover everything that matters to you, without making any kind of dent in your wallet. It has a great reporting module to give you a clear, straightforward overview of any site’s performance.

Does NinjaCat Make the Cut?

Overall, NinjaCat is the kind of tool built for bigger operations.

It’s purely a reporting tool, making it hard to justify the costs if you’ve only got the budget for one heavy-hitting marketing tool.

The onboarding process is quite long, but the customer service is really hands-on.

I like that they take the time to usher new clients through the process, but I have to admit, it’s not my favorite tactic when companies make you communicate with them before you can look around for yourself and address any questions before you give them a call.

But—it is easy to use and pulls data from multiple locations.

So, TL/DR, NinjaCat is a really good source of info, but definitely won’t be your only marketing tool.

 

 

Wait a Sec, We Have Something for You!

Remember the Monitor Backlinks tool we mentioned earlier?

CoSpot readers can now receive a free trial of the Monitor Backlinks SEO tool.

It offers an excellent keyword rank tracker and backlink management tool, plus complete reports of your site’s SEO performance.

Oh, and if you decide you love this reporting tool, you’ll be happy to see that the plan pricing is pretty awesome too.

Claim your free trial of Monitor Backlinks today!

There are certain words that the marketing business has latched onto hard.

“Guru,” “maestro” and “growth-hacker” all come to mind.

Or “superstar,” “superhero” and of course, “ninja.”

What whimsy.

So, as you might imagine, I was a bit leery when I started checking out NinjaCat.

And after looking more closely, I’m still not sure what’s so “ninja” about it.

This platform is an all-in-one tool aimed at helping agencies prove their value to clients.

In other words, it’s a comprehensive reporting tool that connects with over 750 integrations and allows users to customize their reports.

Reports can contain Facebook Ads data, Google Analytics, Bing traffic, and that’s only the beginning.

Is NinjaCat the badass marketing machine it claims to be?

What Is NinjaCat?

No, NinjaCat isn’t some strange new species created purely for its meme potential. Or with a natural propensity for being sneaky.

The tool has a singular focus: reports, reports, reports. But, several functions make NinjaCat a well-reviewed product.

Since the best way to describe NinjaCat is by looking at its key features, let’s take a look, shall we?

NinjaCat Review: Does It Earn the Ubiquitous “Ninja” Moniker?

PPC Reporting

NinjaCat’s PPC reporting tool offers a snapshot of your PPC efforts, helping you justify ad spends to your clients and give them a presentable view of what, exactly, they’re paying for.

A PPC report at this scale takes a long time to prepare—we’re talking days, or even a week, here. You can use this feature to compare how Facebook Ads compare with Google or Bing, broken down by region, number of clicks or impressions.

Budget, Client, Campaign and KPI Monitoring

NinjaCat’s interface features a few different sub-tabs that fall under “monitoring.” These allow you to look at a client’s overall performance, see if they’re meeting their KPIs and where they’re at regarding budget.

Universal API

The main selling point of NinjaCat is the fact that it combines with 750+ integrations, making it ideal for marketers.

So, you can pull data from Facebook Ads and Google AdWords, as well as from several other sources to monitor everything from social media performance to call tracking and PPC campaigns.

White Label Dashboards

All NinjaCat subscriptions come with the white labeling feature, meaning you’ll be able to add your company logo and create your own dashboard theme and email templates. So, with that in mind, users can create their own dashboards, custom tailored to each client.

To set up a custom dashboard:

• Click your name in the upper-right corner
• Go to Agency settings, then click “White Label”
• Go to the dashboard theme and add your agency logo, change the color scheme, typography and more.

Your white label dashboard will include a snapshot of what’s going on with each individual client—impressions, clicks, conversions. Again, none of this is fixed—you can add, move or remove various metrics however you see fit.

Call Tracking

Not only does the reporting functionality provide a service to existing clients, it’s also a great way to seal the deal with prospective clients. You’ll be able to demonstrate a level of in-depth reporting that’s bound to impress.

The call tracking feature is pretty darn cool. Link the tool to your phone app of choice and track call conversions and ROI, alongside web conversions and other metrics.

Automatic Deployment

Because NinjaCat sets out to help you manage client relationships, the automatic deployment feature is one of my favorite parts of the tool. You can select the Reports tab, and go to settings to get started.

And as you can see in the example, you can select the frequency at which you’d like to send this information to clients—weekly, biweekly, every third Thursday, whatever.

Then, you can update the email settings. You have the option of adding recipients to be linked to any given report and may select automatic deployment. Then, just set it and forget it.

Crossing the Barriers to Entry

Like a lot of tools—Pitchbox comes to mind—setting up NinjaCat is a little complicated.

You’ll need to schedule a call before gaining access to the free trial. The product is aimed at agencies, so I had to pretend more or less that I was evaluating this product for a potential client.

You know, I fully get that the people behind NinjaCat don’t want to give their product away for free, nor do they want to waste precious time on conference calls.

NinjaCat is not for the commitment-phobic. The product, of course, is aimed at larger agencies—so they do a lot of vetting before you’re able to sign up and require that users pay for the service on an annual basis and put down an extra months’ worth of service to cover the onboarding process.

Upon signing up, users must partake in three one-hour training sessions, and then they’re ready to go.

Ease of Use: The NinjaCat Experience

NinjaCat sets out to address the pain point so many digital marketers face; the fact that reporting takes forever. It’s tedious, it’s time-consuming and it’s not always pretty.

So, does NinjaCat eliminate reporting that “sucks,” as it claims to?

It seems to.

I didn’t get a chance to explore the whole tool myself but based on my conversation with Scott from the sales team, NinjaCat is a straightforward and flexible tool. The best parts of it are the easy-to-access (and customize) reports, as well as the fact that it works with Google Drive.

Because you can pull from so many different sources, all from one platform, you’re not caught downloading a million PDFs or opening a bunch of tabs and manually entering data for later review. In other words, NinjaCat does stand to be a major time saver.

Who Is NinjaCat For?

As we mentioned, NinjaCat is a reporting tool. And it was built for marketers juggling multiple clients at a time.

But, upon requesting more details from NinjaCat themselves, I was quickly informed that the entry-level plan starts at $12,000 per year.

This plan supports firms dealing with up to 100 clients, and pricing goes up from there. The recommended enterprise plan is $2,500 a month, and all plans require a deposit upfront—essentially, first and last month’s payment.

Outside of larger companies with multiple clients across multiple reporting platforms, NinjaCat might be a lot of money for a tool that doesn’t bring anything but reporting to the table.

It’s clear that this tool is the best fit for agencies that can afford the extra fees and have enough clients to cover the cost. Evaluating this from the perspective of a smaller operation, I can’t imagine this feeling like a good way to spend marketing dollars.

How NinjaCat Compares to Competitors

People who need accessible data from Google AdWords, Facebook, Bing and Analytics in one place are definitely in luck. Tools like Google Charts, Databox and Raven Tools all provide high-level reporting at a lower cost—and have similar reviews from users.

Raven Tools, for example, offers Moz and Majestic data, plus backlink reporting and site auditing. And, the most expensive plan costs just $399 a month.

Google Charts, on the other hand, is a bit more simplistic, but it’s free, and you can customize and save client reports as you see fit.

If you’ve been scoping out NinjaCat and it meets all of your needs but you can’t justify the cost, Databox seems like a good alternative. This program caps out at $249 a month, but reports on fewer accounts. So, while it probably won’t work for major marketing firms, small companies who want high-level internal reporting will do better with this option. You might also check out Klipfolio and Geckboard.

Do you only care about key SEO metrics like keyword rankings and backlinks? Then the Monitor Backlinks SEO tool may cover everything that matters to you, without making any kind of dent in your wallet. It has a great reporting module to give you a clear, straightforward overview of any site’s performance.

Does NinjaCat Make the Cut?

Overall, NinjaCat is the kind of tool built for bigger operations.

It’s purely a reporting tool, making it hard to justify the costs if you’ve only got the budget for one heavy-hitting marketing tool.

The onboarding process is quite long, but the customer service is really hands-on.

I like that they take the time to usher new clients through the process, but I have to admit, it’s not my favorite tactic when companies make you communicate with them before you can look around for yourself and address any questions before you give them a call.

But—it is easy to use and pulls data from multiple locations.

So, TL/DR, NinjaCat is a really good source of info, but definitely won’t be your only marketing tool.

 

 

Wait a Sec, We Have Something for You!

Remember the Monitor Backlinks tool we mentioned earlier?

CoSpot readers can now receive a free trial of the Monitor Backlinks SEO tool.

It offers an excellent keyword rank tracker and backlink management tool, plus complete reports of your site’s SEO performance.

Oh, and if you decide you love this reporting tool, you’ll be happy to see that the plan pricing is pretty awesome too.

Claim your free trial of Monitor Backlinks today!