Stripe, a San Francisco-based payment service provider that specializes in online transactions, is expanding its arsenal of financial products to cater to the needs of data-hungry businesses.
Earlier today at Stripe Sessions, a conference for Stripe users, the company announced the launching of Sigma, a powerful analytics tool powered by SQL. The feature allows individuals to quickly pull data related to invoicing, revenue and customer payment trends (just to name a few) from their dashboard.
The analytics tool is designed for SMBs and startups without access to financial analytics platforms. Sigma is also a great option for companies that aren’t ready to invest in developing custom analytics applications – either because of budget constraints or size.
Sigma offers full customization via SQL queries, which can be saved, repeated and shared to other individuals. Customers can leverage the tool to make pivotal decisions that could affect the strategy and long-term direction of the business. For example, an individual could uncover data surrounding the number of orders over $500 from a specific country. It would also be possible to use Sigma to monitor the number of active customers during peak holiday periods.
“Good data analytics should be like a good email system: fast to get, easy to use, and readily available to anyone in the company,” said John Collison, president and co-founder of Stripe. “This is particularly true for revenue and financial information, which can inform a lot of strategic decisions.”
Sigma is baked directly into the Stripe service and does not rely on the use of an API to handle data. The feature removes barriers surrounding the requirements of existing analytics tools available in the market today. Compared to other analytics services, Sigma does not require customers to use defined sets of “pre-built reports” and build customized data pipelines.
Taking a “plug and play” approach, Stripe users can take advantage of zero set-up requirements when starting the analytics tool. A total of 15 template queries are available for individuals who want to run reports with minimal edits or who don’t have time to engineer custom analytics programs.
Furthermore, there is no ongoing maintenance associated with the service. Businesses could also use Sigma to share financial data with various departments and co-workers. For establishments already using their own set of analytics tools, the unique Stripe feature may serve as a complementary platform. In such cases, an individual could use Sigma to quickly find data or variables.
Sigma is available to all Stripe customers starting today. Users who are interested in the service can get a preview of the tool through a free trial. The company is offering the feature as a paid product, which comes with a monthly fee. Price points for the service are based on the size of the customer’s business.
“With Sigma, we’re giving businesses a zero-set-up tool that can be customized for any number of purposes. Whether you work in finance, analytics, customer support or product management, Sigma gives you a way to go spelunking through your revenue data and quickly answer whatever’s on your mind,” Collison said.
Stripe is a leading innovator in the financial technology space. Founded in 2010, the company, which has raised over $440 million (according to data from Crunchbase), and is valued at $9 billion, specializes in easy-to-use B2B online and mobile payment products. Its high-profile investors include the following: Sequoia Capital, capitalG, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Visa and American Express.
The international-focused business handles payments in over 135 currencies. Stripe products are currently available in 25 countries worldwide, with support from nine global offices. The company’s service supports the following on-demand marketplaces: Shopify, Lyft, Target, Facebook, Indiegogo, Warby Parker and Kickstarter.
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