If you’re sending out sales decks, proposals, or one-pagers and you’re not sure what happens after you hit “send,” you’re not alone. Most sales teams are left guessing: Did anyone open that deck? Are they skimming or really reading? Are they sharing it around, or is it just gathering dust in someone’s inbox? If you’re using Storydoc and you want to actually use its analytics to improve your sales—not just look at pretty charts—this guide is for you.
Below, I’ll break down how to use Storydoc analytics to figure out what’s working, what’s not, and how to actually move the sales needle. We’ll get into the weeds, skip the fluff, and call out the stuff that doesn’t really matter.
1. Get Clear on What You’re Trying to Improve
Before you dive into dashboards, stop and ask: What do you actually want to change? Better open rates? More meetings booked? Faster deal cycles? If you don’t pick a goal, you’ll end up obsessing over random metrics—“vanity metrics”—that look nice but don’t actually help you sell.
Pro tip: Pick one thing to improve at a time. If you try to fix everything, you’ll fix nothing.
Common goals: - Get prospects to actually read/watch more of your deck - Spot where people drop off so you can tighten your pitch - Find your real buying champions (the people who read and share your deck) - Shorten the time from first touch to signed deal
2. Learn Which Metrics Actually Matter
Storydoc throws a lot of numbers at you. Not all of them are equally useful. Here’s what’s worth your time:
- Opens: Did your prospect actually click the link? If not, your problem isn’t your deck—it’s your outreach or timing.
- Time spent: Are people skimming or really reading? Under 30 seconds? They’re barely looking. 2+ minutes? Good sign.
- Drop-off points: Where do people stop reading? These are your trouble spots.
- Shares/Forwards: Is your deck getting passed around internally? If so, someone’s interested—or at least curious.
- Individual viewer data: Who’s looking? Multiple stakeholders = deal is moving.
- Engagement with interactive elements: Are people clicking on tabs, videos, or calculators, or just scrolling past?
What to mostly ignore: - “Average scroll depth” on its own. It’s not the 2010s—people scroll fast. - Device/browser stats. Unless you’ve got a weirdly tech-averse audience, this rarely moves the needle.
3. Set Up Decks and Links So You Can Track the Right Stuff
If you’re just sending generic links, you’re missing the best data. Always create unique links for each prospect or account. This lets you see exactly who’s viewing, when, and how often.
How to do this in Storydoc: - When you’re ready to send your deck, use the “share” or “send” function to create a custom link for each contact or company. - Name links clearly. “Acme_Corp_Q2_Pitch” is better than “salesdeck4.” - For big accounts, consider a unique link per stakeholder (e.g., one for the CFO, one for the decision-maker).
Why bother? You’ll know if the CEO is actually looking, or if it’s just the intern. You’ll see if your deck gets forwarded to legal or procurement—clues that a deal is progressing.
4. Use Analytics to Spot Bottlenecks (and Actually Do Something)
Looking at numbers is useless unless you act on them. Here’s how to use what you see:
a. If Nobody Opens Your Deck
- Rethink your outreach. Is your email subject line boring? Did you send it at a bad time?
- Try a brief personal note in your email: “I recorded this just for you—would love your honest thoughts.”
b. If People Open But Don’t Engage
- Are your decks too long? Most people won’t read more than a few minutes.
- Is the opening boring? The first screen should hook them—tell them what’s in it for them.
- Cut jargon and fluff. Get to the point.
c. If People Drop Off at the Same Spot
- That section probably isn’t working. Maybe it’s too technical, too salesy, or just not relevant.
- Try moving key info earlier, or breaking up long sections with visuals or interactive bits.
- Ask prospects directly: “Was there anything unclear or off-putting in the deck?”
d. If Decks Get Shared Internally
- This is a great sign. Follow up! “I noticed others at your company checked out the deck—happy to answer any questions for the team.”
- If you see a new stakeholder open the deck, adjust your next pitch to their role (e.g., more financial details for a CFO).
5. Iterate: Test, Tweak, Repeat
Don’t treat your sales deck as sacred. Use what you see in the analytics to make small tweaks, send out new versions, and see what happens.
How to actually do this: - Change one thing at a time so you know what made the difference. - Test different subject lines, deck lengths, or order of sections. - Compare analytics: Did version B lead to longer reading times or more shares? - Save templates of decks that consistently perform well for new prospects.
Pro tip: Don’t just chase higher “time spent.” Sometimes, shorter decks close deals faster.
6. Get Your Team on Board (or at Least in the Loop)
Analytics only help if people use them. If you’re a solo seller, this is easy. If you’re on a team:
- Share wins: Show how spotting a drop-off led to a rewritten section and a closed deal.
- Keep it simple: Don’t ask reps to watch 10 metrics. Focus on 2-3 that drive real action.
- Avoid public shaming: Use analytics to coach, not to call people out. The goal is to learn, not to blame.
Stuff to avoid: - Forcing everyone to use analytics dashboards daily. Most folks won’t. Summarize the learnings and share in a quick Slack or email. - Turning every data point into a KPI. You’ll end up with “metric fatigue.”
7. Don’t Over-Engineer: What to Ignore
It’s tempting to obsess over every chart or try to automate workflows based on tiny changes. Resist that urge.
Skip: - Building custom dashboards for the sake of it. The built-in analytics usually cover what matters. - Tracking every click or scroll like it’s a science experiment. Focus on trends, not outliers. - Worrying about device types. Unless you notice a pattern (e.g., mobile users always drop off), don’t sweat it.
If the analytics aren’t helping you get more replies, meetings, or closed deals, ignore them.
8. Bonus: Using Analytics in Your Follow-Ups
Smart reps use analytics to make follow-ups less annoying and more personal.
Examples: - “Saw you spent a few minutes on the pricing page—happy to clarify anything or talk about options.” - “Looks like a couple folks on your team checked out the deck—should we set up a call for everyone?” - “Noticed you haven’t had a chance to open the deck yet—would a quick call be easier?”
Just don’t overdo it or come off as creepy. Use the data to be helpful, not invasive.
Keep It Simple—And Keep Going
You don’t need a PhD in analytics to benefit from Storydoc. Pick one goal, track a few key metrics, and tweak based on what you actually see. Most importantly, don’t get distracted by shiny graphs that don’t move the needle. Sales is about real conversations, not dashboards. Use analytics to make those conversations smarter—and then get back to selling.