If you’re in sales ops or a sales manager, you know the pain: endless dashboards, none quite right, half the team confused, and everyone’s drowning in numbers that don’t move the needle. If you’re using Rb2b and want dashboards that actually tell you how you’re doing (and help you get better), this is for you. No fluff, no feature tour — just a guide on building dashboards that give you real answers.
1. Get Clear on What You (Really) Need to Track
Before you touch a single button, back up. The fastest way to waste hours in Rb2b is building dashboards around data that doesn’t matter.
Ask yourself: - What are the actual questions you need answered? (E.g., “Are we on track for quota?” “Which reps are lagging?”) - Who is this dashboard for? (You? Execs? The team?) - What decisions will people make from this dashboard?
Pro tip:
Ignore the urge to track everything. More charts = more confusion. Focus on 3–5 metrics that drive action. For sales, that’s usually:
- Pipeline value
- Closed deals (per rep, per team)
- Win rates
- Sales cycle length
- Activity metrics (calls, emails, demos) — only if you actually use them to coach or forecast
2. Map Your Data Sources and Clean Up
Rb2b is only as good as your data. If your CRM is full of garbage, your dashboards won’t magically fix it.
- Audit your data: Are deal stages, owners, and values up to date? Are reps logging activities the same way?
- Agree on definitions: What counts as an “opportunity”? What’s a “won” deal? If everyone uses different terms, your dashboard will be meaningless.
- Connect your sources: Rb2b pulls data from your CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.). Make sure the integration is live and syncing correctly.
What to skip:
Don’t connect every third-party tool just because you can. More integrations mean more chances for things to break.
3. Set Up Your First Custom Dashboard in Rb2b
Let’s get into the nuts and bolts.
a. Navigate to Dashboards
- Open Rb2b and go to the main menu.
- Click on “Dashboards.”
- Hit “Create New Dashboard” (the button’s usually top right).
b. Choose a Template (or Start Blank)
Rb2b offers a few templates for sales dashboards. These are fine for inspiration, but don’t just copy them — they’re usually too generic. If you know exactly what you want, start with a blank dashboard.
c. Add Widgets for Key Metrics
Widgets are the building blocks. Here’s what actually works:
- KPI Widgets: For simple numbers (e.g., “Total pipeline this quarter”)
- Bar/Column Charts: For comparing reps or teams
- Line Charts: For trends over time (e.g., “Deals closed by month”)
- Funnel Visuals: For seeing drop-off at each stage
How to add a widget: 1. Click “Add Widget.” 2. Pick the type (KPI, bar chart, etc.). 3. Choose your data source (e.g., “Opportunities” from Salesforce). 4. Set up filters — date ranges, owners, stages. 5. Name your widget something obvious. Avoid initials or jargon.
Pro tip:
Limit each dashboard to ONE main focus. For example: “Team Performance Q2.” Mixing goals (like activity metrics plus pipeline plus forecasting) just muddies the water.
d. Arrange and Resize
Drag widgets around to prioritize what matters. Rb2b lets you resize — make the most important stuff big and top-center. Hide or shrink the rest.
What doesn’t work:
Dashboards crammed like a spreadsheet. White space is your friend.
4. Fine-Tune Filters and Sharing
You want your dashboards to answer different questions for different people.
- Global filters: Add filters at the dashboard level (e.g., by team, by date).
- Personal views: Rb2b lets users save personal filter settings. Encourage your reps to do this — otherwise, everyone’s looking at the same (often irrelevant) numbers.
- Sharing: Share dashboards via link or inside Rb2b. Set permissions so only the right people can edit.
Pro tip:
Don’t email static screenshots. They’re out of date in hours. Use live links or embed dashboards in your team’s wiki or CRM homepage.
5. Avoid the Common Pitfalls
Here’s what trips up most teams:
- Vanity metrics: Just because you can make a chart for “calls made” or “emails sent” doesn’t mean you should. If you don’t act on it, drop it.
- Too many dashboards: One for every scenario sounds nice, but people stop checking them. Aim for one “team” dashboard, one for managers, and (if you must) a personal dashboard for each rep.
- Neglecting maintenance: Data changes, teams change. Set a calendar reminder to review your dashboards each quarter. Otherwise, you’ll end up with zombie charts that make no sense.
What to ignore:
Rb2b’s “inspirational” gallery of dashboards from other industries. Real-world sales teams need clarity, not a pretty but meaningless wall of graphs.
6. Iterate, Test, and Get Feedback
Don’t expect your first dashboard to be perfect. The real test is whether people actually use it to make decisions.
- Ask your team: “What’s missing? What’s confusing?”
- Watch how people use the dashboard in meetings. If they’re ignoring half the widgets, delete them.
- Update metrics when goals or processes change.
Pro tip:
Screenshot your dashboard every quarter before making big changes. It’s a handy record of what you used to track — and sometimes helps spot trends you’d miss.
7. Useful Extras (But Don’t Overdo It)
If you’ve nailed the basics, Rb2b has a few extras that can help:
- Alerts: Set up notifications for when key metrics hit (or miss) targets. But don’t overdo it — alert fatigue is real.
- Goal tracking: Tie widgets to team or individual goals, so it’s obvious who’s on pace.
- Drill-downs: Some widgets let you click for details (e.g., see all deals behind a number). Use this to avoid cluttering your main dashboard.
What to skip:
Advanced “AI Insights” features. These sound cool but are usually black boxes, and rarely tell you anything you can’t see from a well-made trend chart.
That’s it. Don’t let dashboards turn into another busywork project. Start with what matters, keep it simple, and tweak as you go. You’ll spend less time fiddling and more time actually improving sales performance — which, after all, is the point.