If you’ve ever opened a reporting dashboard and thought, “So what?”—you’re not alone. Most dashboards are long on shiny charts and short on real answers. This guide is for people who want to actually use their data. If you’re new to Pick or you’ve been handed another “default dashboard” that isn’t telling you anything useful, let's fix that.
Here’s how to turn Pick dashboards into tools that actually help you make decisions.
Why Default Dashboards Usually Miss the Mark
Let’s get this out of the way: default dashboards are built for everyone, which means they’re built for no one. They’re generic. You might see KPIs that sound important, but if you don’t know how a chart helps you—or what you’re supposed to do with the info—you’ll stop checking it pretty quickly.
Customizing your dashboard isn’t about making it prettier. It’s about making it useful and, honestly, about making your job easier.
Step 1: Get Clear on What “Actionable” Means for You
Before you start dragging widgets around, ask yourself: What do I actually need to know to do my job better?
Don’t worry about what your boss, the board, or some best-practice blog says you “should” track. Start with your real priorities.
Examples:
- Are you trying to spot bottlenecks in your sales pipeline?
- Do you need to see which marketing campaigns are driving signups this week?
- Are you keeping an eye on churn so you can step in before it spikes?
Write down 2–3 questions you want your dashboard to answer. If you can’t phrase it as a question, it’ll probably end up as noise.
Pro Tip:
If you can’t imagine changing your behavior based on what a chart shows, leave it off your dashboard. You can always dig deeper in reports later.
Step 2: Audit Your Existing Dashboard (Or Start With a Blank Slate)
Open your current Pick dashboard. Be honest—how much of it is stuff you never look at? How much is there because “that’s just how it came”?
- Remove or hide widgets that don’t answer your key questions.
- Move the most important metrics to the top. If you have to scroll to see what matters, you’ll forget about it.
- Don’t be afraid of white space. Clutter kills clarity.
If you’re starting from scratch, good. You can build only what you need.
Step 3: Add Widgets That Actually Matter
Now, let’s add (or re-add) widgets that answer your specific questions. Pick offers a bunch of widget types—charts, tables, number cards, and more. Don’t get lost in the options. Simpler is better.
How to add widgets in Pick:
- Click the “Edit Dashboard” button (usually a pencil icon).
- Hit “Add Widget.”
- Choose your data source (e.g., Sales, Marketing, Product Usage).
- Pick the widget type:
- Scorecard/Number: Good for quick-glance metrics (like MRR, conversion rate).
- Line or Bar Chart: Helpful for trends over time (revenue growth, tickets closed).
- Table: Useful if you need to see a ranked list (top customers, latest signups).
- Set your filters. Don’t just pull in everything—narrow it to the segment, time frame, or data slice that actually matters.
What works: - Showing progress toward a goal (e.g., “New users this month—goal: 500”). - Comparing this period to last (e.g., “Churn rate: up or down?”). - Surfacing outliers or exceptions (e.g., “Accounts with no activity in 30 days”).
What doesn’t: - Pie charts. They’re almost never helpful. - Vanity metrics (like total logins, unless you’re tracking outages). - Widgets just to fill space.
Step 4: Tweak Visuals for Clarity, Not Flash
It’s tempting to pick a fancy chart just because it looks cool. Resist that urge.
- Stick to line and bar charts for trends. Everyone knows how to read these.
- Use number cards for at-a-glance figures.
- Too much color is distracting. Use color for emphasis only (e.g., red for “needs attention”).
- Label everything clearly—no jargon, no abbreviations unless your whole team knows them.
Pro Tip:
If someone needs to ask “What is this showing?” then your widget needs a clearer title or description.
Step 5: Set Up Alerts (But Only for Real Emergencies)
Pick lets you set up alerts for certain widgets or thresholds. This can be great…or it can turn into notification overload.
- Set alerts only for things you need to act on immediately. Examples: “Churn rate spikes above 5%,” “No sales recorded for 2 days.”
- Don’t set alerts for slow-moving metrics. You’ll just start ignoring them.
- Review your alert settings every couple months—what felt urgent last quarter might be irrelevant now.
Step 6: Share and Get Feedback (But Don’t Design by Committee)
Once you’ve got a dashboard that makes sense to you, share it with your team or stakeholders who’ll actually use it.
- Ask: “Is anything missing that you’d use to make decisions?”
- Ignore requests for “just one more chart” unless it’s truly actionable.
- Remember, a dashboard is not a data dump. It’s a decision tool.
Pro Tip:
If you get requests for more and more widgets, ask why they want them. If the answer is “just in case,” it probably doesn’t belong.
Step 7: Revisit and Refine
No dashboard is perfect forever. Check in every month or so:
- Are you still using all the widgets?
- Have your priorities changed?
- Are you actually acting on the info you see?
Trim ruthlessly. Add only when it’s clear there’s a gap.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
- Reporting for reporting’s sake: If nobody reads it, it’s not worth tracking.
- Too much detail: If you want details, drill down. The dashboard is for quick answers.
- Chasing trends: Don’t add widgets just because they’re new or popular.
- Ignoring context: A number with no comparison (to target, last period, etc.) doesn’t help.
Keep It Useful, Keep It Simple
Customizing dashboards in Pick isn’t rocket science, but it does take some discipline. Focus on what you really need to see. Start small, keep it clean, and don’t be afraid to say no to clutter.
Dashboards should help you make better decisions, not just prettier spreadsheets. Iterate as your needs change, and remember: if it can’t help you take action, it probably doesn’t belong on your dashboard.