If you’ve ever launched a marketing campaign and then stared blankly at a dashboard, wondering what any of it really means—this is for you. This guide is for marketers, founders, and teams who actually need honest answers about campaign performance, not vague “insights.” We’ll break down how to use the Theirstack analytics dashboard to track, analyze, and make sense of your campaign data—warts and all.
Let’s get practical.
Step 1: Set Up Tracking Before You Launch
You can’t measure what you never tracked in the first place. Here’s what you need to do before you even hit “publish” on a campaign.
- Define your actual goals. Are you after sales, signups, downloads, or just getting people to read your content? Be specific. If you don’t know what “success” means, the dashboard can’t help.
- Use UTM parameters. Tag every link in your campaign emails, ads, and social posts with UTMs. This is basic, but you’d be surprised how often people skip it and end up with mystery traffic.
- Check your integrations. Make sure Theirstack is pulling in data from your site, ad platforms, and email tool. If something’s not connected, you’ll get holes in your data that are impossible to fill later.
Pro tip: Don’t trust “default” tracking. Double-check that events (like signups or purchases) are firing and showing up in Theirstack before you start spending money or sending traffic.
Step 2: Get Oriented—What Does Theirstack Actually Show You?
Theirstack’s dashboard is full of charts, numbers, and widgets. Here’s what’s worth your time, and what you can probably ignore:
The Stuff That Matters
- Campaign Overview: This is your main scoreboard. It should show you basics like total traffic, conversions, and conversion rate for each campaign.
- Channel Breakdown: See where your traffic and conversions are really coming from (ads, email, organic, etc.).
- Funnel Analysis: Shows how many people dropped off at each step (e.g., landing page → signup → purchase). This is gold for spotting leaky spots.
- Attribution: Tells you what sources or campaigns are actually driving results, not just clicks.
The Stuff to Ignore (Most of the Time)
- Vanity Metrics: Impressions, generic “engagement,” or anything that doesn’t tie back to your goal. These look nice but rarely help you make a decision.
- Overly Granular Segments: The dashboard lets you slice by every demographic under the sun. Unless you need to know how left-handed 18-year-olds in Quebec performed, don’t get lost in the weeds.
Step 3: Track Performance in Real Time (But Don’t Obsess)
It’s tempting to refresh the dashboard every 15 minutes after launch. Here’s a saner approach:
- Check daily, not hourly. Real results take time to shake out. Hour-to-hour swings are often noise.
- Watch for early red flags. If you see zero conversions after a day, or traffic from a channel is way lower than expected, investigate. Otherwise, let things run.
- Set up alerts for true emergencies. Theirstack lets you set up notifications if metrics drop off a cliff. Use them, but don’t set alerts for every blip.
Pro tip: Most campaigns need at least a few days—sometimes weeks—to show their real colors. Don’t kill a campaign too early unless something’s truly broken.
Step 4: Dig Into the Data—Find Out What’s Actually Working
Now for the good stuff: making sense of what’s happening.
Start with the Big Picture
- Which campaigns are actually driving conversions? Focus on the ones with a clear, positive ROI. Theirstack should let you compare campaigns side-by-side.
- Which channels are pulling their weight? Maybe your Facebook ads are crushing it, but your email blast flopped. Don’t let wishful thinking cloud your judgment.
Funnel Drop-off—Where Are You Losing People?
- Open the funnel analysis tool. Look at each step: Landing page visits, signups, purchases (or whatever your flow is).
- Spot the leaks. If 90% of people bounce at step one, your landing page probably needs help. If they get to checkout but don’t buy, maybe pricing or trust is the issue.
Pro tip: Don’t try to fix everything at once. Start with the biggest leak.
Attribution—Who Gets Credit?
Attribution is messy. Theirstack will show you models like “first touch,” “last touch,” and maybe “multi-touch.” Here’s what matters:
- Look for patterns, not absolute truth. No model is perfect. If you see that paid search consistently shows up as the last touch, but email is always first, that tells you something useful.
- Ignore the “credit wars.” Don’t waste hours arguing over fractional percentages. Focus on the top drivers.
Step 5: Customize Your Dashboard to Avoid Data Overload
Theirstack lets you tweak what you see. Take advantage:
- Pin your key metrics. Make sure the stats that actually matter are front and center.
- Hide or mute the noise. If you never use certain widgets, remove them. Less clutter means faster decisions.
- Save views for different roles. If you’re sharing with execs, they probably just need topline numbers—not the nitty-gritty.
Pro tip: Simpler dashboards get used more. Don’t build a “reporting palace” you’ll never visit.
Step 6: Analyze, Adjust, and Iterate
This is where you get better over time:
- Run quick experiments. Change one thing at a time—headline, offer, audience. Watch how it moves the needle in Theirstack.
- Document your learnings. Jot down what worked and what didn’t, even if it feels obvious. Next time, you’ll thank yourself.
- Don’t chase every dip or spike. Sometimes performance wobbles for no good reason (seasonality, random luck, etc). Watch trends, not outliers.
What to skip: Don’t waste time on A/B tests with tiny sample sizes. If you don’t have enough traffic, focus on bigger changes instead.
Step 7: Report Results Without the Fluff
When it’s time to share what happened, keep it direct:
- Start with the goal. Did you hit it or not?
- Show what worked and what didn’t. Don’t sugarcoat. If a channel bombed, say so.
- Suggest next steps. Even if it’s just “let’s try a different offer” or “double down on what’s working.”
Skip the 30-slide decks. A screenshot of your Theirstack dashboard with a few notes is often enough.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Overthink It
Analytics tools like Theirstack are powerful, but they’re not magic. The basics—clear goals, careful tracking, and honest analysis—matter way more than any fancy feature. Keep your dashboard simple, focus on real results, and tweak things as you learn.
Most importantly: Don’t let the search for “perfect data” slow you down. Start, measure, adjust, and repeat. That’s how campaigns get better.
Good luck out there.