If you work in sales or manage a team, you know the pressure to hit targets—and the headache of endless spreadsheets. You want the numbers that matter, not a data avalanche. This guide is for people who want to track real sales performance (not vanity stats) using dashboards in Everstage. Whether you’re new to Everstage or just need to cut through the “feature” noise, here’s a no-nonsense way to get what you need, fast.
Why Dashboards Matter (and What to Ignore)
Dashboards can be useful… if you set them up right. The idea is simple: see what’s working, spot what isn’t, and make adjustments before the end of the quarter. But it’s easy to drown in charts and numbers that don’t help.
What actually matters: - Metrics tied to revenue, pipeline, and activity quality. - Trends—are things moving up, down, or stuck? - Clear, simple visuals. No one wants to squint at a spaghetti chart.
What to skip: - Vanity metrics (total emails sent, meetings booked, etc.) unless they tie back to actual deals. - Overly complex widgets. If you don’t get it at a glance, your team won’t either.
Step 1: Define the Sales Metrics That Actually Matter
Before you even touch Everstage, get clear on what you want to track. Don’t let the tool dictate your process.
Start simple. Most teams care about: - Quota attainment: How close is each rep (or the team) to hitting their number? - Pipeline coverage: Do you have enough in the funnel to hit future targets? - Win rate: Out of all the deals you touch, how many close? - Sales velocity: How quickly do deals move through the pipeline? - Average deal size: Are you chasing big fish or small fry?
Pro tip: If you can’t explain to a new hire why a metric matters, ditch it for now.
Step 2: Get Your Data Right (Don’t Skip This)
Everstage isn’t magic—it’s only as good as your inputs. Garbage in, garbage out.
Check: - Is your CRM up to date? (No, really. Go look.) - Are fields like “deal stage,” “amount,” and “close date” filled in? - Are you tracking activities (calls, meetings) in a consistent way?
Honest take: If your data’s a mess, fix that before you build dashboards. Otherwise, you’ll waste time staring at pretty charts that mean nothing.
Step 3: Connect Your Data Sources to Everstage
Assuming you’ve got Everstage set up for your org, you’ll want to connect your CRM and any other relevant sources.
- Most teams sync with Salesforce, HubSpot, or similar. Everstage supports these.
- Follow the in-app steps to connect securely. Usually, it's a few clicks. Double-check permissions—no one likes a surprise data leak.
- If you’re stuck, Everstage’s support is solid, but don’t be afraid to ping your ops person for help.
Heads up: Custom fields or non-standard CRMs can get messy. Test your connection with a small dataset before rolling it out to everyone.
Step 4: Build Your First Dashboard
Now for the fun part. Log into Everstage and head to the Dashboards area.
4.1 Choose a Dashboard Template (or Start Blank)
- Everstage offers some pre-built templates for sales performance, pipeline, and comp tracking.
- If you’re new, start with a template. You can tweak it later.
- If you know exactly what you want, go blank and build from scratch.
4.2 Add Key Metrics
Drag in widgets (Everstage calls them “cards” or “tiles”—same thing). Focus on the must-haves from Step 1:
- Quota attainment (by rep, team, or region)
- Pipeline health (coverage ratio, open vs. closed)
- Win rate trends over time
- Sales cycle length
- Average deal size
Tip: Less is more. Aim for 5-7 key metrics per dashboard. You can always add more later, but clutter is the enemy.
4.3 Customize Visuals
- Use bar or line charts for trends, not pie charts (they’re hard to read—seriously).
- Group data logically (e.g., by team, territory, or time period).
- Color code, but don’t go overboard. Red for “uh-oh,” green for “good”—keep it intuitive.
4.4 Set Filters and Segments
- Add filters so users can slice by rep, time period, or deal type.
- Segments help you compare performance across teams or products.
Step 5: Automate Delivery and Sharing
A dashboard isn’t useful if no one sees it.
- Schedule automated email reports: Everstage lets you push dashboards to inboxes daily, weekly, or monthly.
- Share links: Give your team a direct link with the right permissions—no need to manually export PDFs.
- Embed in other tools: If you use Slack, Teams, or an intranet, see if you can embed live dashboards.
Reality check: Don’t bombard everyone with daily dashboards. Weekly is plenty for most teams. Executives may want monthly rollups.
Step 6: Review, Iterate, and Actually Use the Data
- Meet with your team and look at the dashboard together. Ask: does this help us make decisions, or just look busy?
- Drop metrics that no one cares about. Add new ones if you spot blind spots.
- Adjust filters or visuals if people are confused.
Don’t: - Ignore the dashboard until QBRs. - Let it get stale—outdated data kills trust.
Do: - Use the dashboard to drive real conversations. - Encourage reps to track their own performance.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and Common Pitfalls
What works: - Simple dashboards focused on outcomes (not busywork) - Consistent data hygiene—regularly check your CRM - Sharing dashboards so the whole team can see where they stand
What doesn’t: - Overly complex setups (no one will use them) - Tracking everything “just in case”—it’s distracting - Ignoring feedback from actual users (reps know when a metric is useless)
Pitfalls to avoid: - Building dashboards for leadership only—reps need visibility too - Forgetting to update dashboards as your sales process changes - Relying on one “all-in-one” dashboard—sometimes it’s better to have a few, each with a clear purpose
A Few Final Tips
- Start small, launch fast, and iterate. You’ll never get it perfect out of the gate.
- Make sure everyone knows how to read the dashboard—do a quick walkthrough.
- Be skeptical of any metric that looks good but doesn’t tie to revenue or pipeline.
At the end of the day, the best dashboards help you spot problems and wins early. Keep it simple, check your data, and don’t be afraid to tweak as you go. The goal isn’t a “perfect” dashboard—it’s one that helps your team hit their number, quarter after quarter.