If No One is Using Your Dashboard, It’s Not Their Fault—It’s Yours

Ever built a dashboard that no one actually looks at?

🚨 Here’s why that happens:
❌ It’s too complex to interpret
❌ It’s missing the insights decision-makers actually need
❌ It doesn’t answer real business questions

🚀 The best dashboards aren’t just “interactive.” They’re designed for action.

🧩 Scenario: The Dashboard That Looked Great—but Was Never Used

Context:
Elena, a Power BI developer at a global retail company, spent weeks designing a sleek, interactive dashboard to help executives track store performance across regions.

She used:

Slicers for every field
Drillthrough pages with deep details
Multiple visuals per page to show "everything"
Trendlines, KPIs, maps, charts—visually stunning!

The Problem:
A month after launch, usage metrics showed barely any views. When she followed up with executives, the responses were blunt:

“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to look at.”
“It’s too busy. I don’t have time to figure it out.”
“I still use the Excel summary from last year.”

Despite the dashboard’s beauty and functionality, it failed the most important test: usefulness.

💡 The Turning Point

Instead of defending her work, Elena took a step back and sat down with a few end users:

She asked what decisions they make daily, and what information helps them do it.
She stripped the dashboard down to the essentials—just 3 key KPIs on page one.
She added clear titles, short descriptions, and a “How to Use This” section.
She even changed the layout to follow the natural decision flow: performance → trends → next steps.

Result?
Adoption skyrocketed. Executives now use the dashboard in meetings and strategy sessions—and the original Excel report? Finally retired.

🧠 Key Lessons

A dashboard isn’t “done” when it’s published—it’s “done” when it’s used.
Clarity beats complexity.
The best dashboards don’t just display data—they help users take action.

💬 Question for You

Have you ever built a dashboard that looked amazing but got ignored?
What did you learn about designing for actual user needs?

🛠️ Tips to Make Dashboards People Actually Use

Start with the business questions.
If you can’t name what questions the dashboard answers, neither can your users.
Focus on decisions, not data.
Ask: “What action would someone take after viewing this?” If the answer is unclear, simplify or restructure.
Limit the noise.
Don’t try to show everything at once. Prioritize 3–5 key visuals per page and build drilldowns for details.
Make it intuitive.
Use clear labels, consistent formatting, tooltips, and simple navigation. Avoid overloading users with slicers and filters.
Design for non-technical users.
Assume someone with no data background will use it—how can you guide them through it?
Add contextual explanations.
Include short descriptions, titles that highlight the “so what,” and indicators that show performance status (e.g., arrows, colors, trendlines).
Avoid hiding insights in fancy visuals.
Choose the right visual for the message—sometimes a basic bar chart communicates better than a flashy donut.
Test it with real users before launch.
Sit with them, observe how they use it (or don’t), and adjust based on feedback.
Track usage and iterate.
Use Power BI usage metrics to see which pages and visuals are used most—and refine the rest.
Remember: a dashboard is a tool, not a poster.
If it’s not helping someone do their job better, it needs a redesign—not a justification.

Disclaimer: This post was put together with a little help from AI. While it's a great tool for drafting and brainstorming, AI can make mistakes—so always double-check the facts and don’t rely on it blindly.

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