A standing review, not a glance
Read Your Testimonial Widget Analytics
The analytics dashboard gets opened twice: the week the widget goes live, and the day someone asks whether testimonials are worth the effort. Neither visit tells you much, because there is nothing to compare against and nobody wrote down what changed in between. Score how your team reviews the numbers today, then set up a short monthly session that ends with a decision instead of a screenshot.
- Seven habits that make dashboard numbers usable
- Banded advice on what to fix first
- A monthly review agenda your team can keep
The problem, solved
Why dashboard visits end with a shrug
The dashboard is only as useful as the habit around it. This page does not list which numbers the dashboard shows; open yours and note them in step one below.
Nobody opens the dashboard unless asked
Without a slot in the calendar, the numbers get read only when someone needs to defend or cut the budget.
With StoryProof: An analytics dashboard is included on every plan, so there is nothing to upgrade before you start. Book a recurring half hour and name an owner.
The numbers moved and nobody knows why
Somebody swapped the testimonials in the pricing widget three weeks ago and told no one, so the change looks like a mystery.
With StoryProof: You choose which approved testimonials each widget shows, so every change is a decision someone made. Write each one in a dated change log the review reads first.
We cannot tell which widget is which
Three widgets called "Homepage", "Homepage 2" and "Test" make any figure per widget hard to read.
With StoryProof: Each widget is placed by a div carrying its own widget id. Keep a short list of which id sits on which page, and rename widgets after the job they do.
The Wall of Love never gets reviewed
The hosted page is linked from emails and the footer, yet it is left out of every discussion of what works.
With StoryProof: Every plan includes a Wall of Love with its own link. Put it on the review agenda next to the widgets, and check your own site analytics for visits to it.
The meeting ends with no change
Everyone agrees the numbers are interesting and nothing is different next month.
With StoryProof: Tag testimonials you want to try next as they are approved. Tags are on every plan, so the action from a review is a quick swap from a ready shortlist.
Flip the switch to see how StoryProof handles each one.
Scorecard
How well does your team read its widget analytics?
Answer for the last three months. Yes scores 2, partly 1, no 0.
Scored in your browser. Nothing is sent or saved.
A dashboard visit and a dashboard review
Ad hoc look
- Opened after a question from leadership
- Compared with whatever the number was at launch
- No record of who changed which widget
- Ends with "looks fine"
Monthly review
- Opened on the first Tuesday by its owner
- Compared with last month and the same month last year
- Starts by reading the change log
- Ends with one change, an owner and a date
In StoryProof
Set up the monthly review
- You will need
- Widgets live on your site
- Access to the StoryProof analytics dashboard
- Access to your own site analytics
- 1
List what the dashboard reports
Open the analytics dashboard and write down each figure it shows for your widgets and collection, so the team agrees on what is being read.
- 2
Map widgets to pages
For every widget id in your embed code, note the page it sits on and its purpose. Include the Wall of Love link and where it is shared.
- 3
Start the change log
Record every selection change, layout swap and new placement with a date. Read it at the start of each review.
- 4
Run the thirty minutes
Change log first, then this month against the comparison periods, then page traffic for context, then one decision.
- 5
Prepare the next change
Tag candidate testimonials as they are approved, so the decision from the review is a swap from a shortlist.
What happens next: After three reviews, look back at the log: which changes were followed by a lasting difference, and which were noise.
Before you start
What a monthly review will not tell you
Movement is not cause
A figure that rose after a change may have risen anyway. If one decision matters, run a proper test instead of reading the trend.
Revenue is outside the dashboard
Sales and sign ups live in your own analytics and CRM. This page does not claim the StoryProof dashboard reports them.
Small pages give jumpy numbers
On a page with little traffic, one busy day can swing a month. Compare over longer periods there.
The figures available may change
This routine does not depend on a particular metric. If the dashboard adds or changes what it shows, update the list from step one.
FAQ
Questions people ask
Short answers to what usually comes up next.
What does the StoryProof analytics dashboard show?
An analytics dashboard is included on every plan. This page does not list its figures; open it and write down what it reports for your widgets and collection as the first step of the routine.
How often should we review widget analytics?
Monthly suits most sites. Weekly reviews on low traffic pages mostly show noise, and quarterly ones let unlogged changes pile up.
Who should be in the review?
The owner, one person who can edit the site or the widget selection, and, when there is a decision about a sales page, someone from sales.
Is this the same as A/B testing testimonials?
No. A test isolates one change to learn whether it worked. The monthly review watches everything over time and decides what to change or test next.
Still have a question? Ask the StoryProof team or book a demo.
Put your widget numbers on a schedule
The analytics dashboard comes with every plan. Add a monthly review and a change log, and it starts answering questions.
Last updated 2026-11-13.