There are some metrics that can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of a dashboard:
5 seconds test answers
The 5 second test is a simple test. Place the dashboard in front of a user for 5 seconds, then remove the dashboard. After that, ask them a few questions about what they have seen.
some questions that could be asked:
- What do you remember from the dashboard? (Rate what is most noticeable or memorable)
- Which metric has developed poorly? (Make sure negative power is easily detected)
- Where do you think where information about the traffic source could be found on the screen? (Rate information fragrance)
Time to look
This is a variation of the typical Task completion time, Always display the dashboard to a user and ask them to find specific insights from the data in the dashboard.
With the sample image, you might ask, "What are your two top traffic channels?" and "What are your two traffic channels with the worst performance?". After the question, just ask the answer.
Your metric would be the time to get an answer and if the answer is accurate.
Notice The time in isolation does not mean much. It will be nervous to be watched and put on the spot, and the environment will be simulated (a lab room is different from a noisy booth or a crowded cafe). To use this metric effectively, you will need a sample of multiple participants and a comparable metric. The comparable metric can come from a previous design or dashboard of a competitor.
Compare records
The unique value that a dashboard offers over a single chart is the ability to compare different records so that a user can see the environment or domain that represents the data.
In a one-to-one meeting, you could ask a user what conclusions he draws from the data. The goal would be to hear insights that show the evaluation of various graphics in the dashboard. For example, "I see traffic has grown in the last 3 weeks, but bounce rates have also increased, it seems we attract the wrong visitors."
Click Count Drilldown Links
Many dashboards provide high-level trends, aggregated insights, or category performance specifics. Because of the snapshot of the information provided, many dashboard visualizations have links that lead to complete reports.
A look at the number of clicks and clicks per unique visitor on each drilldown shows whether the visualizations in the dashboard will help users get more information.
Notice If the dashboard is live (not a model or prototype), the underlying data has an impact on it. Eventless data does not cause the user to drill down (and rightly so).
Child target of (dashboard) UX metrics
In the end, UX metrics focus on whether a user could achieve their goals quickly, effectively, and miraculously. Any metric used to evaluate a dashboard would focus on focus when the dashboard quickly provides insight into the underlying data sets. It would also focus on improving the lessons learned through the different datasets; essentially the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,