How to read the WhatsClicks dashboard
The WhatsClicks click dashboard packs a lot of information into the Summary tab, and it is normal not to know where to begin. This guide explains each block in the order it appears and tells you what to look at first.
Where is the Summary and how do you choose the period?
After logging in to your account, click the Summary tab, next to Links, Account, Plans and Help. That is where all the numbers of the click dashboard live.
The first step is to choose the period. The options are Today, Yesterday, last 7 days, 30 days, 90 days, 12 months, 2 years and 3 years. You can also filter by link, to see only the clicks of one of them, or leave all of them together.
A tip: for day-to-day use, pick 7 days. To understand your audience's behavior, use 30 or 90 days, because short periods swing a lot from one day to the next.
What do the numbers at the top mean?
At the top of the Summary you find the main numbers for the chosen period. They answer basic questions.
Clicks is the total number of times the button was clicked. Unique visitors counts different people, not clicks. If one person clicked three times, that is three clicks but one unique visitor. Next to it, the dashboard compares with the previous period in percent: a green arrow up when it grew, a red arrow down when it shrank.
- Today / Yesterday card: quickly shows how today is going compared with the day before.
- Returning visitors: people who clicked more than once.
- Device: how many clicks came from phone, tablet and computer.
- Average per day: the normal pace of clicks in the period.
The numbers are examples of how to read, not targets. A small site can have few clicks per day and that is completely normal.
How do you use the highlights in plain sentences?
Right below, the dashboard writes a few findings in short sentences, so you do not have to interpret charts. The highlights point out the best hour, the best day of the week, the most clicked page and the most clicked button.
Read these sentences as clues. If the highlight says the best hour is 8 pm, check whether you can reply quickly at that time. If it says one particular button leads, think about why it works better. The most clicked page and most clicked button only appear in detail if you tagged the page and button in the link.
What do the hour and day-of-week charts show?
The Click times block shows bars by hour of the day. The stronger the color of the bar, the more clicks at that hour. That way you quickly see when people reach out on WhatsApp.
The Clicks by day of the week block shows Monday to Sunday. A happy face marks the best day, and a sad face marks the weakest. There is also the heatmap, which crosses day of the week with hour and shows the hottest spots. Another article on the blog teaches how to use the heatmap in detail.
Below that you find the chart of clicks per day, a timeline to see peaks and dips across the period.
How do you read the By link, By page, Where clicks came from and By button tables?
The tables split the total into parts. Each has Today and Yesterday columns, so you can see recent movement.
- By link: shows how much each WhatsClicks link received. Useful if you use different links for different campaigns.
- By page: shows which pages of the site the clicks happened on. It depends on the ?p= tag in the link.
- Where clicks came from: shows the domain of the site where the button was, only the domain. It tells you, for example, whether the click came from your site or from another place where you put the link.
- By button: shows each button tagged with &src=, such as top, footer or floating.
Device, browser, system and alerts
Further down, the dashboard shows device, browser and system. Note that this information exists only for new clicks, meaning those recorded after the feature became available. Older clicks may appear without this detail.
At the top of the dashboard, alerts may appear. Two examples: a link with no clicks for 24 hours and an unusual spike in clicks. A link with no clicks may mean the button went offline or the link was changed on the site. An unusual spike may mean a promotion worked, or that it is worth checking whether something odd happened.
When you need to take the numbers to a meeting, use the report to print or save as PDF, or export the data as CSV to open in a spreadsheet.
What the Summary does not show
The Summary counts clicks on the WhatsApp button. It does not show who clicked, it does not know how many chats turned into sales and it does not measure visitors who saw the page and did not click. It does not replace a CRM either. Use the numbers to understand interest and the timing of contact, and follow your sales through your own records.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between clicks and unique visitors?
Clicks count every time the button was clicked. Unique visitors count different people, identified by an anonymous code. A person who clicks twice generates two clicks and one unique visitor.
What do the green or red arrow and the percentage mean?
It is the comparison with the previous period. A green arrow up means more clicks; a red arrow down means fewer clicks.
Why are some tables empty?
Because they depend on tags in the link. To see data by page and by button, use ?p= and &src= in the address.
Can I use the dashboard on my phone?
Yes. The dashboard works in the browser and can also be installed as an app on your phone and computer.