Getting started creating dashboards

In Explore, a dashboard is a customizable space to share information with your Zendesk Support users. Dashboards enable you to better analyze and organize your data with features like arranging your dashboard into tabs to organize your reports more efficiently, adding filters, text, and more.

This article contains the following sections:

• Creating a new dashboard
• Adding widgets to your dashboard
• Customizing your dashboard
• Next steps

Creating a new dashboard

There are two different ways you can create a new dashboard in Explore:

• Creating a new dashboard by adding a query
• Create an empty dashboard from the Dashboards library

For detailed information, see Creating dashboards.

Creating a new dashboard by adding a query

If your workflow is based on building queries first then designing your dashboard around them, you can create a new dashboard direct from a query. When you save a query, select Save as new to Dashboard, then a new dashboard. After you see the save confirmation message in the upper right corner, you can find your dashboard in the Dashboards library. See Creating a dashboard from Query Builder.

Example: Create a new dashboard from the Query Builder

1. Open an existing query in Query Builder.
2. In Query Builder, click Save > Add to Dashboard.
3. Select a new dashboard, then enter the name for your new dashboard.
4. Click Save.

A confirmation message is displayed in the upper right corner. You can find your dashboard in the Dashboards library.

Creating an empty dashboard from the Dashboards library

An alternative workflow you can use is to create a new, empty dashboard from the Dashboards library. This can be useful if you have several queries you've already created and saved. After you create a new, empty dashboard you can start adding queries and other widgets to it.

Example: Create a new dashboard from the Dashboards library

1. Click the Dashboards library icon ().
2. Click the New dashboard button.

You are automatically be redirected to Dashboard Builder. The dashboard will be added to the Dashboards library. You can now add queries and customize your dashboard.

Adding widgets to your dashboard

After you create a dashboard, you can add queries, filters, text, and other objects to it. Anything you add to your dashboard is referred to as a widget. Widgets enable you to build unique dashboards and give your agents the flexibility to analyze data exactly how they need. For more information on widgets, see Adding and arranging dashboard widgets.

There are two types of widgets you can add static and interactive:

• Static widgets will not affect query results or how users interact with your dashboard. Static widgets include images, text, shapes, queries, and tabs. Tabs are useful for dividing your dashboard into separate categories while containing everything in one query. See Adding and arranging dashboard widgets.

  

• Interactive widgets enable your viewers to change what query results to view and how to view them. With interactive widgets, viewers can filter query results, change metrics and attributes, and edit the date range they're viewing. See Adding interactive dashboard widgets.

  

For more information on adding and editing interactive widgets, see Adding and arranging dashboard widgets.

Customizing your dashboard

After you add widgets, you can begin to customize your dashboard. This section will provide an overview of the different options you can use for customizing your dashboard. For more detailed information, see Customizing dashboards. For information about navigating Dashboard Builder, see Introduction to Dashboard Builder.

This section contains the following topics:

• About customization menus
• Example: Customize a widget

About customization menus

All of your dashboard customizations settings are shown in the following customization menus on the top toolbar of Dashboard Builder.

• Dashboard menu includes overall dashboard formatting options, as well as dashboard actions you can perform. See Dashboard customizing menu.

  

• Tab options edit interactions, widget, and export settings for each individual tab. You can also change the tab background color and font. See Customizing tabs.

  

• Dashboard title edit the dashboard title size, text color, and background color. You can also use the Add image option to add an image to your dashboard. See Dashboard title customization.

  

• Widget options edit the header size, border color, border and header visibility, border edges, and widget positions. This menu will only appear when you select a widget. See Customizing widgets.

  

• Widget header: edit the header text color, size, formatting, position, and header fill color. This menu will only appear when you select a widget. See Customizing widgets.

  

If you add a text widget to your dashboard, you can customize the text formatting. See Customizing text.

Example: Customize a widget

This try it yourself will walk you through the steps of customizing a widget. Not all customization options will be used in this example. At the end of this example, the customized widget will resemble the image below:

Example: Customize a widget

1. Open your dashboard in Dashboard Builder.
2. Click on your widget.
3. On the top toolbar, click the Widget options menu to customize the widget.
4. Click the Rounded edges icon to round the border's edges. The customized widget selects 20 as a rounded edge.

   

5. Click the Widget header menu to customize the header.
6. Click the left justification icon to position the text to the left.
7. Click the Widget header fill color to change the color of the header.

   

Next steps

• Getting started sharing dashboards