If your business has remote employees, you must optimize all tools and instruments for mobile use. The same is relevant to when your employees (or some of them) have hybrid schedules. The thing is that in 2024, you can’t expect people to stay in front of their PCs 8 hours in a row. If you want them to be effective in completing YOUR tasks, you need to ensure they can be completed on the go, using a smartphone.
What Is a Mobile Dashboard Exactly?
Now, why is it so important that a dashboard is mobile-optimized? The thing here is that a dashboard provides a quick and easy way to view key performance indicators (KPIs), metrics, and other critical data. It’s the kind of data you want all users to be able to monitor and analyze on the go.
Let’s say you are a sales manager who needs to keep track of daily sales performance. You can use a desktop version of the dashboard. In that case, you will monitor the key metrics when you are next to your laptop only. Or, you can use a mobile dashboard. And if so, all the metrics will be accessible from your smartphone whenever you need them. It’s just another level of monitoring. Of course, your tool must have a good dashboard mobile UI design to be useful but more on that later.
What’s So Important About Mobile Dashboard Design?
Design matters in every app and mobile app dashboard design is no exception here. The key point is that your app will be used by someone and, hopefully, will let them complete particular tasks. For that to happen, the potential user must
- want to use the app
- understand how to use it
- be happy about the results.
All three conditions depend on the mobile app dashboard UI design. This is why it is usually safer and generally more productive to use dashboards templates instead of designing the tool from scratch. Such templates take into account some basic aspects such as
- user experience
- efficiency
- accessibility.
You, in turn, mainly focus on customizing different elements.
Benefits of Mobile Dashboards
You can find lots of mobile dashboard examples online. You may have seen them at work already. What brings them together is that notwithstanding their core focus, as a rule, they all are designed around four main tasks.
- To provide real-time data access
The raison d’etre for mobile dashboards is to provide real-time access to critical data. The type of data will differ but the aim is the same — to enable quick decisions and immediate action. This is especially valuable for professionals who are frequently on the move but not only for them. In fact, all employees would appreciate an opportunity to access data with their smartphones.
- Increased Productivity
This one is largely interrelated with the previous point. That is, with essential information readily available, users can quickly
- address issues
- respond to opportunities
- prevent problems.
More than that, they don’t spend time on sharing data.
- Enhanced Collaboration
If a tool has a good mobile dashboard UI design, it will always help employees communicate. The most obvious thing here is that they don’t spend time updating each other on this and that. They see the same data at the same moment.
- Improved Data-Driven Decisions
And finally, this one is built upon the previous three benefits. The data that is relevant, fresh, and exchanged immediately is a strong basis for decision-making. In fact, it’s what drives competition today in all spheres.
Best Design Principles for Mobile Dashboards
As we’ve already mentioned, if you want a tool with a good mobile dashboard UX/UI design, it’s best to use adaptable dashboard kits and templates because they save you from many mistakes. And then, when working with them, you should keep a few fundamental principles in mind.
Prioritize Essential Information
Always focus on displaying the most critical data first. Don’t clutter the dashboard with too much information (even if it seems to you that all of it is useful and essential). Use hierarchy and visual cues to highlight key metrics and insights.
Tip: Use a combination of charts, graphs, and numbers to present data clearly. For instance, a bar chart is the best format for presenting sales performance.
Make It Responsive
Design your dashboard to be responsive. Okay, that may sound a bit too general. The point is to make it look good and function well on various mobile devices. Ideally, users with different smartphones should have the same user experience with your mobile dashboard.
Tip: Use flexible grid layouts and scalable vector graphics (SVGs) so that your dashboard adapts smoothly to different screen sizes.
Use Intuitive Navigation
Remember — people are reluctant to use anything they don’t understand. What does this mean for you? Use clear labels, icons, and logical grouping of related data. Ask people to test it and see what they find difficult.
Tip: Implement a simple menu or tab system so that users switch between different views or data sets quickly.
Maintain Visual Consistency
That may sound a bit doubtful but consistency is better than beauty in design. This is because beauty is subjective. Consistency, in turn, is measurable. Plus, consistency is essential to make your dashboard look professional. That is, you should, at least, use a cohesive
- color scheme
- typography
- and layout.
Tip: You can use contrasting colors for different data sets but don’t use too many of those as it can be distracting.
Optimize for Performance
Ensure that your dashboard loads quickly because a slow-loading tool is the most surefire way to frustrate users. They must enjoy working with it, remember?
Tip: Optimize data queries and use caching to improve load times. Regularly test the dashboard on different devices.
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All in all, a well-designed mobile dashboard is something ALL employees will love. That’s because people love convenience. They love to be able to do things on the go. They love to save time on tasks. And they can get all of that with a good mobile dashboard. You now know what this “good” actually means.