# Deck Analytics — grounding **Type:** Shared grounding for this folder — reference, **not** source of truth · **Owner:** Mudita · **Updated:** 22 Jul 2026 Engagement analytics for **any shared deck, on any channel**. Analytics is the engine; the [Deal Room](../deal-room/grounding.html) is one consumer of it. This doc owns the tracked-link + identity + event-capture + dashboard layer. --- ## Who is this for? Relevant to **three roles**, all *after* a deck exists and *when the user signals intent to share* (the Share button). Not part of the create flow. | Role | What they share | What analytics gives them | |---|---|---| | **Sales** | proposals / decks to prospects (deal room, cold email, follow-up) | who engaged, forwarding, which slides — time follow-ups, gauge deal health | | **Marketing** | published / broadcast decks (social, campaigns, embeds, newsletters) | reach, source, geo, completion — what content lands | | **Leadership** | (portfolio view) team + content performance | which decks / teams perform — the roll-up (mostly Phase 2) | | *Founders (adjacent)* | investor decks / fundraising sends | who opened, forwarded to partners, dwell on traction — fundraising signal | **When it's relevant:** ``` CREATE FLOW → deck exists → user hits SHARE ←── the signal that turns analytics on (not here) │ └─ a tracked link is born → analytics starts ``` --- ## Who are the incumbents? **DocSend** (Dropbox) is the canonical reference. **Pitch** ships share-link analytics on presentations. **Papermark** (open-source DocSend). Every DSR (Trumpet, Aligned) bundles engagement tracking too. ## What are they doing? - **Tracked links** — a shareable link per doc/deck instead of an attachment. - **Page/slide-level analytics** — time per page, drop-off, completion. - **Per-viewer identity** (opt-in) — require email; see who viewed. - **Forwarding signal** — a new viewer/domain = the deck traveled. - **Link controls** — expiry, passcode, download on/off. - **Notifications** — "someone viewed your doc." ## What's relevant to us? Basically all of it — this *is* the feature. The parts we take: - tracked link per deck, per-slide dwell + drop-off, completion - per-viewer identity when known; **forwarding / new-viewer detection** (the flagship) - aggregate reads for public decks (views, source, geo) - link controls (expiry, revoke, download toggle) — gates opt-in, low by default - first-open + new-viewer notifications ## What we play up (we're a presentation tool) ``` THEM: analytics on a deck they didn't make (a linked PDF they can't see into) US: analytics on a LIVE, NATIVE PAI deck we own end-to-end ``` - **Per-slide is native, not bolted on.** We already emit slide-level events — competitors reverse-engineer page views from a PDF; we have the real thing. - **One surface: make → share → track.** No export, no second tool. The Share button on the deck you just built starts the analytics. - **Distribution-agnostic from day one.** Same tracked link serves a social post, a cold email, and a deal room — because we own the deck object across all of them. --- ## Positioning (2×2) A reference frame for where PAI sits and where these features move us. Axes chosen so **revenue is deliberately not one** (it's a lagging output, not a position): ``` X — MAKE the content ⟷ MOVE it (creation ⟷ distribution & tracking) Y — single artifact (point tool) ⟷ whole deal / revenue workflow (platform) ``` ``` WHOLE DEAL / REVENUE WORKFLOW (platform) ▲ ┌───────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────────┐ │ ░ WHITESPACE ░ │ Highspot · Seismic (enablmnt) │ │ no deck-maker has a room — │ PandaDoc · GetAccept (+e-sign)│ │ the DEAL ROOM wedge │ Trumpet·Aligned·Dock·Flowla· │ │ ↑ PAI heads up here │ Recapped (DSR — deal workflow)│ MAKE ─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────────── MOVE │ Pitch ··· Gamma · Beautiful.ai ····⟶ DocSend · Papermark │ │ (pure Qwilr · Storydoc · ● PAI (share + track one doc) │ │ create) └─ ANALYTICS = table-stakes ─┘ (contested, not a wedge)│ └───────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────────┘ ▼ SINGLE ARTIFACT (point tool) ``` **We sit bottom-left** with the deck-makers. Two different moves: - **Analytics = table-stakes, not a wedge.** Gamma, Beautiful.ai and Qwilr already track — the creation corner has slid right into analytics. Ship it to complete the make→share→track loop and not look dated, but it won't differentiate PAI *from them*. (Beautiful.ai has even added Salesforce — the first step onto the diagonal.) - **The Deal Room IS the wedge.** No deck-maker has a room + MAP; it's creation-side whitespace, *and* the move the DSRs can't easily counter (no native deck). PAI and the DSRs approach that space from **opposite corners** — they have the workflow but can't make a deck; we make the deck and add the workflow. Creation is the harder half to bolt on, so the creation corner is the stronger launch position. --- ## The analytics model (one deck, one link) **Decided 21 Jul 2026.** A deck has **one** shareable tracked link — not many. Share that link anywhere (social, cold email, embed); analytics aggregates every view to the deck. This is the **Gamma model (per-deck)**, chosen over Pitch's per-link for its simplicity. ``` DECK "Acme pitch" └─ ONE tracked link ─► share anywhere ─► DECK-LEVEL analytics (summary · per-slide · viewers) [ deal room ] wraps the deck as a SEPARATE surface, with its own room-scoped analytics (see the Deal Room grounding) ``` The **two contexts live on two surfaces, not two links**: the deck's own link (published / shared, mostly aggregate) and the deal room (per-person). There is no per-link split to manage, and no roll-up (nothing to roll up with one link). Multiple named links per deck (Pitch-style, with a deck roll-up) is a **Phase 2** power feature. --- ## Deck analytics — the deep view What a deck's analytics screen contains. Panels **adapt to whether identity is known** (public/anonymous share vs a named audience): ``` SUMMARY (tiles) views · unique viewers · median time · completion (slides viewed) PER-SLIDE time-per-slide (dwell) bar — which slides held attention VIEWERS who · last opened · slides viewed · ⚑new-viewer [when identity known] SOURCE / GEO where views came from [public / anonymous shares] TIMELINE opens over time ``` - **Anonymous / public share** → show Summary + Per-slide + Source/Geo + Timeline; hide the viewer list (no identities to show). - **Named audience** → add the Viewers list + per-person on top. - **Per-viewer drill-in** → a viewer row is tappable → a person-scoped screen with the **same three tiles/charts** re-scoped to them (their sessions · their per-slide Viewed/Not-viewed · their per-slide dwell) + Back. Gamma-style, adapted to the modal. See *Reference: Gamma analytics → Per-viewer detail*. *(Cut for Phase 1: a standalone drop-off curve — per-slide dwell + completion already tell that story.)* ### Metrics (Phase 1) ``` view / open a session where the deck was opened unique viewer a distinct identity (or device, if anonymous) dwell / slide active-tab time on a slide (idle capped) completion slides viewed / reached the last slide revisit same viewer opens again later new viewer ⚑ a new identity on the link — esp. a new email domain = forwarded ``` ### Notifications (Phase 1) ``` first open "Sam opened Acme pitch" in-app 🔔 + email new viewer / forward "A new viewer opened it (⚑)" in-app 🔔 + email ``` Milestones and digests → later. --- ## Touchpoints across the app Entry is from the **editor** and **dashboard**, never the create flow. The **Share button is the primary signal.** ``` EDITOR DASHBOARD TOPBAR [ Share ] ─► create tracked "Analytics" tab (left nav) 🔔 bell link (analytics └ snapshot: recently frequented └ "X opened begins) / shared decks + mini-stats your deck" [ ⋯ ] View analytics └ click a deck → deep view └ "forwarded to (per-slide heat, completion, a new viewer" who, source, timeline) deck card ⋯ menu → View analytics (from any deck list) ``` **Dashboard placement (your direction):** a new **Analytics** tab in the left side-panel nav (sits with Home · Created by Me). Landing = a **snapshot of your most recently frequented decks** with at-a-glance stats; click a deck to open its **deep view**. ``` LEFT NAV ANALYTICS TAB (landing) DEEP VIEW (per deck) ───────── ──────────────────────── ───────────────────── Home ┌─ Acme pitch ▁▃▅ 42 views ─┐ who · when · per-slide Created by Me ├─ Q3 board deck ▁▁▂ 8 views ─┤ → heat · drop-off curve ▸ Analytics ◄ new └─ Cold outreach ▅▅▇ 130 views┘ · completion · source · timeline ▸ Deal rooms ◄ new (recent / frequented snapshot) Templates … ``` --- ## Phase 1 — features + user stories Grouped by flow. Kept deliberately simple. **Sharing a deck (its one tracked link)** - As a user, I can hit Share on my deck to get its trackable link. - As a user, I can set the link to expire, or revoke it. - As a user, I can allow or block PDF download. - As a user, I can optionally ask viewers for their name (skippable). **Seeing a deck's analytics** - As a user, I can see how many people viewed my deck (and how many unique). - As a user, I can see which slides they spent time on. - As a user, I can see the completion (how far viewers got). - As a user, I can see *who* viewed it, when their identity is known. - As a user, I can see when a new/unknown viewer opened it (it was forwarded). - As a user, I can see where views came from (source + geo) for public shares. **Getting notified** - As a user, I get notified when someone first opens my deck. - As a user, I get notified when a new/unknown viewer opens it. **Finding analytics in the app** - As a user, I can open an Analytics tab in the dashboard. - As a user, I can see my recently shared / frequented decks at a glance. - As a user, I can click a deck to open its deep analytics. - As a user, I can open a deck's analytics from its card menu. --- ## Phase 2 and beyond (directions, not stories) - **Multiple named links per deck** (Pitch-style per-link tracking + a deck roll-up) — the power feature deferred from the one-link Phase 1 - **Standalone drop-off curve** (beyond per-slide dwell + completion) - CRM write-back — engagement logged to Salesforce / HubSpot - Team + account roll-up; leadership performance dashboards - A/B deck comparison - Predictive intent / deal scoring - Session replay / scrub of a viewing session - Verified email gate (Level 3), allowlist / SSO, password - Per-recipient tracking for marketing broadcasts (UTM stitching) - "Your decks" benchmarks (this deck vs your average) - Deeper per-content-type analytics (video watch %, PDF page depth) --- ## Reference: Pitch analytics (screenshots) Pitch's live implementation, captured 21 Jul 2026. Pitch uses a **per-link** model — **which we did NOT adopt for Phase 1** (we chose one-deck-one-link, Gamma-style; see *The analytics model* above). Kept here because Pitch's per-link approach is our **Phase 2** power-feature reference, and its deep-view metrics are a strong read regardless of the link model. **All presentation links** — the list view. In Pitch, one deck can have several named links, each with its own visit count; links can be **Basic** (untracked) vs **Advanced** (analytics-tracked), and **room links** are a separate bucket. This is the per-link model we deferred to Phase 2. ![Pitch — All presentation links list](assets/pitch-all-presentation-links.png) Notable: columns are Presentation (thumb + folder) · Link name · Analytics (sparkline + N visits) · Creator · Date · Copy link. A link can be **Disabled**. The same deck appears under multiple link names with different visit counts. **A link's analytics detail** — the deep view. Summary tiles (**median time spent · median viewed slides (completion) · total visits**), a **per-slide time chart**, and an **Activity** list of individual visits (visitor + device, visit length, viewed slides, location), each expandable. ![Pitch — single link analytics detail](assets/pitch-link-analytics-detail.png) Notable for our metric set: Pitch uses **median** (not mean) time, **completion as "median viewed slides"**, per-visit rows carry **device + location**, and the per-slide chart is time-per-slide (our "dwell"). Anonymous visits show as "Visitor via Chrome" — matches our anonymous-allowed default. ### Per-visit expansion — slide thumbnails + time-per-slide Pitch's take on the per-viewer detail: instead of a separate page (Gamma) it **expands a visit inline** in the Activity list (an accordion row). The expanded visit lays out the deck as a **grid of slide thumbnails, each stamped with a time-spent badge** (2s · <1s · 55s) — the *visual*, per-slide version of dwell: you see which slides held that visitor **and the actual slide**, not just its title. Above the list, the link **Summary** carries the same three top-line metrics as ours (**median time spent · median viewed slides · total visits**) plus a **per-slide median-time bar chart** across the whole deck. ![Pitch — link summary + a visit expanded (slide thumbnails + time badges)](assets/pitch-link-visit-expanded.png) ![Pitch — full per-visit slide-thumbnail grid with time-per-slide badges](assets/pitch-visit-slide-grid.png) _Second screenshot pending: save the PNG to `assets/pitch-visit-slide-grid.png` and it'll embed here (the paste's temp file was already cleared)._ **Three drill-in patterns now on the board** — Gamma navigates to a **new page**, Pitch **expands inline** (accordion), our modal does a **push/pop** to a person screen. Pitch's thumbnail grid is lovely (you see the real slide) but eats a lot of vertical space; our per-slide bars are denser. For a 760px modal, push/pop + bars stays compact; the thumbnail grid is more of a **full-page-dashboard** affordance. **Is time-per-slide the only thing that matters per visitor?** Pitch's expansion is **time-per-slide only** (badges) + the visit's header metadata (length · viewed count · device · location). Time-per-slide is the backbone — it answers *where attention went* — but on its own it doesn't answer *is this a buyer, and what do they want*. Richer per-person signals worth weighing: **coverage / drop-off** (how far they got), **session cadence / revisits** (came back = intent), **navigation path** (jumped straight to Pricing; re-read Security), and **in-deck actions** (clicked a CTA, played a video — the strongest intent tell). Our drill-in already goes past Pitch on two of these: it adds per-slide **Viewed / Not-viewed** coverage and a **sessions-over-time** view alongside dwell. ### Room link analytics (the deal-room context) Pitch's **New link** dialog for a *room* (its deal-room equivalent), captured 21 Jul 2026. Confirms how analytics behaves once a deck lives inside a room: - **The room has its own link** ("room link"), separate from the deck's presentation link — matches our *two surfaces, not two links* (the deck's own link + the room). Pitch buckets "presentation links" and "room links" separately. - **Analytics is a per-room-link toggle** ("Collect engagement analytics") that tracks **more than the deck: visit duration · clicks on attachments/resources · deck engagement**. So room-scoped analytics is *whole-room* — which resources the buyer opened — not just deck slides. - **Access controls live on the room link**: Require passcode · Require visitor email — our friction dial, at the room level. Pitch defaults **Require visitor email ON** for rooms (more identity-forward than a public deck). We chose the softer *skippable name prompt* to preserve forwarding, but the direction is the same: rooms lean toward identity. - **Get visitor consent for engagement analytics** — a GDPR-style consent toggle (Gamma has one too). A compliance item to keep in mind (→ Phase 2). Takeaway: the deal room's analytics is a room-scoped slice with two extras over a plain deck link — **attachment/resource click tracking** and **identity-forward access defaults**. Consistent with the Deal Room grounding's in-room analytics. _Screenshot pending: save the PNG to `assets/pitch-room-link-analytics.png` and it'll be embedded here (the paste's temp file was already cleared)._ --- ## Reference: Gamma analytics (screenshots) Gamma's live implementation, captured 21 Jul 2026. Gamma is **per-DECK, not per-link** — "Includes all views for [deck] since it was created," one aggregated analytics view per gamma. **This is the model we adopted for Phase 1** (one deck, one link; see *The analytics model* above). So these screenshots are the closest reference to what we're building. **Page views** — two tabs (**Page views · Card engagement**), a viewer filter ("Everyone (4)"), a *unique-viewers-over-time* bar chart (last 30 days), and a list of unique viewers. ![Gamma — analytics, Page views tab](assets/gamma-analytics-page-views.png) **Viewer list** — per viewer: name + email (or **Anonymous viewer**), **last opened**, and **cards viewed** as a completion bar (15/15 ✓). Note the monetization pattern: individual anonymous-viewer detail is **gated behind Upgrade** ("Turn viewer data into insights"). ![Gamma — viewer list + upgrade gate](assets/gamma-analytics-viewer-list.png) **Card engagement** — per-card (per-slide) heat, sub-tabs **Time spent · Viewed**. A "less ↔ more time spent" relative distribution bar per card, with un-viewed cards greyed (eye-off). This is Gamma's version of our per-slide dwell + drop-off. ![Gamma — card engagement (per-slide)](assets/gamma-analytics-card-engagement.png) **Per-viewer detail (the drill-in)** — clicking a viewer opens a dedicated **per-person page** (Back button + close X). The header makes the **viewer the subject**: avatar + name + email on the left, **Last opened** ("Today at 4:18 pm") on the right, then a summary line **"Viewed 15/15 cards across all sessions."** Below it, the **same per-card engagement** as the aggregate Card-engagement tab, but scoped to this one person: a **"Less time spent ←→ More time spent"** relative bar per card, un-viewed cards greyed with an eye-off. So the drill-in **reuses the deck's chart vocabulary, re-scoped to the individual** — not a different screen, the same one filtered to a person. ![Gamma — per-viewer detail page](assets/gamma-analytics-viewer-detail.png) _Screenshot pending: save the PNG to `assets/gamma-analytics-viewer-detail.png` and it'll embed here (the paste's temp file was already cleared)._ **We adopted this** as the modal's **per-viewer drill-in** (built 22 Jul 2026): tap a viewer row → push to a person-scoped screen with the same three tiles/charts re-scoped to them — Views = their sessions over time, Completion = per-slide **Viewed / Not-viewed** coverage, Median time = their per-slide dwell (un-viewed slides greyed, eye-off) — plus a Back button. Gamma navigates to a full page; in our 760px modal it's a **push/pop**. The **left-rail master-detail** alternative (an "All viewers" item on top, one row per person, graphs re-rendering on select) is the better fit for the **future full-page dashboard Analytics tab**, where there's horizontal room for a persistent rail. Takeaways vs our scope: Gamma frames completion as **"cards viewed,"** shows viewers **named-or-anonymous** (same as our default), splits **page-level vs card-level** (≈ our summary vs per-slide), and **paywalls per-viewer identity** — a monetization cue worth noting. Its **one-link, per-deck** shape is what we adopted for Phase 1; per-link (Pitch-style) is our Phase 2. --- ## Reference ### Identity is inverse to reach ``` REACH large ●──────────────────────────────● small IDENTITY anonymous ●────────────────────────● fully known public/social marketing embed cold email investor deal room └── AGGREGATE reads ────────────┘ └──── PER-PERSON reads ────┘ "how many, from where" "who, which slide, forwarded?" ``` ### Distribution taxonomy (channels a deck travels) Deal room · public/social post · cold email (1:1) · investor send · embed (site/blog/Notion) · marketing broadcast (list/newsletter/link-in-bio) · post-meeting follow-up · in-person/QR. Same events; identity + gating shift per channel. ### Two read models - **Aggregate** (public end) — views, unique visitors, source, geo, drop-off, completion. - **Per-person** (targeted end) — who opened, per-slide dwell, revisits, forwarding. ### Metrics catalogue ``` UNIVERSAL opens · unique viewers · per-slide dwell · completion % · drop-off curve · device · geo · source/referrer PER-PERSON who · their dwell · revisits · forwarding/new-viewer · CTA clicks DERIVED downloads (if allowed) · time-to-open (send → first view) ``` ### Access friction dial (shared with rooms) ``` L0 open link · L1 soft name (skippable) · L2 email capture · L3 email verify · L4 allowlist/SSO · L5 password ``` Gates fight forwarding (the best signal), so V1 keeps them **opt-in**, defaults low, never forces identity. Matches Pitch/Trumpet/Aligned. --- ## Decided (locked calls) | Question | Decision | |---|---| | **Ships first, standalone** | Before the deal room; live value on any shared deck; de-risks the pipeline. | | **Roles** | Sales · Marketing · Leadership (+ Founders adjacent). | | **Link model** | **One deck = one tracked link** (Gamma-style, per-deck analytics). Multiple named links per deck (Pitch-style) + roll-up → Phase 2. | | **Two contexts, two surfaces** | The deck's own link (published, mostly aggregate) + the deal room (per-person). Not two links on one deck. | | **Phase 1 metric set** | views · unique viewers · per-slide dwell · completion (slides viewed) · revisit · new-viewer(forward). | | **Deep view** | Per-deck: summary tiles + per-slide dwell + viewer list (when identity) + source/geo (public) + timeline. Panels adapt to identity. | | **Per-viewer drill-in** | Tap a viewer → person-scoped screen, same three tiles/charts re-scoped (sessions · per-slide Viewed/Not-viewed · per-slide dwell) + Back. Gamma-style (see reference). Push/pop in the modal; **left-rail** master-detail on the future full-page dashboard tab. | | **Source / geo** | **Kept** in Phase 1 (the Marketing/public value; shows on public shares). | | **Drop-off curve** | **Cut** from Phase 1 — per-slide dwell + completion cover it (→ Phase 2). | | **Notifications** | Phase 1 = first-open + new-viewer, in-app 🔔 + email. | | **Email gate** | Skipped in V1; no verified gate on any channel. | | **Anonymous viewing** | Allowed everywhere; identity is never a wall. | | **Forwarding detection** | In scope, V1, non-negotiable. | | **Reuse existing events** | Build on PAI's slide-view instrumentation; extend, don't rebuild. | | **Dashboard home** | Own **Analytics** tab in the left nav; landing = recent-decks snapshot → deep view. | | **Entry points** | Editor Share button (primary signal) + dashboard; not the create flow. | ## Open threads / TODO - [ ] **Map to `presentation-services`** — slide-view / deck-share event schema, share-link primitive, notification plumbing. - [ ] Define **per-slide dwell** (active-tab time vs raw; slide left open). - [ ] Design the **share dialog** (likely the first spec). - [ ] Design the **Analytics tab** — recent-decks snapshot + the deep per-deck view. - [ ] Define **forwarding / new-viewer detection** mechanics without a hard gate. - [ ] Decide **UTM / source attribution** for public + marketing channels. - [ ] Confirm the **anonymous → known** identity-stitch model.