Reports
A report is a list of records that meet the criteria you define. It’s displayed in Salesforce in rows and columns, and can be filtered, grouped, or displayed in a graphical chart.
Every report is stored in a folder. You control who has access to the contents of the folder based on roles, permissions, public groups, and license types. You can make a folder available to your entire organization, or make it private so that only the owner has access.
The report type determines which fields and records are available when creating a report. This is based on the relationships between a primary object and its related objects. For example, with the Contacts and Accounts report type, Contacts is the primary object and Accounts is the related object.
When you get asked to build a report, the request typically comes in the form of a question. Before building a report, to take that question, ask follow-up questions, write requirements, and then map those requirements to report criteria. For example:
CREATE A REPORT
From the Reports tab, click the New Report button
Choose one of the standard report types and click Continue
If you don’t see what you’re looking for, click All under the Category column
You’ll be taken to the reports canvas
Select your filters by clicking on the Filters tab
If Update Preview Automatically is turned off, you’ll need to hit refresh to see your results. By turning it on, you’ll see your results within the report preview.
Next, go to the Outline tab where you can choose which fields are displayed in your report
Native reports come with certain fields displayed as default.
You can remove these by clicking the X next to them, as well as add your own fields by searching for the field name and selecting it
Fields can be reordered by dragging and dropping them up and down
Click Save & Run to view your report
Name the report, add a description, and select the folder to store it in
Click Save
Summary reports are created by adding a grouping to a field
Either drag the field from Columns to Group Rows (if it is already on the layout), or type the field name in Add group…. and select it
Click Save & Run to see the grouped results
SCHEDULE A REPORT
You can subscribe to up to five reports, which you will then receive via email. To subscribe, a user must have access to the folder a report is stored in.
You can choose to receive the emailed report daily, weekly or monthly on a specific day and time. By clicking Attach File you can choose to have the report automatically attached to the notification email.
TIPS & TRICKS
Building a report from scratch is a valuable skill, but you can save time by finding a similar report to start from.
Find your starting report
Edit the columns & filters to your specifications
Click Save As and save to your personal folder
Many fields can be edited directly inside the report; saving you time if you have a mass update to make. Click Field Editing Enabled to turn on this feature.