How to create Custom Reports

Custom Reports is a feature of the Advanced Reporting Pack add-on, which can be activated on all ServiceM8 plans. 

Creating a Custom Report

1. To create a custom report, ensure you've activated the Advanced Reporting Pack add-on, then go to Reports, and in the left-hand menu, click 'Create Report'.

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How to create a custom report, manually

1. Select Your Metric: Click the + button in the “Metrics” section. The first metric is automatically set to “Jobs,” but you can change this to other options like “Job Bookings,” “Job Checklists,” or “Job Payments.”
2. Adjust the Time Frame and Grouping: Use the time frame selectors to view data for a specific period (e.g., last 30 days, 3 months, 12 months). You can also compare it to a previous period.
3. Add Filters: In the “Filters” section, click the + button to add criteria to narrow down your report. For example, you can filter by “Job Status” and select “Completed.”
4. Break Down the Data: In the “Breakdown” section, click + and select a field to break down the data. This will segment your report, for example, by “Staff Member,” “Category,” or “Job Badge.”
5. Use Multiple Metrics: You can add more than one metric to your report to see comparisons. For instance, you can add “Total Invoice Amount” and “Total Cost” to see both figures side-by-side. To do this, duplicate an existing metric and then change the field.
6. Choose a Report Visualization: You can switch between a line graph, bar graph, or table to visualize your data in the most effective way.
7. Save Your Report: If you create a report you’d like to use again, click the “Save” button in the top-right corner, give it a title and description, and it will be saved for quick access.

Using the AI Smart Reporting Helper

For a faster way to generate reports, you can use the AI-powered, Smart Reporting Helper.

1. Select “Create Report”: In the left-hand menu, under “Reports,” select “Create Report.”
2. Describe the Report: In the text box, describe the report you want in plain language. For example, “Total invoiced by staff member.”
3. Produce the Report: Click “Produce Report.” The AI will automatically fill out the metrics, filters, and breakdowns based on your prompt.
4. Refine the Report: You can then manually add or change filters or breakdowns, or simply update your original prompt to refine the report (e.g., “for only the workshop category”).

Example AI Reporting Prompts 

You can use a wide variety of natural language prompts to generate reports quickly. Here are some examples to get you started:

• Total invoiced amount broken down by staff member.
• Total jobs created per week in the last 6 months.
• Show me my average job cost per category.
• Job revenue broken down by marketing source job badges.
• Show me checked-in travel time and travel distance by staff member.

Advanced Reporting Capabilities

The core of the reporting engine is the interaction between three elements: metrics, filters, and breakdowns. 

• The metric is what you are measuring (e.g., number of jobs, total invoice amount).
• Filters narrow down your data set (e.g., only show completed jobs or jobs in a specific category).
• A breakdown segments your data into groups based on a field, allowing you to see a direct comparison (e.g., how many jobs each staff member completed).How the ‘Aggregate by Field’ Feature Works

The “Aggregate by field” feature allows you to perform calculations on a specific metric within your report. Instead of just a simple count, you can summarize your data to show a sum, average, minimum, or maximum value. This is particularly useful when you have multiple metrics in a single report.

For example, let’s say you want to compare the total invoice amount with the total cost for each staff member.

1. Start by adding a “Jobs” metric and breaking it down by “Completion Actioned By Staff Member.”
2. Next, click the three-dot menu on the “Jobs” metric. Select “Aggregate by field” and choose “Total Invoice Amount.” This will now show you the sum of all invoices completed by each staff member.
3. To add a second metric for comparison, duplicate the first metric. Then, change the “Aggregate by field” option on the new metric to “Total Cost.”

Now your report will display a bar graph or table showing two bars (or columns) for each staff member: one for their total invoice amount and one for their total costs. This provides a powerful, at-a-glance view of profitability per staff member.

Exporting Your Data

You can export the data from a report table as a CSV spreadsheet for further analysis. Simply click the “Export” button in the table view.