11.3 Custom Reporting & Dashboards¶
What this page teaches: Custom dashboards translate raw data into views for operators, strategists, clients, and executives.
Why this matters in real accounts: This topic affects money, visibility, campaign control, reporting clarity, or team execution. Understanding the business reason first makes the console steps much easier to learn.
Practical workflow: - Choose the right report for the question. - Clean and label the data. - Compare against target and previous period. - Find the root cause, not only the metric movement. - Write the action plan with owner and deadline.
Worked mini-example: Instead of saying [[ACOS]] rose from 25% to 32%, explain that [[CPC]] rose on two non-branded exact campaigns while conversion dropped after price increased.
Common beginner mistakes: - Sending tables without interpretation. - Mixing attribution windows or date ranges. - Reporting only ad metrics when stakeholders need business impact.
Definition of done: - The learner can explain the topic without jargon. - The learner can name the report, console area, or data input used for this topic. - The learner can describe one safe action, one risky action, and one escalation trigger.
Merged from Complete Data-Filled Guide¶
Complete data-filled section notes¶
Reporting turns PPC activity into decisions. A report should answer: what happened, why it happened, and what we will do next.
Native reports¶
| Report | Main use |
|---|---|
| Search Term Report | Find winners, waste, and customer language |
| Placement Report | Optimize Top of Search, Rest of Search, Product Pages |
| Targeting Report | Review keyword and ASIN target performance |
| Bulk Operations | Make and audit large-scale changes |
Brand Analytics¶
Brand Analytics can provide Search Query Performance, Market Basket Analysis, Item Comparison, and Repeat Purchase Behavior. Use these to understand market demand, competitor overlap, and cross-sell opportunities.
Client dashboard layers¶
Executive dashboards need total spend, sales, ROAS, ACOS, TACOS, and trend. Operator dashboards need campaign, keyword, placement, budget, and search-term detail.
Data storytelling formula¶
- What happened.
- Why it happened.
- What we are doing next.
Bad: ACOS increased due to CPC inflation.
Good: Ad efficiency decreased because competitors drove up click costs. We are lowering weak bids and shifting budget to the keywords still converting profitably.
Operator checklist¶
- Explain the topic in plain English.
- Identify the report, console area, or input data needed.
- Make the smallest safe change first.
- Log the action, reason, and expected review date.
- Escalate if the issue touches policy, inventory, account health, or large budget changes.