Client Reporting: Why It’s Important and Best Practices

Client reporting is a critical aspect of any business as it keeps clients informed, up-to-date, and confident about the status of their investments or projects. This type of reporting allows clients to understand their current position and make informed decisions based on the details provided by the marketing agency or service provider.

In this article, we delve into the importance of client reporting. We also discuss the essential elements of the client reporting process and a few best practices. Let’s see what client reporting is all about and how you can make the whole process more effective. 

What is client reporting?

Client reporting is the process of providing regular and periodic updates to clients about their investments, project progress, or performance. These updates are usually provided as reports, which can be presented in various ways, such as spreadsheets, PDFs, or dashboards. 

The goal of client reporting is to keep clients well-informed and provide transparency regarding the information that is significant to them. Marketing agencies are the ones that benefit most from creating client reports. However, customer reporting can also be used by other service providers. 

Client reports: why are they important?

Customer reporting is an essential process for most businesses. These reports are important because they: 

1. Increase accountability

One of the most important benefits of client reporting is that it increases accountability. Both service providers and their clients can be held accountable if something doesn’t go according to plan. 

For example, when reporting the latest results of a paid ads campaign, the marketing agency will include a budget that could help increase the ROI. If the client can’t allocate that budget, they know what to expect. On the other side, the client can see what milestones and KPIs are set out by the agency and hold them accountable when they don’t meet them. 

These reports will provide a clear overview of what the customer can expect from an agency. Also, it will show the agency what the current needs of the client are, helping them prioritize certain campaigns. 

2. Help educate customers

Nobody can be an expert in all fields. That’s why marketing agencies and other service providers need to educate their clients. This will set customers’ expectations and offer a clear overview of the budget they need to allocate for different campaigns. For example, let’s say your customers want to increase the number of leads coming from their website. However, they don’t know which other metrics can influence the number of leads. By creating a website marketing report, you can show your client the importance of organic traffic and how that metric impacts the number of leads. 

Also, by educating customers, agencies will enable better communication, and clients will be more open to implementing new strategies or experimenting with new channels. 

3. Promote informed decision making

Making decisions is not an easy task, especially when you are dealing with tight budgets and even tighter deadlines. This is why it is important for clients to know exactly where they stand and what to expect from a marketing agency. 

By showing your clients how each campaign performed, which channel has the lowest cost per acquisition, and what is the prediction for the next 3 months, the customer can make informed decisions regarding the budget they can allocate and the priorities they have. 

4. Show the value of your work

These client reports are also a great method to show the value of your work. You should have a report to show your client whenever you reach a milestone or successfully complete a campaign. Once the customer sees the numbers, it is easier for them to understand how you help them grow their business. Plus, you can use customer reporting as an upsell opportunity. 

Key elements of an effective client reporting process

Establish what the client needs

Once you get a new client, you need to establish their needs, budget, and expectations regarding your collaboration. Provide a questionnaire for your client and encourage them to share anything they expect from this collaboration. You can find templates or design your own client onboarding questionnaire from scratch. 

Select the KPIs

Once your client fills out the questionnaire, it is time for you to create a strategy to help them meet their goals in the desired time and within the allocated budget. First, select the metrics you will pay attention to and the KPIs.

For example, your client’s goal is to have more leads, and you provide content marketing services. One of the metrics you need to follow is organic traffic on the website. A KPI you can set out is to “increase the organic traffic”. However, your next KPI should be to “increase the conversion rate by x%” because having high organic traffic doesn’t guarantee a higher number of leads. 

Determine the frequency of the report

After you have discussed with your new client and agreed on focusing on certain metrics, milestones, and goals, you will need to establish how frequently you will report to them. Some agencies report monthly, others only quarterly, while some can even report weekly. It all depends on the services provided and the goals. 

For example, a content marketing agency won’t have anything new to report on a weekly basis, but a PPC marketing agency might. Content marketing strategies take longer to implement and show results, while paid ads campaigns with bigger budgets can show results within hours. Of course, you will discuss with the client and see what their expectations are regarding the frequency of the report. In our experience, a monthly report is a great option. 

Automate the process or parts of the process

Automation can save you hours of boring, repetitive work. That’s why it is better to automate as much as you can when it comes to reports. One way you can do so is to automate exports from different sources, such as Google Analytics or LinkedIn ads to Looker Studio or Tableau with the help of a tool. Coupler.io is a data automation and analytics platform that provides various solutions, from automating data flows for your client report to building a custom report from scratch.

Automation can help ensure that exports are consistently produced with accurate and up-to-date information, reducing the risk of errors. Also, automated exports can easily be integrated into reporting tools or dashboards. 

Include a monthly summary

No matter the frequency you choose for client reporting, it is important to add a monthly summary where you highlight what changed from month to month. This way, your client will be up to speed on things, even if they choose not to read the whole report every time. 

What should customer reporting include?

Customer reporting should include information that is relevant and valuable to the customer and should be presented in a clear and easy-to-understand format. Some of the key elements that may be included in a customer report are:

• A dashboard that provides a complete overview of the report. Here’s an example from Looker Studio. 

• Detailed analysis of data and trends over time, including data visualizations, such as charts and graphs. You can choose from different types of graphs to help clients have a clear overview. This is what a yearly YouTube trending report looks like:

• Segmentation of the data to provide a more in-depth understanding of the customer base, such as demographics, purchasing behavior, and customer feedback. Here’s an example of a Google Analytics Marketing report:

• Recommendations and insights based on the data to help the customer make informed business decisions. For instance, in the Paid ads report below, you could add insights related to the budget your client should allocate for PPC for the next 3 months. 

• Contextual information, such as industry trends and competitor analysis to help the customer understand the wider market and their position within it. For example, below, you can see a cohort analysis that helps improve customer retention by understanding seasonal and other patterns.

It is important to remember that customer reporting should be tailored to each customer’s specific needs and goals and should be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure that it remains relevant and valuable.

What are the common challenges in client reporting you need to prepare for?

Client reporting can present several challenges, including:

• Data accuracy and completeness: Ensuring that the data used in client reporting is accurate and up-to-date is critical but can be difficult to achieve in practice. If you compare the same data in different tools, e.g.traffic in Google Analytics compared to traffic in Facebook Business Manager, you will see small differences and those affect the accuracy of your report.
• Data integration: Integrating data from multiple sources and systems can be time-consuming and complex, especially if the data is in different formats. This is a major problem for agencies that are still doing everything manually. With an automation solution like Coupler.io, you can extract data from different sources into a destination. 
• Data visualization: Presenting complex data clearly and meaningfully can be challenging, especially when communicating insights and trends to non-technical stakeholders.
• Automation and scalability: Creating and delivering reports manually can be time-consuming and inefficient, especially for organizations with many clients. Automating the reporting process can help, but that requires choosing the right tools and processes.
• Customization and personalization: Customizing reports for individual clients can be problematic, especially if the reports need to be updated frequently to reflect changing needs and requirements.
• Meeting client expectations: Understanding and meeting the specific needs and requirements of each client is a struggle, especially if the organization has many clients with different reporting requirements.
• Data security and privacy: Protecting sensitive client data and ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations can be a significant problem in client reporting.

Addressing these challenges requires a combination of the right tools, processes, and expertise. Also, organizations need to continuously review and improve their client reporting practices. 

Best tools to create client reports

Coupler.io – Top solution for building reports

We’ve already mentioned Coupler.io, the all-in-one automation and analytics platform. It allows you to gather, transform, and analyze data to grasp the whole picture of your client’s business and stay ahead of the curve. With Coupler.io, you can fully automate the client reporting process. 

Coupler.io provides an ETL solution for exporting data from different sources. You can automate data refresh on a schedule, so you don’t have to worry about missing any changes in the metrics you are tracking. This feature is crucial for self-updating client reports and dashboards.

Want to elevate your client reporting? Coupler.io’s data analytics services can come in handy since they offer custom data visualization solutions, business analytics, and data infrastructure. 

Megalytic

Megalytic streamlines client reporting for digital marketing agencies and website hosting companies. With its user-friendly dashboard tool, connecting data becomes effortless, and producing attractive reports is a breeze.

Take your reporting to the next level with Megalytic for Looker Studio. Say goodbye to the tedious task of manually blending data from various sources such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Microsoft, and more. Instead, spend more time delivering insightful reports that leave a lasting impression on your clients.

Whatagraph

Another option if you are looking for a tool for client reports is Whatagraph. It comes with a user-friendly interface which makes it easier to create reports faster. This tool is created for in-house teams and marketing agencies. Plus, it comes with many report templates to choose from. 

If you want, you can also start with a blank page and benefit from their drag-and-drop widgets to add anything you want to the report. 

Databox

Databox is yet another client reporting tool. This tool focuses a bit more on dashboards compared to the previous tools. Databox’s integrations are pre-loaded with the most in-demand metrics and their standard visualizations, saving you valuable time and effort. With this feature, you don’t have to waste time figuring out how to display your data; instead, you can concentrate on making data-driven decisions.

Bring together metrics from various sources in one convenient dashboard to get a comprehensive overview of your performance with ease. The ability to mix and match metrics provides a more complete perspective, allowing you to make informed decisions quickly.

Client reporting best practices for professionals that want to upsell their services

1. Define clear goals and objectives

Determine what information is most important to the client and what they want to achieve through the reporting process. Make sure you explain to your customer what they can expect considering the time frame and their budget. Also, provide different alternatives and allow your client to select the right option for them. 

2. Select the metrics along with the customer

This is an important aspect you should take into account. Clients need to have a complete overview, and it’s easier for them to do so when they are involved in selecting the metrics and KPIs. Educate your clients and explain what each metric means to make sure they make an informed decision. 

3. Automate where possible

Automating the reporting process and report templates can help save time, reduce errors, and ensure consistency. You can choose to fully automate the process by selecting a tool for client reporting. Also, you can create customized reports for each client but still automate data exports with web platforms like Coupler.io. 

4. Use data visualization

Visualizing data in a clear and intuitive way can help clients quickly understand key trends and insights. Graphs and charts are your friends. They are much easier to understand and simpler to explain to non-technical clients. 

5. Provide context

Put the data in context by explaining trends, comparing performance to benchmarks or historical data, and highlighting key drivers of performance. By providing these data, you ensure that your client sets their expectations correctly. 

6. Be proactive and offer recommendations

Provide clients with recommendations based on the data and insights, and help them make informed business decisions. In every report, you should include a “recommendations section”. There, you should explain what can be achieved if the budget is increased, what channels or approaches you need to focus on, and what the competitors are doing differently. 

7. Foster open communication

Encourage clients to ask questions and provide feedback, and be open to suggestions for improving the reporting process. Client feedback is essential for any business. Your clients can offer a different perspective which will help you improve your reports. 

8. Customizing the reports for each client

Every client is different, and so should their reports be. While you provide the same services for each client, their goals, budgets, and needs are completely different. Your reports should reflect that. 

Customer reporting: Demonstrate concrete results

Effective client reporting is a crucial aspect of maintaining strong client relationships and delivering value to clients. Customer reporting allows you to share concrete results and keep your client in the loop with new developments. It can also be a great way to upsell or cross-sell when you reach a milestone. By following these best practices and improving the data reporting process, organizations can build trust with their clients, support informed decision-making, and drive better business outcomes.