If your team dreads digging through dashboards, you’re not alone. Scheduled email reports can save everyone time and sanity—if you set them up right. This guide is for anyone who wants their team to actually see and use the data in Domo without chasing people or reminding them to log in.
Whether you’re wrangling weekly marketing stats, sharing sales numbers, or just trying to keep everyone on the same page, here’s how to get useful reports sent out automatically—without driving yourself nuts.
Why Scheduled Email Reports Matter (and Where They Fall Short)
Before we dive into the how-to, let’s be honest: scheduled reports are a double-edged sword.
What’s great: - People get data where they already live (their inbox). - Teams don’t forget to check dashboards. - You control timing—weekly, daily, monthly, whatever.
But here’s the catch: - People ignore emails. Especially if you send too many. - Reports can get out of sync if dashboards change. - Sometimes attachments don’t play nice with filters or interactivity.
So, use scheduled emails to nudge the right people with the stuff that actually matters. Don’t expect them to replace dashboards or face-to-face convos.
Step 1: Pin Down What Each Team Actually Needs
Don’t skip this. Sending a “one-size-fits-all” report almost always means nobody reads it.
Ask yourself: - Who really needs this data? (Be brutal. “Everyone” is a red flag.) - What decisions will people make with this info? - How often does the data actually change?
Pro tips: - Different teams = different needs. Sales wants daily numbers, leadership likes monthly trends, ops might want exceptions only. - If someone just wants a number, you don’t need a pretty dashboard—just a summary table.
Step 2: Build or Tidy Up Your Domo Dashboard
Scheduled reports pull from dashboards and cards. If your dashboard is a mess, your emails will be too.
What works: - Make a dashboard just for reporting if needed. - Keep only the cards people actually care about. - Use clear titles and labels—nobody likes “Card 7 (Copy)”.
What to ignore: - Fancy visuals that don’t work in email. - Overcomplicated filters (they don’t always play nice in scheduled reports).
Reality check: If your dashboard changes every week, your scheduled reports will be out of date just as often. Lock down what you can.
Step 3: Set Up Your Scheduled Report in Domo
Here’s how to get your reports out the door:
3.1 Navigate to the Right Place
- Go to the dashboard or card you want to email.
- Click the Share button (it looks like an arrow).
- Select Schedule Report.
3.2 Configure the Report
You’ll see a pop-up. Here’s what to fill out:
- Recipients: Add people by email. You can include folks outside your company, but check your data policies first.
- Subject Line: Don’t be cute. Make it clear: “Weekly Sales Pipeline” beats “FYI”.
- Message: Add context. “See attached for the latest numbers. Ping me if you have questions.”
- Schedule: Set how often and when. For weekly, pick a day and time that matches when people actually act on the info.
- Format: Usually PDF or Excel. PDFs look cleaner, but Excel can be handy for folks who want to play with numbers.
3.3 Pick What’s Included
- You can send the whole dashboard or just specific cards.
- Don’t overload people. If a team only needs one chart, send that, not the kitchen sink.
3.4 Test Before You Send
- Send a copy to yourself first.
- Check for broken visuals, cut-off charts, or missing data.
- If it looks weird, fix the dashboard—don’t just hope nobody notices.
Step 4: Fine-Tune for Cross-Functional Teams
It’s tempting to make one big report for everyone. Resist. Here’s how to make your reports actually useful:
- Customize by audience: Marketing doesn’t care about engineering’s bug backlog. Segment reports by team or function.
- Keep it short: If your report is longer than one screen, most people won’t scroll.
- Use plain English: Skip jargon. “Leads generated: 45” beats “MQL inflow delta.”
- Add context: “Up 10% from last week” is more helpful than just numbers.
What doesn’t work: Blanket CC’ing the entire company. That’s how you train people to ignore your emails.
Step 5: Manage and Update Scheduled Reports
Once you set up a report, don’t just forget about it. Here’s the reality:
- People change roles: Remove folks who don’t need it anymore.
- Dashboards change: If you update the dashboard, check your scheduled reports so you’re not sending broken stuff.
- Feedback: Ask a couple of recipients if they actually read or use the report. If not, cut it or tweak it.
Pro tip: Keep a simple list (even a spreadsheet) of what reports are going out, to whom, and when. This saves headaches later.
Step 6: Handle Common Gotchas
You’ll hit some snags. Here’s what to watch for:
- Spam filters: Sometimes scheduled emails land in junk. Ask folks to whitelist Domo’s sender address.
- Attachments too big: If your PDF is massive, try sending fewer cards or using Excel.
- Data security: Don’t send sensitive info to external emails unless you’re certain you should.
What to ignore: “Best practice” to send everything as a PDF. Use what your team actually needs.
Step 7: Keep It Simple (and Don’t Over-Automate)
Automating reports is great—until you automate noise. More isn’t better.
- Only schedule what people actually use.
- Review reports every few months. If nobody misses it when you pause it, it wasn’t needed.
- Encourage people to flag issues or request tweaks.
Remember: A scheduled email report is a tool, not a silver bullet. If a conversation would work better than a report, have the conversation.
Wrapping Up
Don’t overthink it. Start small—pick one report, get it working, and see if people actually use it. Scheduled reports in Domo can save your team a ton of hassle, but only if you keep them focused and relevant. Iterate as you go, and don’t be afraid to delete anything that’s just adding noise. Simple, reliable, and useful beats flashy and forgotten—every time.