If you’re tired of scrolling through stock dashboards and wish your B2B marketing reports actually answered your real questions, you’re in the right place. This guide will show you—step by step—how to create custom reports in Copy that actually help you make decisions, not just stare at numbers. Whether you handle reporting for clients, your boss, or just your own sanity, here’s how to cut through the noise and get what you need.
Why Custom Reports Matter (and Default Ones Suck)
Let’s be real: most built-in reports are made for the “average” user—whoever that is. They rarely fit your actual funnel, your metrics, or your sales cycle. You end up exporting to Excel, trying to stitch together what you care about, and quietly resenting your life choices.
Custom reports let you:
- Focus on the metrics that matter to your team (not everyone else).
- Combine sources—lead gen, pipeline, content performance—in one place.
- Actually answer questions from sales or leadership without “let me get back to you.”
But: Just because you can measure something doesn’t mean you should. Don’t build a monster report that nobody reads. Start with a problem you’re actually trying to solve.
Step 1: Define the Questions You Need Answered
Before you even open Copy, write down what you actually want to know. This is the single most important step. If you skip it, you’ll waste hours fiddling with filters and still end up with a report that doesn’t help.
Ask yourself:
- What decision am I trying to make with this report?
- Who will read it? (Sales, execs, clients, yourself?)
- What data do I need to answer the question? (Not just “all the data.”)
- How often will I look at this? (Daily, weekly, monthly?)
Examples of good questions: - Which channels brought in the most qualified leads last quarter? - What’s the conversion rate from demo request to closed deal by industry? - How much pipeline did our last webinar actually generate?
Pro tip: If you can’t finish this sentence, don’t build the report:
“This report will help us decide __ by showing us ____.”
Step 2: Connect and Clean Your Data
Copy is only as useful as the data you feed it. If your CRM is a mess or your ad accounts are missing, your reports will be too.
Connecting Data Sources
Copy integrates with most major tools: CRMs (like Salesforce, HubSpot), ad platforms, analytics, and even spreadsheets. Here’s what to do:
- Go to Data Sources in Copy’s sidebar.
- Click “Add Source” and follow the prompts for each platform.
- Double-check that you’re pulling the right accounts (not the intern’s test account).
Cleaning Up
- Make sure fields are mapped correctly. “Lead Source” in your CRM should match “Channel” in your ad data.
- Remove junk or test data.
- Standardize naming conventions (e.g., “LinkedIn Ads” vs “linkedin-ads” vs “LI”).
What to ignore:
Don’t get lost in “data perfection.” If you wait for everything to be perfect, you’ll never start. Clean enough is fine—just flag any weirdness for later.
Step 3: Build Your Custom Report
Now the fun part. Here’s how to actually construct something useful in Copy.
1. Start a New Report
- Click “Reports” > “Create New.”
- Pick a blank template or use a starter (you’ll end up customizing it anyway).
2. Choose Your Metrics
Focus on the fewest metrics that answer your questions. The more you cram in, the less people will pay attention.
Common B2B metrics people actually use: - Qualified leads (not just raw leads) - Pipeline generated ($) - Conversion rates (by stage, by channel, by industry) - Sales cycle length - Cost per opportunity
What not to include: - Vanity metrics (pageviews, likes, etc.) unless they directly impact your funnel. - Data nobody asked for. If the sales team doesn’t care, leave it out.
3. Set Filters and Segments
This is where custom reports become, well, custom.
- Filter by time period (last quarter, last month, custom dates).
- Segment by key fields: channel, campaign, industry, deal size, sales rep.
- Create calculated fields if needed (e.g., cost per SQL, win rate by source).
4. Pick Visualizations That Don’t Suck
Don’t overthink it. Bar charts for comparisons, line graphs for trends, tables for details. Pie charts rarely help anyone.
- If you can’t read it at a glance, it’s too complicated.
- Avoid 3D effects or weird color schemes unless you want to annoy people.
5. Save and Share
- Name your report clearly (e.g., “Q2 Pipeline by Channel,” not “Report 47”).
- Set permissions—does everyone see everything, or just the marketing team?
- Schedule automatic sends if people want them in their inbox.
Step 4: Sanity-Check and Iterate
Before you blast your shiny new report to the team, do a reality check.
- Do the numbers make sense? (Gut check: Are there suddenly 10x more leads than last month? If so, something’s off.)
- Can someone else answer the questions you set out to answer?
- Is the report so long nobody will read it?
What to ignore:
Don’t try to answer every possible question in one report. Make a few, focused reports instead.
Pro tip:
Ask a peer (not just your boss) to try using the report. If they can’t figure it out in 3 minutes, simplify.
Step 5: Present Insights, Not Just Numbers
This is where most marketers drop the ball. A report isn’t a solution—it’s a tool to spark action.
- Add a summary or commentary section. Call out the “so what?”
- Highlight trends, outliers, or weird stuff worth digging into.
- Suggest next steps (“Let’s double down on LinkedIn; email isn’t converting”).
Don’t just drop a link in Slack and call it a day. Walk people through what matters.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
What works: - Start with a clear question. - Keep reports short and focused. - Combine data sources for the full picture.
What doesn’t: - Overloading with metrics “just in case.” - Ignoring data quality—garbage in, garbage out. - Making something so complex nobody uses it.
What to ignore: - Most “AI-powered insights” are just basic correlations dressed up. Trust your gut, not auto-generated recommendations. - Templates that don’t fit your funnel. Customize or start from scratch.
Keep It Simple, and Iterate
Custom reports in Copy aren’t magic, but they are practical if you stay focused. Don’t try to build a report for every possible scenario all at once. Start with one or two that answer real business questions. Share them, get feedback, and tweak as you go. The best reports are living documents—not shrines to your data.
Focus on clarity, not flashiness. If your report helps someone make a better decision, you’ve done your job.
Now go build something useful.