If you’re responsible for tracking or reporting sales, you already know the drill: someone wants a “detailed quarterly sales report,” and you’re stuck piecing together numbers from multiple places, trying to make it all make sense. If you’re using Scoreboardbuzz, you might’ve heard it can make this easier. The good news? It can—if you know how to set it up right. The bad news: it’s easy to get lost in filters and charts that look nice but say nothing.
This guide is for anyone who needs to turn messy sales data into something that actually tells a story—without wasting hours fiddling with settings. Let’s walk through the steps, point out what matters (and what doesn’t), and help you get reports that people actually use.
Step 1: Make Sure Your Sales Data Is Actually in Scoreboardbuzz
Before you even think about quarterly reports, check your data. This sounds obvious, but it’s where most headaches start.
- Connect your sources: Scoreboardbuzz can pull from CRMs, spreadsheets, or direct imports. Don’t just assume the integration is working—double check that sales from all channels are showing up.
- Check date formats: If your imported dates are a mess, your quarterly results will be too. Make sure date fields are in a standard format (YYYY-MM-DD is safest).
- Spot-check for gaps: Pull up a few recent deals or transactions and make sure nothing’s missing or duplicated.
Pro tip: If you’re merging data from multiple places, set aside 10 minutes to review a sample. A little paranoia here saves hours of cleanup later.
Step 2: Choose (and Name) the Right Metrics
Scoreboardbuzz offers a dizzying number of metrics. Don’t get distracted by vanity stats. Stick to the basics unless there’s a business reason to go deeper.
For most quarterly sales reports, you want:
- Total sales (revenue)
- Number of deals/transactions
- Average deal size
- Sales by product, region, or rep (if relevant)
- Win rate (if you’re tracking opportunities)
What to skip: “Engagement,” “pipeline velocity,” or anything you can’t tie to real sales outcomes. Unless your boss specifically wants these, leave them out.
Naming matters: Rename metrics in Scoreboardbuzz so they make sense to your audience. “Closed-Won Amount” is clearer than “CW Rev QTD.”
Step 3: Set Up Quarterly Time Frames
Scoreboardbuzz lets you define custom reporting periods. Don’t just use their default quarters—they might not match your company’s fiscal calendar.
- Check your quarter definitions: Is your Q1 Jan–Mar, or does your company use a weird fiscal year?
- Set custom dates: In the date filter, set the exact start and end dates for the quarter you want.
- Save the view: If you’ll need this every quarter, save your custom time frame as a preset.
Pro tip: Label your saved views with the year and quarter (e.g., “2024 Q2”) to avoid confusion later.
Step 4: Build and Customize Your Report
Now for the meat of it: getting your metrics onto a report that makes sense.
a. Start with a Clean Slate
- Use a blank report, not a pre-built template. Templates are often cluttered with extras you don’t need.
b. Add Your Chosen Metrics
- Drag and drop total sales, deal count, average deal size, and any breakdowns you need.
- Group by product, region, or rep only if it helps answer real questions.
- Keep charts simple. Bar or line charts work best for trends. Skip pie charts unless you want people to squint at tiny slices.
c. Add Filters
- Filter by date (your custom quarter).
- Filter out test data or canceled deals.
- Apply any other filters your team cares about (e.g., only deals above $1,000).
d. Tweak Layout and Labels
- Move the most important metrics to the top.
- Use plain-English labels.
- Add a one-sentence description for each chart if it isn’t self-explanatory.
What to ignore: Don’t waste time making it “pretty” with fancy backgrounds or logos. People care about clear data, not design flair.
Step 5: Check (and Fix) Your Report
This is where you make sure your report isn’t accidentally lying.
- Cross-check totals: Compare Scoreboardbuzz numbers to your finance system for the same period. If they don’t match, find out why.
- Look for weird spikes or drops: Did sales suddenly triple in March? Make sure it’s real and not a data glitch.
- Check filters again: It’s easy to accidentally filter out half your sales. Double-check.
- Ask a teammate to review: A second pair of eyes catches mistakes you’ll miss.
If something looks off, dig into your data sources and filters before sharing the report. People remember the first number they see—don’t make it a wrong one.
Step 6: Share and Schedule Your Report
No one wants to hunt through yet another dashboard. Make it easy for your audience.
- Export to PDF or Excel: Scoreboardbuzz lets you export reports. PDF is good for execs; Excel is better if people want to play with the data.
- Automate delivery: You can schedule Scoreboardbuzz to email the report every quarter. Set it and forget it (but check after the first run).
- Control access: Don’t share sensitive sales data with everyone. Use Scoreboardbuzz’s permissions to lock things down.
Pro tip: Add a summary page or bullet points at the top with the quarter’s headline numbers. Most people won’t read past that.
Step 7: Review and Improve Next Quarter
Your first report probably won’t be perfect, and that’s fine.
- Collect feedback: Ask your audience what was useful or confusing. Did they ignore a section? Cut it.
- Refine metrics: If a number never changes, or no one cares, drop it. If something’s missing, add it.
- Document your steps: Keep a quick checklist of how you built the report. It’ll save you time next quarter.
What not to do: Don’t try to cram in every possible analysis “just in case.” More data isn’t better—clear, relevant data is.
Common Pitfalls (and How to Avoid Them)
- Chasing “insights” instead of facts: It’s tempting to look for patterns or trends that aren’t really there. Stick to what the numbers actually show.
- Overcomplicating charts: If you can’t explain a chart in one sentence, it’s too complicated.
- Ignoring data hygiene: Garbage in, garbage out. Always check your data first.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Detailed quarterly sales reports don’t have to be a slog—or a mess of irrelevant charts. Focus on clean data, the right metrics, and a layout that’s easy to read. Don’t stress about getting it perfect the first time. Build your report, share it, see what people actually use, and make it better next time. That’s how you get reports people actually trust (and maybe even read).