How to Share a Report in Salesforce

Introduction

Salesforce is a robust CRM software for managing customers, sales, and performance. Salesforce’s powerful reporting features let customers build thorough reports to analyze their data. Sharing these reports helps teams collaborate and make smart decisions. Learn How to Share a Report in Salesforce to help your team better analyze data.

This blog post explains Salesforce report sharing. Salesforce report essentials, prerequisites for sharing, step-by-step instructions, advanced sharing choices, recommended practices, and common challenges will be covered. Please read our new blog on how to export salesforce report to excel.

Understanding Salesforce Reports

Users may analyze, evaluate, and display Salesforce database data via customizable Salesforce reports. These reports teach Businesses about sales, consumer behavior, and operational effectiveness. Salesforce reports aim to inform strategic planning and decision-making with actionable insights.

Types of Reports in Salesforce

Salesforce has different kinds of reports that can be used for various types of analysis:

Tabular Reports: These are the most basic types of reports; they show data as tables. They work great for simple lists of records, like contact lists or listings of products.

Summary Reports: User-groupable reports provide subtotals and summaries for each row group. They help analyze regional or departmental sales data.

Matrix Reports: Matrix presentations arrange data by rows and columns, showing more complex data intersections. These are useful for comparing sales by product category and salesperson.

Joined Reports: Users can compare related but distinct data sets using joined reports. They aid thorough analytics like sales-customer support comparisons.

Examples of Scenarios Where Sharing Reports is Crucial

The following situations require Salesforce report sharing for teamwork and decision-making:

Sales Team Performance: The sales manager gives the team performance reviews that show what they’ve done well, what they could do better, and their future goals.

Marketing Campaign Analysis: Marketing teams share reports on campaign performance to compare different tactics and better use their resources.

Customer Support Metrics: Customer service managers share help case reports to monitor response times, see how many problems are solved, and make customers happier.

Financial Reporting: To be open, keep track of costs, and make budgets, finance teams share financial reports with everyone who needs to see them.

Salesforce users can improve their analytical skills and business results by understanding report kinds and when to share them.

Pre-requisites for Sharing Reports

User Permissions and Roles Required to Share Reports

Before sharing a Salesforce report, you must understand user rights and roles. Salesforce uses role-based access control; thus, sharing reports requires certain permissions. Important permissions:

• “Run Reports” Permission allows people to see and run results. Without this ability, users can’t access the report or share it.
• “Manage Reports in Public Folders” Permission: This is needed to manage reports in public files and share them with other users.
• “Modify All Data” Permission: Users and administrators with this ability can see and share all reports, no matter how the folder is set up.

Roles provide users authority to distribute reports. Administrators, managers, and team leads usually have these permissions to share important reports.

Ensuring Report Folder Permissions are Correctly Set

Salesforce report folders restrict report access. Make sure report folder permissions are set before sharing. How to do this:

• Navigate to the Reports Tab: From the Salesforce home screen, go to the Reports tab.
• Access Folder Management: Click on the folder icon to get to the Folder Management page.
• Set Folder Permissions: Pick out the box with the report you want to share. To change who can see an area, click the “Share” button.
• Choose Sharing Settings: The folder can be shared with general groups, roles, or users. For each, set the right amount of access (Viewer, Editor, or Manager).

Setting folder permissions ensures that only allowed users can see and share the reports inside those folders, protecting the integrity and security of the data.

Overview of Report Visibility and Access Settings

Effective report sharing requires understanding report visibility and access options. Salesforce has many settings to restrict report viewing and interaction:

• Public Reports: All users with “Run Reports” can see public folder reports. However, sharing settings in these folders can limit report viewing and modification.
• Private Reports: Only the report creator can access private folder reports. These reports must be moved to a public folder or specifically shared with other users.
• Custom Report Types: Custom report types let you develop data-model-based reports. Make sure these custom kinds’ visibility settings meet your sharing needs.

Management of report visibility and access settings protects sensitive data and allows collaboration by controlling who sees and interacts with reports.

Steps to Share a Report in Salesforce

Step 1: Navigate to the Reports Tab

Before sharing a report in Salesforce, go to your homepage and click the Reports tab. How to do it:

• Log in to Salesforce: Sign in to your Salesforce account first.
• Locate the Reports Tab: Search for the “Reports” tab on the Salesforce home screen. Most of the time, you can find this tab on the top menu bar.

If you click on the files tab, you’ll be taken to the home page for Reports, where you can see all of your saved files.

Step 2: Select the Report to Share

Here are some ways to find the report you want to share once you’re in the Reports tab:

• Browse Through Folders: If you put your reports into folders, you must go through them to find the report you want.
• Use the Search Functionality: Use the search bar at the top of the Reports home page to get things done quickly. To find a report soon, type in words linked to its name.

There are many reports, so using the search tool will help you quickly find the one you need.

Step 3: Share the Report

Find the report you want to share, and then follow these specific steps to do it:

• Click on the Report: To open the report, click on its name.
• Use the ‘Share’ Button or Link: Once the report is open, the “Share” button or link is in the upper right corner of most report pages.

Select the Sharing Method:

• User: Type in the names of the people you want to share the report with.
• Role: If you share the report with a certain job, everyone in that role can see it.
• Group: Report to an open group of people in your company.

Set the Access Level:

• Viewer: People can look at the report but can’t change it.
• Editor: The report can be seen and altered by users.
• Manager: Users can see, change, and handle the report’s share settings.
• Confirm and Save: Once you’ve chosen the sharing method and level of access, you can confirm your decisions and save the changes.

If you follow these steps, sharing reports in Salesforce will go smoothly, and the right people will get the necessary information.

Best Practices for Sharing Reports

Ensuring Data Privacy and Security While Sharing Reports

It’s very important to put data safety and security first when sharing reports in Salesforce. Here are some things you should do:

• Limit Access to Sensitive Data: Ensure that reports with private information can only be seen by those who can. Use role-based rights to decide who can see or change certain reports.
• Encrypt Data: Salesforce’s data encryption safeguards sensitive data at rest and in transit, keeping intercepted data illegible to unauthorized users.
• Audit Trails: Allow audit trails to track report access and changes. This will show report usage and identify unauthorized changes.
• Secure Sharing Methods: Share reports via email or secure with encrypted attachments. Avoid sending important reports using unprotected channels.

Regularly Updating Access Permissions

Access permissions must be updated regularly to protect data and restrict report access. Effective access permission management:

• Review Access Regularly: Check user access permissions periodically to verify they reflect current roles and responsibilities.
• Remove Inactive Users: Remove access from former employees and change positions immediately.
• Update Role Hierarchies: Change role hierarchies to reflect organizational changes. This matches permissions to user roles.
• Use Permission Sets: Permission sets manage access instead of user permissions, making permission updates easier and more flexible.

Monitoring Report Usage and Access

Monitor report usage and access to ensure security and optimize report sharing. Effective monitoring strategies:

• Enable Report Analytics: Track report usage with Salesforce’s report analytics tools. Monitor which reports are accessed most often and by whom.
• Set up Alerts: Use alerts to notify administrators of anomalous report access or security breaches. For example, an alarm can be raised if a user rarely needs sensitive data and repeatedly accesses a report.
• Regular Audits: Audit report access and usage regularly to find anomalies and security threats. Audits assure data privacy and organizational policy compliance.
• Feedback Mechanism: User feedback on report access issues should be implemented. This helps find and fix security holes quickly.

Salesforce report sharing best practices protect data, secure data, and streamline access control. Organizations may protect sensitive data and optimize report sharing by prioritizing data security, updating access permissions, and monitoring report usage. These recommended practices boost data security and encourage collaboration and knowledge.