As the name suggests, Custom Date Ranges (CDR) allow you to monitor your data for a specific time period, defined by simply selecting a start and end date.
To build CDR, we re-architected and rebuilt the majority of our application. This new architecture has enabled us to roll out additional UI/UX enhancements for all customers and will enable us to rapidly develop additional improvements to Databox in the future.
Custom Date Ranges are available on the Professional and higher plans. Request a trial of Custom Date Ranges by following these steps.
IN THIS DOCUMENT
- What are Custom Date Ranges?
- Which features/ improvements are available for CDR-compliant Data Sources?
- How to use Custom Date Ranges
What are Custom Date Ranges?
Custom Date Ranges allow you to define your own Date Range by selecting the start and end dates, Custom Rolling Date Ranges, more specific comparison Date Ranges, fiscal calendars, and more. In short, you are no longer limited to pre-defined Date Ranges.
Which features/ improvements are available for CDR-compliant Data Sources?
IN THIS SECTION
- Rolling Date Ranges, previous periods, future Date Ranges, fiscal calendars
- Additional options for comparison periods to see % change in your performance
- Ability to select any Date Range while viewing Databoards and the Metrics Screen
- Ability to share a Databoard with any Date Range selected
- Quicker setup of Custom Metrics and Databoards, since you won’t have to pre-select multiple Date Ranges
Rolling Date Ranges, previous periods, future Date Ranges, fiscal calendars
The option to select Custom Date Ranges gives you more freedom in your reporting capabilities.
- Rolling Date Ranges: With Rolling Date Ranges you can specify date ranges that keep you up-to-date over time. The results are based on the day you run the report. You’re now able to set a Date Range for the last ‘optional number’ of days, and your chart will always show the results of the past ‘optional number’ of days.
For example, let’s say you have a 30-day sales cycle. You’d like to track your CRM “Deals Created’” in the last 120 days, but exclude ‘Deals Created’ in the last 30 days since they are unlikely to have closed. In this case, you would set the Date Range to a Custom Date Range with a Start Date of 120 Days ago and an End Date of 30 days ago, and then select “Rolling Date Range.”
- Future Date Ranges: Future Date Ranges will help you visualize your forecasts and models. This will help you to see the number of deals that are forecasted to close in the coming weeks or months and project future performance alongside actual performance and your bottoms-up forecasts.
- Fiscal Calendars: For larger enterprises that operate on a fiscal calendar, you are able to visualize all of your business data based on your fiscal calendar. Learn more about Fiscal Calendar support here.
Options for comparison periods to see % change in your performance
In the Comparison drop-down, you can choose the period or metric you'd like to compare to.
- Previous comparison periods include Previous Period and Same Period X Ago.
- Custom comparison periods allow you to set the start and end dates and choose whether it's a rolling range.
- Other comparison periods allow you to compare to a Goal.
Ability to select any Date Range while viewing Databoards and the Metrics Screen
All Date Ranges and the option to select a Custom Date Range are available for Metrics that support Custom Date Ranges.
If your Databoard or Metrics screen includes any metrics that are not (yet) CDR-compliant, choosing a Custom Date Range will result in no data being returned. No data being returned can also happen with CDR-enabled Metrics if data isn’t available due to the inability to sync historical data (learn more here).
Ability to share a Databoard with any Date Range selected
Custom Date Ranges also opens new possibilities when using the Shareable Link or opening your Databoard in Preview mode.
While viewers of the Shareable Link were already able to switch between Date Ranges, they were only allowed to choose between the Date Ranges that you selected when setting up the Databoard.
When viewing Databoards via the Shareable Link, users can choose from any Date Range (including Custom Date Ranges) in individual Datablocks or the Master Date Range Switcher.
Pro Tip: To restrict the ability to view additional Date Ranges for users who are not logged in to Databox, navigate to Share > Additional Settings and select the corresponding checkbox to Restrict ability to view additional Date Ranges for external viewer.
When a user viewing the Shareable Link changes the Date Range of a Datablock or Databoard they're viewing, we'll store this information on the backend so if the viewer shares the Shareable Link, the Databoard will open up identical as it was for the viewer that has shared it. This will not impact the way the Databoard is set in your Databox Account.
No need to select specific Date Ranges for Custom Metrics or Databoards
When setting up a Databoard in the Designer, you just need to select one Date Range for each Datablock. This is the "Primary Date Range" and is what the Databoard will first load to.
All other additional Date Ranges can be selected when viewing the Databoard. This is the case for all Metrics (Basic, Custom, and Calculated).
How to use Custom Date Ranges
Learn how to use Custom Date Ranges with the new Date Range updates here.