Data links to insights * super important*
Overview
We know that you'll likely want to capture different feedback depending on the types of missions you are listing to your volunteers. Our custom reports feature enables you to do just that! So read on to discover how you can customise and control the feedback that you're getting from your volunteer reports.
Create a report template
Firstly, you'll need to create a report template.
Open the "Missions" page on the left-hand side of the Staff Dashboard.
Open the tab labelled "Report Templates".
Press the "+ Template" button.
Template Name
Next, you'll be prompted to give your report template a name and an optional (internal) description. Ensure that you're naming your report template to reflect the type of report you're capturing. E.g., 'Befriending report', 'Workshop delivery report', 'Fundraising report', etc.
Once you've given the report template a name, hit 'Start Template Creation'.
Adding and Customising Questions
This would then bring you to a blank report. Head into the 'Question Bank' in the top right corner, and hit 'Create question'. In here, you'll find a whole range of question types available.
Click into the question type you’d like to use and start customising your question.
In the ‘Label’ field, type the question you want to ask.
In the ‘Description’ field, include any additional information or context to help clarify the question.
You can also choose to toggle on ‘Available in the question bank’. This will store the question in the Question Bank.
This is especially useful for questions you plan to reuse across multiple reports, for example, a question that captures volunteering hours. Reusing the same question (rather than creating variations of it) helps ensure your data is consistent and accurately reflects total volunteering hours.
Some question types include data links; see more information on these below.
For certain question types, such as Toggle Switch and Dropdown, you can enable email alerts to receive reports based on volunteer responses.
Please note that email alert notifications depend on staff user roles and group access. These settings can be managed in the Email Notifications section of your profile.
File Upload: This field allows volunteers to upload documents or images directly to their report. If you need multiple files, we recommend adding several File Upload fields and clearly specifying what you’re asking for in each one. This question type is also great for encouraging volunteers to share photos of themselves in action.
Rich Text: This field is great for adding your logo to personalise and brand your reports. You can also use it to include a title, introductory message, or any other text you’d like to display.
Once you're happy with your report, don't forget to hit 'Apply Changes'.
Data Links ⚠️Super Important⚠️
You may have noticed that some question types include a ‘Data Link’ field. This ensures that key metrics are accurately captured in your Insights. Connecting your questions in this way helps make sure that data on volunteer time, call time, client happiness, and mission completed is recorded correctly, and saves you a headache later on!
Read our FAQ's here on data link set-up.
Editing Custom Reports
Reordering Questions: To reorder a question, hover over the question you’d like to move and click the grid icon at the top centre of the question. Then, drag and drop the question to your desired position.
Answer Required: To make a question mandatory (so volunteers cannot submit the report without answering it), hover over the question and select the ‘Answer Required’ box in the top-right corner.
Editing Questions: To edit a question, hover over it and click ‘Edit’. Make your changes, then save them as needed.
Deleting Questions: To delete a question from your report template, hover over it and click ‘Remove’.
Link a report to a mission template
Once you’re happy with your custom report template, you’ll need to link it to a mission template. To do this:
Click into the relevant mission template. If you're making one from scratch, please see our Mission Template Article.
In the Report Template section, select the corresponding report template
Hit 'Apply changes'.
Your mission template will now pull through the corresponding custom report, so it appears automatically in your volunteers’ missions.
View and export reports
To view all your reports, head to the Missions section on the left-hand side of your staff dashboard, then open the ‘Reports’ tab at the top. Here, you can see all the reports submitted across your missions.
To view reports linked to a specific mission, go to the Missions section on the left-hand side of your dashboard, open the relevant mission, and then click the ‘Reports’ tab on the left. Here, you’ll find all reports associated with that mission. Select ‘View full report’ to see the complete version.
Information linked to data fields within Volunteero, such as volunteering time, missions completed, and actionable reports, will be captured in the Insights page of your Volunteero dashboard.
Any custom questions without a data link can be exported from the Reports tab for further data analysis outside of Volunteero.
Export reports
Use the 'export to Excel' function to download all of your custom reports from Volunteero.
Watch Tutorial - How to create Custom Reports
As always, if you require any further assistance with this, please use the support button in your Staff Dashboard or email us at support@volunteero.org. Our team will be happy to help!😊