Salesforce How to - Create Custom Report Types

Summary

Salesforce uses report types to join objects together in a way to allow reports to be created.  Salesforce has a number of report types setup already and most reports can be generated using one of these, however sometimes there is a need to create a new report type.

In this example sales wanted a report to show all plots for their region with the following fields:

• Number of Bedrooms
• Release Status
• Forecast Legal Completion 
• List Price

To produce a report with the above, we need to include fields from three objects:

• Developments
• Plots
• Opportunities

The report types that existed joined the Plot and the Opportunity enforcing that all plots must have an Opportunity which meant that this would exclude records which Sales wanted to include.

To create a new Custom Report Type:

Login to Salesforce

Click the Setup option at the top of the page

In the Quick Search box type in "Report Types" and click through to the setup page.

If you have not used this before you may see the intro screen below

Click "Continue" to go through to the main Report Type page.

This page shows a list of the Custom Form Types which can be cloned or you can start a new one.

Click "New Custom Report Type"

Complete the fields on the next screen.

While testing a new report type it is best to choose the Development option which ensures it is not available to most users.

On this screen you need to choose the other objects which you need for the report and the relationship for the purpose of the report.

In this example, we are starting with Developments and the secondary object is Plots.  When choosing the "A to B Relationship" it is important to understand if you want to include all records from the primary object even if they do not have a matching record in the secondary object.

In the case for Sales, the requirement was for all developments and plots to have to have an associated record but for Plots to not require an Opportunity so the relationship looked like the below.

Once you have set the relationships, click save.  The report type should now be available to choose when creating a new report but only for Systems Administrators.

Test out the new Custom REport Type works as anticipated by creating a report using this type.  Once you are happy with it, go back into the report type and change it to "Deployed"