As a Brisbane business owner, your time is your most valuable asset. Manually exporting data from Facebook Ads, Google Analytics, and your CRM into messy spreadsheets isn't just tedious—it’s a recipe for human error and outdated insights. Automated reporting dashboards transform raw data into a visual story, allowing you to make faster decisions and keep stakeholders informed without lifting a finger every Monday morning.
In this guide, we will focus on using Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio). It is a free, powerful tool that integrates seamlessly with the Google stack and is the industry standard for Australian SMEs.
Prerequisites
Before we dive in, ensure you have the following:- A Google Account (Workplace or Gmail).
- Administrator access to your Google Analytics 4 (GA4) property.
- Admin access to your Google Ads account (if applicable).
- View/Admin access to your Facebook Business Manager (for social data).
- A clear list of the 3-5 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) your stakeholders actually care about.
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Step 1: Define Your Stakeholders and Their Needs
Before touching any software, identify who is reading the report. A Marketing Manager needs granular data (click-through rates, cost-per-click), whereas a CEO or Business Owner usually only cares about high-level outcomes (total leads, return on ad spend, and cost per acquisition). Pro Tip: Don't clutter the dashboard. If you try to show everything, you end up showing nothing.Step 2: Access Looker Studio
Navigate to lookerstudio.google.com. Log in with the Google account that has access to your marketing platforms.- Screenshot Description: You should see a clean dashboard with a "Create" button in the top left and several templates in a gallery at the top.
Step 3: Create a New Data Source
Click the + Create button and select Data Source. This is where you tell Looker Studio where to pull the information from.Start with Google Analytics 4. Select the GA4 connector, choose your Account, and then select the specific Property for your Brisbane business. Click Connect in the top right corner.
Step 4: Review Your Fields
You will see a list of every metric (numbers) and dimension (categories like 'City' or 'Source') available. For most Australian small businesses, the default settings are perfect. Ensure that metrics like "Transactions" or "Conversions" are mapped correctly. Click Create Report to start the canvas.Step 5: Set Your Canvas Size and Theme
Marketing reports look best when they match your brand.- Go to the Theme and Layout panel on the right.
- Select a theme (the 'Edge' or 'Constellation' themes are professional and easy to read).
- Under 'Layout', set the Header Visibility to 'Always Show' to ensure your logo and date range are always visible.
Step 6: Add a Date Range Control
This is the most important interactive element.- Click Add a control in the top toolbar.
- Select Date range control.
- Place it in the top right corner.
This allows stakeholders to toggle between "Last 30 Days," "This Quarter," or "Financial Year to Date" (crucial for Australian tax cycles).
Step 7: Add Scorecards for High-Level KPIs
Scorecards are single numbers that show the big picture.- Click Add a chart > Scorecard.
- Drag it onto the canvas.
- In the 'Setup' tab on the right, ensure the 'Metric' is something meaningful, like Total Users or Conversions.
- Check the Comparison date range box and set it to 'Previous period'. This shows a green or red percentage change compared to the previous month.
Step 8: Visualising Trends with Time Series Charts
Stakeholders love to see growth over time.- Click Add a chart > Time Series Chart.
- Set the Dimension to 'Date' and the Metric to 'Conversions' or 'Revenue'.
- Screenshot Description: You should see a line graph showing the peaks and valleys of your performance throughout the month.
Step 9: Connecting Non-Google Data (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn)
Google doesn't provide free native connectors for Meta (Facebook/Instagram). To get this data into your automated dashboard, you have two choices:- Option A (Paid): Use a third-party connector like Supermetrics or Windsor.ai.
- Option B (Free): Use a Google Sheets add-on to export Facebook data to a sheet, then connect that sheet to Looker Studio.
For most local businesses, starting with a Google Sheets connection is the most cost-effective way to track social spend alongside Google results.
Step 10: Add a Table for Granular Detail
While scorecards are great for CEOs, your team might want to see which specific pages or ads are performing.- Click Add a chart > Table.
- Set the Dimension to 'Page title' or 'Session source/medium'.
- Set the Metrics to 'Views', 'Bounce Rate', and 'Conversions'.
Step 11: Style Your Dashboard
Add your business logo by clicking the Image icon in the toolbar. Use the Shape tool to create headers or background blocks to group related data (e.g., a blue block for 'Website Traffic' and a green block for 'Sales Data').Step 12: Set Up Automated Email Delivery
This is the "automated" part of automated reporting.- Click the Share button arrow in the top right.
- Select Schedule delivery.
- Enter the email addresses of your stakeholders.
- Set the frequency (e.g., Every Monday at 8:00 AM).
Now, Looker Studio will send a PDF version of the live dashboard to their inbox automatically.
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Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Too Many Pages: Keep it to 1-2 pages. If it’s longer, people won't read it.
- Missing Context: A drop in traffic might be due to a public holiday (like the Ekka in Brisbane). Use the 'Text' tool to add a small "Monthly Commentary" box where you can manually type in context each month.
- Data Mismatch: Always compare your Looker Studio numbers with the source (GA4) during the initial setup to ensure the filters are working correctly.
Troubleshooting
- "Data Set Configuration Error": This usually means you’ve lost permission to the data source. Try refreshing the data fields or re-authorising the connection.
- The Dashboard is Slow: If you are pulling data from 10 different sources, the report may lag. Try using 'Data Extraction' to create a faster, static snapshot of the data.
- Numbers Don't Match Facebook: Remember that Facebook and Google use different 'Attribution Models'. Facebook often claims more credit for conversions than Google Analytics does.
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Next Steps
Once your dashboard is live, your next task is to use that data to improve your ROI. If you notice a high bounce rate on your landing pages or your cost-per-lead is creeping up, it’s time to technicalise your strategy.Need help setting up complex tracking or integrating your CRM data? We specialise in helping Brisbane businesses make sense of their numbers. Contact the Local Marketing Group team today for a professional analytics audit.