If you’ve ever worked in PPC, you’ll know that reporting is part of the job—whether it’s for a client, a manager, or your own campaign analysis. Yet, despite its importance, reporting often feels like a manual time drain, pulling you away from more valuable strategic work like A/B testing, conversion path analysis, and keeping up with platform changes.
Manual reporting is also prone to human error. Copying and pasting rows of campaign data from multiple sources into Excel is tedious, and worse, it increases the risk of inaccuracies—something no PPC’er wants to explain in a review call.
So what’s the alternative?
Enter Executive Reporting in Search Ads 360 (formerly DoubleClick Search)—an automated, scalable solution that replaces the manual slog with directly integrated, client-ready visuals.
From Manual to Managed: Reporting Reinvented
Previously, tools like AdWords’ Client Reporting offered a step in the right direction, but still required the old copy-paste routine. Even Web Queries in DS helped reduce effort, yet reports still relied on Excel pivot tables and constant vigilance.
With Executive Reporting, those limitations disappear.
Key Features
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Real-time data pulls: Graphs and tables update directly from the platform
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No external templates required: Reports are built within DS itself
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Quick set-up: Initial configuration takes under an hour
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Flexible date ranges: Easily update for daily, weekly, or monthly views
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Campaign-level labels: Allow for granular segmentation by category or network
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Direct sharing: Reports can be accessed via Google Docs, reducing email back-and-forth
Once your layout is set—aligned to the KPIs your client cares about—you simply update the date filters and hit download. The output? A clean Excel file that’s ready for distribution in minutes.
Pros: Why Executive Reporting Works
Time-Saving
Executive Reporting frees up valuable hours every week. That time can now be spent generating strategic insights, not formatting rows in Excel.
Accuracy
With data pulling straight from the source, there’s less risk of error. No more manual number transfers or missed updates.
Efficiency
Smaller file sizes, dynamic updates, and the option to share instantly from the interface—workflow made simple.
Cons: Where It Could Improve
The only real downside? Design flexibility is limited. While you can add a logo, colour customisation and table formatting must be handled after download, in Excel.
For most practically minded PPC professionals, the default format is more than acceptable. But for teams who pride themselves on visually polished reporting, a few extra minutes may be needed to dress up the final document.
It’s an area DS could definitely improve—offering more custom branding and styling options would create a more complete experience for both analytical and creative stakeholders.
Final Word
Executive Reporting in DS represents a smarter, faster way to deliver PPC reports. By automating the tedious parts, it allows marketers to focus on what matters most: insights, performance, and growth.
