Automated Reporting

Keeping clients and stakeholders informed about SEO performance is essential, but manually generating and sending reports every week can drain valuable time from strategic work. NitroShock's automated reporting feature lets you schedule automatic rank tracking reports to be sent daily, weekly, or monthly via email, PDF, or API integration. Set it up once, and your reports generate and deliver themselves on your chosen schedule.

This guide walks through setting up automated reports for rank tracking data, configuring schedules that match your reporting cadence, customizing what gets included, and choosing the right delivery method for your workflow.

Setting up reports

Automated reports in NitroShock are configured at the project level, allowing you to create different reporting schedules for different clients or websites. Each automated report draws from your rank tracking data and generates on your specified schedule without any manual intervention.

Accessing the Reports interface

To create an automated report:

1. Navigate to your Account Dashboard and select the project you want to create reports for
2. Open the Reports tab in the project dashboard
3. Click + New Automated Report in the top right

The automated report configuration screen displays all available options for scheduling, content, and delivery.

Configuring basic report settings

Start by defining the fundamental parameters for your automated report:

Report name: Choose a descriptive name that indicates the project, frequency, and recipient. For example: "Client ABC Weekly Rankings" or "Homepage Daily Tracking". This name appears in your reports list and helps you manage multiple automated reports across different projects.

Report type: Select Position Tracking as the report type. While NitroShock offers other report types (Site Audit, Backlinks, AI Mentions), automated scheduling is particularly valuable for rank tracking where positions change frequently and stakeholders expect regular updates.

Branding profile: Choose which white-label branding profile to apply to this report. If you've set up custom branding in Account Dashboard → Branding, select the appropriate profile here. This applies your custom logo, color scheme, contact information, and company details to the generated PDF. If you haven't configured branding yet, the report uses NitroShock's default styling.

Selecting tracked keywords

You can configure automated reports to include all tracked keywords in the project or filter to specific subsets:

All keywords: Includes every keyword you're tracking in this project's Rank Tracker tab. This option works well for comprehensive monthly reports or when you're tracking a focused set of high-priority terms.

Keyword filters: Apply filters to include only keywords matching specific criteria:

• Search intent: Filter by informational, navigational, commercial, or transactional intent
• Position range: Include only keywords ranking in specific position ranges (e.g., positions 1-10, 11-20, or 21-50)
• Target: If you've set up multiple tracking targets in your project, filter to keywords tracked for specific URLs
• Location: Filter to keywords tracked in specific geographic locations
• Device type: Include only desktop or mobile tracking results

Keyword tags: If you've organized your keywords with custom tags in the Rank Tracker (useful for grouping by content category, product line, or campaign), you can filter automated reports to include only keywords with specific tags.

Filtering options help you create specialized reports. For example, you might send a daily report of top 10 positions to a client focused on maintaining rankings, while scheduling a weekly report of positions 11-50 for content strategists identifying optimization opportunities.

Configuring tracking targets

If your project tracks multiple URLs or locations (set up as different tracking targets), specify which targets to include in the automated report:

• All targets: Includes data from every tracking target in the project
• Specific targets: Select individual targets to include, useful when different stakeholders need different URL performance data

Each tracking target can have its own keyword set and competitor list, so target selection significantly affects report content.

Including competitor data

Your automated reports can include competitor ranking data for comparison:

Competitor domains: Select which of your configured competitor domains (up to 5 per target) to include in the report. The generated PDF shows competitor positions alongside your own rankings for each keyword.

Competitor comparison charts: Enable this option to include visualized comparisons showing position distribution differences between your site and competitors. These charts make it easy to identify keywords where competitors outrank you or where you've gained ground.

Including competitor data provides context for your position changes. A drop from position 3 to position 4 looks different when you see a competitor jumped from position 8 to position 2 on the same keyword.

Credit usage for automated reports

Each automated report generation uses credits when it runs. The exact credit cost depends on how many keywords are included in the report and whether competitor data is included. Before confirming your automated report setup, NitroShock displays the estimated credit cost per report generation.

Since automated reports run on schedule without manual approval, ensure your account maintains sufficient credit balance. You can enable low balance notifications in Account Dashboard → Settings → Notifications to receive alerts when credits run low.

Schedule options

NitroShock offers flexible scheduling options to match your reporting cadence and stakeholder needs. Each automated report runs independently, so you can create multiple reports with different schedules for the same project.

Daily reports

Daily automated reports generate every day at your specified time and include the most recent rank tracking data available.

Best use cases for daily reports:

• High-priority campaigns where positions change rapidly
• Competitive industries where monitoring daily fluctuations matters
• Launch periods for new content or optimization work
• Executive dashboards requiring up-to-date metrics

Configuration options:

• Time of day: Select the hour (in your account timezone) when the report should generate. Choose a time after your scheduled rank checks complete. For example, if you run daily rank checks at 8:00 AM, schedule report generation for 9:00 AM to ensure fresh data is included.
• Weekdays only: Enable this option to skip weekend report generation, useful when stakeholders don't review reports on weekends.

Keep in mind that daily reports consume credits daily. For projects with hundreds of tracked keywords, daily reporting can use substantial credits. Consider whether stakeholders actually need daily updates or if weekly would suffice.

Weekly reports

Weekly automated reports generate once per week on your chosen day, providing a snapshot of weekly performance and changes.

Best use cases for weekly reports:

• Standard client reporting cadence for most SEO engagements
• Internal team reviews and strategy sessions
• Balanced frequency that shows meaningful trends without excessive noise
• Most cost-effective option for maintaining regular communication

Configuration options:

• Day of week: Select which day the report should generate (Monday through Sunday)
• Time of day: Choose the generation time
• Week definition: Specify whether your week starts on Sunday or Monday for historical data comparisons included in the report

Weekly reports typically show position changes compared to the previous week, making them ideal for identifying trends while filtering out daily volatility.

Monthly reports

Monthly automated reports generate once per month on your specified date, providing comprehensive performance summaries.

Best use cases for monthly reports:

• Executive summaries and high-level performance reviews
• Retainer reporting to clients with monthly billing cycles
• Long-term trend analysis and strategy evaluation
• Complementing more frequent internal tracking with formal monthly documentation

Configuration options:

• Day of month: Select which day (1-31) the report should generate. If you select day 29, 30, or 31, reports for months without that day generate on the last available day of that month.
• Time of day: Choose the generation time

Monthly reports include extended historical comparisons, showing position changes over the full month and comparing current performance to the previous month.

Custom scheduling

For advanced scheduling needs, use Custom Schedule to define specific intervals:

• Every X days: Generate reports every 3 days, 10 days, or any custom interval
• Specific dates: Schedule reports for specific dates each month (e.g., 1st and 15th)
• Quarterly: Set up reports every 90 days for quarterly business reviews

Custom scheduling works well for reporting cycles that don't align with standard daily, weekly, or monthly patterns.

Timezone considerations

All scheduled times use your account timezone, configured in Account Dashboard → Settings → Preferences. If you're generating reports for clients in different timezones, remember that generation time refers to when the report is created and sent, not when the recipient receives it (email delivery is typically immediate, but can vary by email provider).

Report contents

Automated rank tracking reports include comprehensive position data, historical trends, and performance summaries. Understanding what's included helps you configure reports that provide maximum value to stakeholders.

Executive summary section

Every automated report begins with an executive summary providing high-level insights:

Overall performance metrics:

• Total keywords tracked
• Average position across all keywords
• Position distribution (how many keywords in positions 1-3, 4-10, 11-20, etc.)
• Overall movement trend (improving, declining, or stable)

Period-over-period comparison:

• Keywords that improved positions
• Keywords that declined positions
• Keywords with no change
• Biggest gainers and losers (keywords with the largest position changes)

Visibility score:

A calculated metric representing overall search visibility based on position and search volume. Higher positions on high-volume keywords contribute more to visibility score than lower positions on low-volume terms.

The executive summary gives recipients immediate context before diving into keyword-level details.

Keyword performance table

The core of the automated report is a detailed table showing each tracked keyword's performance:

Columns included:

• Keyword: The exact keyword phrase being tracked
• Current Position: Latest tracked position
• Previous Position: Position from the last check (daily reports) or beginning of the period (weekly/monthly reports)
• Change: Position difference, with color coding (green for improvements, red for declines)
• Search Volume: Monthly search volume for the keyword
• Search Intent: Classified intent type (informational, navigational, commercial, transactional)
• URL Ranking: Which page from your site ranks for this keyword
• SERP Features: Icons indicating which SERP features appear (Featured Snippet, People Also Ask, Local Pack, etc.)
• Competitor Positions: Positions for each included competitor domain

The table is sortable in the PDF by position, change, or search volume, and includes visual indicators for significant movements.

Historical position charts

Visual charts illustrate position trends over time:

Individual keyword charts: For each tracked keyword (or top performers if you're tracking hundreds of keywords), a line chart shows position history over the reporting period. This visualization makes it easy to spot trends, seasonal patterns, or the impact of specific optimization efforts.

Aggregate position distribution: A chart showing how your overall position distribution has changed over time. For example, you might see the percentage of keywords in positions 1-3 increasing from 15% to 22% over a month.

Visibility trend: A line chart tracking your calculated visibility score over the reporting period, providing a single metric view of overall performance.

Charts use your selected branding colors and include clear legends and axis labels.

SERP feature tracking

If your tracked keywords trigger SERP features, the automated report includes a dedicated section analyzing your presence:

• Featured Snippets: Which keywords you own featured snippets for, and which competitors own them
• People Also Ask: Keywords where you appear in PAA boxes
• Local Pack: Local search features (if tracking local keywords)
• AI Overviews: Whether your site is cited in Google AI Overviews for tracked keywords

SERP feature data helps identify opportunities beyond traditional organic rankings.

Competitor analysis section

When competitor domains are included, automated reports provide comparative analysis:

Competitive position comparison: Side-by-side position comparison for all shared keywords, highlighting where you outrank competitors and where they outrank you.

Share of voice: Calculation of estimated traffic share based on positions and search volumes for you and each competitor.

Competitive movement: Keywords where competitors made significant position changes, alerting you to increased competitive pressure or opportunities where competitors declined.

This section provides strategic context for your own position changes.

Annotations and notes

If you've added annotations in the Rank Tracker tab (useful for marking when you published new content, made technical changes, or observed algorithm updates), these annotations appear on relevant charts in automated reports, connecting position changes to their likely causes.

Customizing report sections

You can toggle specific sections on or off when configuring automated reports:

• Disable competitor sections if the report is for internal use and you don't want to focus on competition
• Hide SERP features if you're not targeting those opportunities
• Exclude historical charts for concise reports focused on current status
• Show only improved or only declined keywords to create focused optimization lists

Section customization keeps reports relevant to the specific audience receiving them.

Delivery methods

NitroShock offers multiple delivery methods for automated reports, allowing you to integrate them into your existing workflows and communication channels.

Email delivery

Email delivery sends the generated PDF report directly to specified email addresses when the report generates.

Configuring email delivery:

1. In the automated report settings, enable Email Delivery
2. Enter recipient email addresses (separate multiple addresses with commas)
3. Customize the email subject line and message body
4. Choose whether to attach the PDF or include a download link

Email customization options:

Subject line template: Use variables to create dynamic subject lines:

• {project_name}: Replaced with the project name
• {report_date}: The date covered by the report
• {period}: The reporting period (Daily, Weekly, Monthly)

Example: {project_name} - {period} Ranking Report for {report_date} becomes "Client ABC - Weekly Ranking Report for June 15, 2024"

Message body: Add context, instructions, or commentary in the email body. This might include interpretation of results, recommended actions, or context about recent optimization work.

Sender customization: If you've configured white-label branding with a custom reply-to email address, automated report emails use that address, making them appear to come from your agency rather than NitroShock.

Delivery timing: Emails typically send within minutes of report generation completing. Large reports with many keywords may take several minutes to generate before email delivery begins.

If recipient email servers have strict spam filtering, add your white-label email address (or NitroShock's sending domain) to recipient safe sender lists to ensure reliable delivery.

PDF download link

Instead of emailing the PDF directly, you can configure automated reports to generate and store the PDF, then send email notifications with download links.

Benefits of download links:

• Smaller email size (some email servers limit attachment sizes)
• Report remains accessible for a period even if the email is deleted
• Multiple stakeholders can access the same report without forwarding large attachments
• Better for recipients with limited email storage

Configuration: Enable Download Link delivery and specify how long the link remains active (options from 7 days to 90 days). After this period, the link expires for security.

Dashboard access

All automated reports (regardless of delivery method) are stored in the Reports tab of the project dashboard, creating a permanent history of generated reports.

Recipients with NitroShock accounts and access to the project can view all historical reports directly in the platform, providing context and allowing comparison across multiple reporting periods.

This delivery method works well for internal teams who are already using NitroShock and prefer accessing reports within the platform rather than managing email attachments.

API integration

For advanced integrations, NitroShock provides API access to automated report data and generation endpoints.

API delivery options:

Webhook notifications: Configure a webhook URL that receives a notification when an automated report generates. The webhook payload includes report metadata and a download URL for the generated PDF.

Direct API access: Use NitroShock's API to programmatically retrieve report data in JSON format instead of PDF, allowing you to integrate ranking data into custom dashboards, client portals, or reporting tools.

Triggering on-demand generation: While automated reports run on schedule, you can also trigger report generation via API for on-demand reporting needs.

API integration requires an API key from Account Dashboard → Settings → API Keys. Full API documentation includes authentication, endpoints, and response formats.

Multi-channel delivery

You can enable multiple delivery methods simultaneously for the same automated report. For example:

• Send email to clients for immediate visibility
• Store in dashboard for internal team access
• Send webhook notifications to update your agency's custom client portal

Combining delivery methods ensures reports reach stakeholders through their preferred channels while maintaining a centralized record.

Failed delivery handling

If email delivery fails (invalid email address, recipient server rejection, etc.), NitroShock logs the failure in the Reports tab with error details. The report still generates and remains accessible via the dashboard, so failed email delivery doesn't result in lost reporting.

You receive a notification (if enabled in account settings) when automated report delivery fails, allowing you to troubleshoot and resend if needed.

Common Questions

How do I pause an automated report without deleting it?

Open the Reports tab in the project dashboard, find the automated report in the list, and click the toggle switch next to the report name to change its status from Active to Paused. Paused reports don't generate or use credits, but all settings are preserved. Toggle back to Active when you're ready to resume.

Can I send the same automated report to different recipients with different branding?

Not directly - each automated report uses a single branding profile. To send the same data with different branding