Availability
Users, Editors, and Admins
All accounts
Feature exclusive to select subscription plans
Setting clear targets is a key part of running a successful business. They give teams a shared sense of purpose and help everyone work toward the same outcomes. When progress is monitored regularly, it becomes easier to understand what’s driving success and where things might be falling short. This kind of insight supports better decision-making, encourages continuous improvement, and helps the company stay competitive. It also keeps teams motivated by showing how their efforts contribute to bigger wins.
Create a goal
You can create a goal in the following ways:
- From scratch: On the Goals page, click on + Create new goal.
- From a metric: Locate the metric on the My Metrics, Metric Insights, Metric Library, Custom Metrics, or Calculated Metrics page, then open the drop-down menu (three dots, down-arrow
, or "More") and select Set a goal. - From a Databoard: Click on a Datablock to open the Datablock Editor. Expand the metric’s settings, go to the Compare with section, and select Other > Goal. Then, click the Set goal link to define your goal.
Start by naming your goal and choosing whether progress is measured using automatic or manual updates.
Automatic updates
To enable automatic progress updates, the goal must be associated with a metric in the account. As the metric pulls in new data, the goal progress adjusts accordingly.
Note: Certain financial metrics come with predefined currency units. Since a goal can only use one currency unit, you’ll need to create separate goals if the selected metric includes multiple currency units.
Manual updates
Choose this option if you prefer to track and update goal progress manually. This allows you to enter values yourself, giving you full control over how and when progress is recorded — ideal for goals not tied to a specific metric or when data isn’t available through automatic updates.
Different options are available to best match the data you're tracking. Here’s what each option means:
- Number – Use this option to track a specific numerical value, such as new leads, completed tasks, or customer sign-ups. It’s suitable for targets that don’t involve currency or percentages.
- Currency – Best for financial targets like revenue, budgets, or sales quotas. Values are displayed in your chosen currency format (e.g., $, €, £).
- Percentage – Ideal for tracking metrics like conversion rates, engagement growth, or completion rates. This format helps measure progress relative to a total or monitor changes over time.
You have the option to set a starting value for the goal’s progress. If no value is entered, it will automatically start at 0.
Adjust the goal settings
Set target value
This setting defines the target value to be reached by the associated metric or manual update. You can choose from two methods:
- Fixed value – Set a specific target at a specific granularity (daily, weekly, etc.), by using another metric that contains the target values, or by specifying the value to be achieved by the end date (see "Target end date" below).
-
% change – Available only for automatically updated goals, this option adjusts the target value based on a percentage increase over time. Options include Week-over-Week (WoW), Month-over-Month (MoM), Quarter-over-Quarter (QoQ), or Year-over-Year (YoY) changes.
Note: By default, values are applied to current and future periods. To include past periods, click on Advanced settings and manually enter target values for those periods.
Target end date
An optional setting to specify the deadline by which the goal should be achieved. Granularity values are calculated dynamically based on the data from the last completed period and are distributed evenly until the target end date.
Goal owner
The Databox user assigned to manage and oversee the goal.
Privacy
Specifies who can access the goal within the application.
Activate goal progress notifications
Notifications can be sent to the goal owner and/or other users to ensure the goal is actively monitored and kept up to date. The available options vary depending on whether the goal’s progress is updated automatically or manually.
Automatic updates
Both email and Slack notifications can be sent to the goal owner and selected users on a daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. You can also choose to schedule notifications to be sent only when the goal status changes.
Manual updates
Email notifications can be scheduled on a weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis to remind the goal owner to update its progress.
The delivery schedule for these notifications is as follows:
- Weekly: Every Friday at 9 AM (account time)
- Bi-weekly: Every other Friday at 9 AM (account time)
- Monthly: On the last day of the month at 9 AM (account time)
- Quarterly: On the last day of every third month at 9 AM (account time)
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I create multiple goals for the same metric?
Yes. If the metric includes dimensions, the goal will apply only to the parent metric or to a specific dimension — if one has been selected.
Can I view client goals in an Agency account?
Yes, navigate to Clients > Goals Overview to see goals from all connected client accounts. Note that goal values are visible only for the date range defined by the goal owner on the Goals page within each individual client account.
Why am I getting a "Partially Unsupported Granularity" message when setting up a goal?
This warning appears when certain granularities (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly) aren't supported for the selected metric, usually due to technical limitations set by the API provider. To check which granularities are supported and learn more about the metric, hover over the 
icon in the metric selector, click More about this metric, and open the Technical Details tab.
Still need help?
Visit our community, send us an email, or start a chat in Databox.