In the world of digital marketing, analytics, and reporting, templates play a huge role in saving time and maintaining consistency. Whether you’re building a website, designing a dashboard, or creating client reports, you’ll often face the same question:

Should I use a preset template or build a custom one?

Both options come with unique benefits and drawbacks. In this article, we’ll break down the differences, advantages, and use cases of custom templates vs. preset templates, so you can decide which is right for your business.

What is a Preset Template?

A preset template is a ready-made, pre-designed layout that allows users to create reports, documents, dashboards, or designs without starting from scratch. Instead of spending time on structure and formatting, you can use a preset template to quickly organize your data, visuals, or content in a professional and consistent way.

Preset templates are widely used in industries like digital marketing, analytics, presentations, and reporting because they save time, reduce effort, and provide standardized outputs.

Examples include:

• Pre-built SEO reporting dashboards.

• Ready-to-use marketing campaign reports.

• Standard website/blog templates.

Advantages of Prebuilt Templates

1. Pre-built template with multiple integrations, specifically for agencies and businesses.
2. Periodic and campaign templates are available based on your client’s needs.

3. Dashboard provides daily, weekly, and monthly reports tailored to your requirements.

4. Dashboard offers multiple graphs, making data visualization easy and convenient for you.
5. Save time as it is prebuilt so you don’t need to spend much time on your marketing reporting.

Limitations of Preset Templates

1. Limited Flexibility – May not fully match your unique needs.

2. Generic Look – Less differentiation from competitors using the same template.

What is a Custom Template?

A custom template is a user-defined, tailor-made layout designed to meet specific requirements of a business, project, or client. Unlike preset templates that come ready-made, custom templates are built from scratch to include personalized elements such as brand identity, unique data points, or industry-specific KPIs.

Custom templates are highly valuable for agencies, enterprises, and growing businesses that require flexibility, scalability, and full control over how information is structured and presented.

Examples include:

• • A reporting dashboard designed for your unique KPIs.

  • A brand-focused presentation layout.

• Tailored client reports with personalized sections.

Advantages of Custom Templates

1. Design your client reporting dashboard according to your choice. You have full Flexibility so, adapted 100% to your business requirements.

2. With white leveling features match your own brand colors, fonts, and style and keep maintain your brand consistency.

3. Evolve your business growth with scalability. A future proof solution for Scalable & Future-Proof – Can evolve with your business growth.

4. Personalize your client reporting dashboard and make your report exclusive to impress clients.

Limitations of Custom Templates

1. Time-Consuming – Requires effort to design and set up.

2. Steeper Learning Curve – Not always beginner-friendly.

Custom Template vs. Preset Template: Key Comparison

When to Use Preset Templates

• • You need a quick reporting setup.

  • Your KPIs are standard (SEO, PPC, SMM basics).

  • The budget is limited.

• You’re just starting and need something simple.

When to Use Custom Templates

• • You’re an agency serving multiple clients with different needs.

  • Branding and personalization are important for your business.

  • You need advanced reporting beyond standard KPIs.

• You want scalability and flexibility as you grow.

Different use of Whatsdash preset template 

Periodic templates are used for sending regular, scheduled messages like reminders or updates at daily, weekly, or monthly intervals.

Campaign templates are designed for one-time or short-term promotional messages targeting specific audiences to boost engagement during special events or offers.

Hybrid Approach: Best of Both Worlds

Many businesses start with preset templates and gradually move to custom templates as they scale.
For example, in Whatsdash, agencies can pick a preset reporting template (SEO, PPC, SMM) and then customize it with branding, unique KPIs, and client-specific data.

This hybrid method saves time while still offering personalization.

Final Thoughts

Choosing between a custom template and a preset template depends on your business stage, goals, and resources.

• • Preset templates are perfect for speed, simplicity, and cost-saving.

• Custom templates are best for agencies, personalization, and long-term growth.

If you’re just starting out, begin with presets. As your reporting needs expand, move toward customization for maximum impact.