SQL for Business Reports Jump Start
Answer three everyday business questions with SQL in the free DB Fiddle, typing every line yourself: revenue by month, your top customers and key accounts, and the customers who have gone quiet.
SQL for Business Reports Jump Start is a free, hands-on AI course for office managers, analysts and owners who rebuild the same report from an export every month: 3 short modules (about 39 minutes in all) where you do each step yourself in a safe practice copy of DB Fiddle, which checks your work. No coding, no cost, and you can start without signing up.
Who it’s for: Office managers, analysts and owners who rebuild the same report from an export every month. A browser is enough: DB Fiddle is free and needs no account or install.
Why this course
Most monthly reports start as an export pasted into a spreadsheet and added up by hand: an hour of work, and one missed row makes the report wrong. SQL asks the database directly, gives the same answer every time and runs again next month in seconds.
This jump start follows a made-up office-supply shop through three questions on one small orders table. Every practice screen is a real DB Fiddle screen, and you type every line of SQL yourself, a few lines per step.
What you’ll build
- Module 1: An orders table with eight Q3 orders, and four queries you typed: every order, September only, the quarter in one line (8 orders, $11,340) and revenue by month.
- Module 2: A top-three list (Cobalt Legal $4,440, Northside Realty $4,030, Maple Dental $2,230) and a key accounts list with the number of orders next to each.
- Module 3: A customers table (five customers, two account managers), the orders table, and a call-list query.
- Module 1 · DB Fiddle · Beginner · ~12 min
SQL: Build a Monthly Revenue Report from an Orders Table
Priya (made up) runs the office at Lakeside Office Supply. Every month-end the owner asks: how much did we sell, and how did each month do? The answer lives in the order system, so Priya exports it, pastes it into a spreadsheet and adds it up by hand. It takes most of an hour, and one missed row makes the whole report wrong.
- Module 2 · DB Fiddle · Beginner · ~12 min
SQL: Top Customers and Key Accounts with GROUP BY and HAVING
Before the quarterly review the owner of Lakeside Office Supply (made up) wants two lists: the top three customers, and every key account worth $3,000 or more this quarter, so each one gets a thank-you call.
- Module 3 · DB Fiddle · Beginner · ~15 min
SQL: Find Customers Who Have Gone Quiet with a LEFT JOIN
Customers rarely announce that they have left; they just stop ordering. At Lakeside Office Supply (made up) nobody noticed a dental practice had gone quiet until the year-end review, months too late for a call to help.
Prerequisites
- For the practice: a web browser. Each module runs in a copy of the real tool’s screens, so you need no account and no sign-up to start module 1.
Time to complete
About 39 minutes of hands-on practice across 3 modules (45 steps in all). Modules take 12 to 15 minutes each, so you can do one in a sitting and come back for the next.
Take it with you
SQL business reports cheat sheet: the settings and words from this course on one printable page. Read it online · Download the PDF
Glossary
Questions about this course
Is SQL for Business Reports Jump Start free?
Yes. All 3 modules of SQL for Business Reports Jump Start are free, and you can start module 1 without signing up.
How long does SQL for Business Reports Jump Start take?
About 39 minutes of hands-on practice across 3 modules, beginner. Each module takes 12 to 15 minutes, so you can do one at a time.
Which tools will I practice in?
DB Fiddle. You practice in a copy of each tool's real screens that checks every step, so nothing touches your real accounts, and no coding is needed.
Who is SQL for Business Reports Jump Start for?
Office managers, analysts and owners who rebuild the same report from an export every month. A browser is enough: DB Fiddle is free and needs no account or install.
Where do I start?
Start with module 1, SQL: Build a Monthly Revenue Report from an Orders Table. The modules are in order, so each one builds on the last.
Do I need to install a database?
No. DB Fiddle (db-fiddle.com) runs a real MySQL database in your browser, free and with no account. The course uses its default, MySQL.
Will these queries work on my company database?
Yes, with your own table and column names. SELECT, WHERE, GROUP BY, HAVING, ORDER BY and LEFT JOIN are standard SQL; only date functions differ a little between databases (PostgreSQL uses to_char instead of DATE_FORMAT).
Do I have to type the code?
Yes, on purpose: every step is one to three short lines that you type yourself, so the commands stick. In the practice, line breaks are optional.
What do I need before I start SQL for Business Reports Jump Start?
Only a web browser for the practice: it runs in a copy of each tool's screens, so you need no account and no sign-up to start module 1.
What will I build in SQL for Business Reports Jump Start?
A finished result in 3 of the 3 modules, for example: An orders table with eight Q3 orders, and four queries you typed: every order, September only, the quarter in one line (8 orders, $11,340) and revenue by month; A top-three list (Cobalt Legal $4,440, Northside Realty $4,030, Maple Dental $2,230) and a key accounts list with the number of orders next to each; A customers table (five customers, two account managers), the orders table, and a call-list query.