Today, using data in marketing strategies when making decisions is essential. But the great challenge is knowing how to gather and interpret all these numbers, and for this reason, the use of tools such as Google Data Studio (or Data Studio Google Analytics) is increasingly important and necessary.
Data-driven marketing, Business Intelligence and Machine Learning, for example, are increasingly present in the actions and strategies of organizations.
According to data from a 88% of companies surveyed use data to improve their understanding of each consumer.
Also, one noted that 75% of companies notice a higher when they use data-driven marketing.
That is, the It is something very important, because businesses that want to grow, sell more and stand out, need to invest in it. So, discover in this post what Google Data Studio is and how to take advantage of it in your business!
What is Google Data Studio and what is it for?
Google Data Studio is a Business Intelligence (BI) tool used to create dashboards (panels) and reports, from different data sources and metrics, such as Google Ads, Google Search Console, Data Studio Google Sheets (sheets) etc.
In other words, based on this tool, you can take advantage of various data from different tools to:
- Organize, visualize and consolidate data;
- Monitor performance indicators ();
- Make presentations of results for internal teams or clients;
- make better decisions;
- And much more.
Why use Google Data Studio?
Using Google Data Studio in your business brings you several benefits and advantages and the main ones are:
- It is a free tool. So, there is no cost to use it;
- It has full integration with other Google services (Ads, Analytics etc.);
- It is easy to use, quite intuitive and visual;
- It has resources that other payment tools offer;
- It allows you to create custom, reactive and interactive dashboards and reports, and you can share them with anyone;
- It allows the assembly of panels and reports from templates, that is, from ready-made, pre-configured models.
Basically, from the grouping and visualization of data, metrics and indicators, the tool allows more strategic, safe, well-founded, directed and assertive options for your business.
Furthermore, it is worth noting that not only the marketing sector can use Google Data Studio, but also various other areas of the business, such as the sales team, the finance department.
How does Google Data Studio work?
In a simple and objective way, Google Data Studio extracts the data from the platforms you choose, interprets and displays the information, facilitating the creation of graphs, tables and other visual resources.
Below we show you how this tool works from the following four topics.
1. Data integration
Since Google Data Studio is from Google, you can integrate data from different company tools, such as:
But it’s not just that. You can also integrate data from other non-Google tools, such as:
- Google Ads;
- Facebook Ads;
- SEMrush;
- MailChimp;
- Ahrefs;
- And much more.
There are hundreds of tools that can be integrated, and from these databases, Google Data Studio extracts the ones that will be used in the reports.
2. Transformation and interpretation of data
After collecting and extracting the , the tool interprets them and transforms them into more complete and meaningful information. In other words, it groups the raw numbers into more objective and easy-to-interpret information.
3. Information display
In this third stage, the Data Studio brings together all the extracted, transformed and interpreted data and allows you to combine them into graphs, maps, tables and other visual resources.
In fact, your creation and customization of dashboards (panels) and reports starts here. You can use icons, logos, images and shapes, alter colors, fonts and much more.
Also, it is worth noting that, as you create, work, alter, the alterations are saved automatically, so you don’t run the risk of losing everything you’ve done.
4. Sharing the data
After you produce the materials and customize them as you would like, you can share them with other people.
You can send them to leaders, managers, teams and clients, and it is up to you to choose the level of access for each one. For example, some people will only be able to view the document, others will also be able to edit it.
Now, whatever the level of access, it is important to emphasize that Google Data Studio allows collaborative, integrated work.
So by sharing access with people on your team, for example, you can work simultaneously, in real time.
How to use Google Data Studio?
Now that you know what Google Data Studio is, what it is for and how it works, in the following step by step we will explain how to use it.
1. Accessing Google Data Studio
The first step is . Remember that you need to have a Google account, like Gmail.
After logging in, you will see the home page of the tool. You can start by creating a report from a blank page, access a Google Data Studio tutorial, or use an available template.
But, if this is your first time in the tool, don’t create any report yet. Just look at the options and familiarize yourself with them. As you will see, the Data Studio is clear and objective.
2. Selecting the data source
After familiarizing yourself with the tool, define the data source to start generating your report. From now on you will get the numbers, metrics and indicators.
Click on the “Create” button located on the left side of the tool and then select “Data Source”.
At that point, all available tool options are to perform data integration. You can select one of those on view, or you can search for one, by filling in the “search” field.
After finding the tool you would like, select it and on the page that opens, click the “Authorize” button. Then select the information and data that the tool should collect and click on the “Connect” button, located in the upper right corner.
3. Creating a report
The long-awaited moment has arrived: you are going to create your report. Click on the “Create report” button, located in the upper right corner.
If this is your first time, a box will appear with the message “You are about to add data to this report”. Click on “Add to report”.
From that moment on, you will be able to create and customize your report, and in the right column you will have the options “Data” (to add, classify, filter, etc.) and “Style” (to change fonts, colors etc).
Also, in the top menu, you have several other items to navigate (“File”, “Edit”, “Display” etc.) and options below.
4. Introducing graphics and control
To insert a graphic, you must select the option “Add a graphic” in the menu.
At that time, several options will appear such as table, overview, bars, pizza, and others. Click on the one you want to use and fit it into the available space.
Also, if you want to insert a widget, all you have to do is click “Add a widget” (it’s on the right side of “Add a chart”), and some options will also appear for you to choose from at that point.
5. Using the Explorer
In the beta version, that is, in the development stage, you have the “Explorer” option. To use it, go to the home page of the tool, click on the “Create” button and then on “Explorer”.
Add a data source, choose a chart from the menu on the right, and from there you can do analysis and experiments and then create reports.
Basically, the Explorer is a resource that allows you to browse data beforehand (without modifying your original reports), using a single graph to help you find insights faster.
6. Sharing the report
Finally, if you want to invite other people, send the report by email or even download it as a PDF, just click on the “Share” button located at the top of the tool and the available options will be visible.
Analyze, organize and use data efficiently
This is a fact: the use of data is increasingly present in companies, whether in or in decision making.
Therefore, analyzing them, organizing them and, above all, using them efficiently is essential for decisions to be more strategic, appropriate and assertive.
We, from , recommend that you do not stop using Google Data Studio in your business. And since we are talking about the universe of numbers, metrics and data, we invite you to learn about another very useful tool: ¡¡!
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