What is Google Data Studio, which has actually been around since 2016, but whose importance is still not fully understood everywhere? Google Data Studio definitely has added value because it offers interactive and customized reports that are easy to create, not only from Google Analytics data but also from other sources of almost any kind. Thanks to its intuitive operation, even inexperienced users can get to grips with it. Manual evaluations with Excel spreadsheets including laborious transfer to PowerPoint are now a thing of the past in companies. What other reasons speak in favour of the clever tool for visualizing mass data, which is part of the Google Analytics 360 Suite? Compared to the simple use of Google Analytics (i.e. the primary source of the data), the first advantage is that creating reports in Google Data Studio is much more intuitive and easier. In addition, everything is clearly laid out in one place, and the linking options allow you to gain insights that a data source alone would not provide.
1. What does Google Data Studio cost?
While similar tools such as Klipfolio, Tableau or Geckoboard can cost quite a bit of money, the basic version of Google's Data Studio is currently free (as of February 2021). You should only allow sufficient time for configuration and consultation with the parties involved. This applies both if you approach the topic via self-study (e.g. Google Analytics Academy) or receive professional guidance from experts. For larger companies, Google Analytics Suite 360, the successor to Google Analytics Premium, is subject to a charge.
The free version includes the Google tools Analytics, Tag Manager, Data Studio, Optimize and Surveys. The premium version, on the other hand, includes more functions for perfect target group marketing:
- Analytics 360 as the core of the suite with many external interfaces
- Tag Manager 360 - successor to Google Tag Manager with API for use cases
- Attribution 360 - improved successor version of Google Adometry,
- Audience Center 360 - Google tool for analyzing target groups
- Data Studio 360 - for the visual preparation of data
- Optimize - testing tool, for example for A/B tests and multi-variant designs
- Surveys 360 - online questionnaires and surveys
2. who is in control of the data?
"We are the good guys" was once the motto of today's data octopus Google, but with regard to Data Studio, there are actually still certain guarantees for users who want to keep their valuable raw material to themselves and, thanks to GDPR, must not share it carelessly. "In Google Data Studio, your data is protected in accordance with ISO 27001," promises the US technology giant, referring to Ernst&Young Certify Point as auditor. This ISO certification body has been accredited by the Dutch Accreditation Council as a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and is therefore recognized almost worldwide.
3. How universal are the "connectors" in Google Data Studio?
With Data Studio, Google provides the ideal link to most of its own tools, and not entirely unselfishly. In addition, Data Studio also allows the virtuoso integration of external sources via so-called "connectors", including a largely automated display of the imported data. Here are just a few examples of Google Data Studio connectors:
- Google Search Console
- Google AdWords
- Google Analytics
- YouTube Analytics
- Files from Google Drive
- Attribution 360
- BigQuery
- Cloud SQL
- DCM
- Google Sheets
- MySQL
- PostgreSQL
- Amazon
- Bing
- Yandex
However, not all of the connectors are provided by Google. Some of them can only be implemented with (costly) third-party providers such as Supermetrics. If Google Data Studio does not have its own "connector", additional manual work is required. In this case, the data is usually imported into Google Sheets via API and then imported into Google Data Studio. The arocom team will be happy to assist you with technical queries, quick ad-hoc solutions or customized configurations according to individual requirements.
4. functions of the Google Data Studio
- Simple linking of various data sources.
- The data is provided via connectors.
- Creation of dashboards and entire reports with intuitive design.
- You can choose between different display formats (e.g. table, graph, pie chart and much more).
- You can even set the reports to be sent to an e-mail distribution list at regular intervals.
- Collaborative editing options (as with all Google services).
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