2. OVERVIEW
1. Why dashboards?
2. How to build a dashboard?
3. Some dashboard automation/building best practices & common pitfalls
4. How Analytics Canvas works
5. Live demo (going through the steps)
• Generate queries using the navigation interface
• Calculate and transform data
• Exporting your data
• Scheduling updates

3. WHY DASHBOARDS?
• Aggregates data in one location
• Standardised format of information
• Overview and detailed information
• Ability to share/communication information with colleagues and
management
• Ability to act
• Adaptable to users needs

4. HOW TO BUILD YOUR DASHBOARD – A 5 STEP
PROCESS
Research
your
dashboard
Mockup
your excel
dashboard
Create your
API queries
& exports
Setup your
excel
dashboard
Feed/link
the data
into your
dashboards
Start with the end in mind in how you want your dashboard to be. Here are a few things to consider:
• What is the reason for the dashboard? What aspect of the business performance are people
looking at?
• Are there specific KPI’s management are looking to see?
• Where will the data come from?
• How often will it be updated?
• Who will receive the report and in what format?

5. HOW TO BUILD YOUR DASHBOARD – A 5 STEP
PROCESS
Research
your
dashboard
Mockup
your excel
dashboard
Create your
API queries
& exports
Setup your
excel
dashboard
Feed/link
the data
into your
dashboards
Consider the layout, visualisations, and metrics that can be realistically
added, in order to set expectations beforehand.

6. HOW TO BUILD YOUR DASHBOARD – A 5 STEP
PROCESS
Research
your
dashboard
Mockup
your excel
dashboard
Create your
API queries
& exports
Setup your
excel
dashboard
Feed/link
the data
into your
dashboards
Using Canvas Analytics (or your preferred solution) create the required
data (queries) you need to populate the workbook to reference the export
workbook location accordingly.

7. HOW TO BUILD YOUR DASHBOARD – A 5 STEP
PROCESS
Research
your
dashboard
Mockup
your excel
dashboard
Create your
API queries
& exports
Setup your
excel
dashboard
Feed/link
the data
into your
dashboards
Create your dashboard (based on the mockup) and raw data tabs in the
excel spreadsheet, in order to automatically populate the data in these
areas.

8. HOW TO BUILD YOUR DASHBOARD – A 5 STEP
PROCESS
Research
your
dashboard
Mockup
your excel
dashboard
Create your
API queries
& exports
Setup your
excel
dashboard
Feed/link
the data
into your
dashboard
Make sure the dashboard widgets are connected to the right data export
rows and viola!

9. SOME DASHBOARD BUILDING BEST PRACTICES
•
•
•
•
•
•
Use specific sheets or canvases for making data organisation and
transformation more accessible
Reduce data sampling by partioning your API query requests
Have your dashboard presented as a one page summary
Layer your data widgets with multiple dimensions/segments or
even goals in order to provide more context around your data
subset
Combine external data (CRM) and cost uploads from other
channels in order to provide a full picture of your target audience
Automate the creation of the reports as much as possible to focus
on finding and presenting insights.

10. SOME COMMON PITFALLS
• Organisational challenges – poor communication, lack of strategy, focus on
cost, office politics, few power users, lack of standardisation across all
departments.
•
Cool is better than useful
•
The more advanced it is the better it has to be
•
More is better
•
IT /User driven implementation
•
Little relation between strategy and action
•
ROI expectations
•
Lack of understanding in dashboard implementation
•
Data quality

11. HOW ANALYTICS CANVAS WORKS (QUICK VIDEO)
http://www.analyticscanvas.com/video/video-quick-look-combining-googleanalytics-data-with-enterprise-data/

13. TRAINING/WEBSITE RESOURCE & CREDITS
•
How to build an excel dashboard - https://www.udemy.com/blog/excel-dashboard/
•
Excel dashboard training - http://www.myonlinetraininghub.com/excel-dashboard-course
•
Why dashboards, best practices/common pitfalls http://www.sabatierconsulting.com/images/uploads/04_Dashboards.pdf
•
Dashboard best practices - http://www.stratigent.com/community/websight-newsletters/kpidashboard-best-practices
•
Analytics Canvas (Includes free 30 day trial) - http://www.analyticscanvas.com/