If you work with large amounts of data on a daily basis, you probably know how powerful tools like Excel and Google sheets can be. Large spreadsheets with hundreds of rows and columns can be intimidating at first. However, if you take the time to learn the ins and outs of the tools available on these platforms, your life will be a whole lot easier. Here are a few tips and tricks to use next time you have to analyze a large spreadsheet.
Clean and Organize the Data
Before you do any analysis on the data set, it is in your best interest to clean and organize the data. Go through the sheet and get rid of any rows or columns that you do not need or those that are unusable. These include duplicate, missing, or irrelevant sections of the data. Next, spend some time organizing your data by making clear headings, color code, and sort by alphabetical or numerical values. Starting with a clean and organized data set will allow you to be more efficient with your time and effort.
Utilize Pivot Tables
Pivot tables are one of the most commonly used tools on excel and are great for combing through large amounts of data. Pivot tables allow you to summarize specific portions of the data and pull relevant insights from the patterns. You can choose whether to view your data as averages, sums, or counts. Instead of spending hours going through a massive data set, utilize a pivot table to view only the section of the data that you need at the moment.
Use Filters to Simplify
Using the filter function will make finding and analyzing data sets much easier. You can filter the sheet to include or exclude specific conditions, organize alphabetically, sort by value, and much more. Select Data > Filter > enter conditions > and select OK to save.
Quick Analysis Tool
The name of this tool is self-explanatory. The quick analysis tool is great for analyzing your data quickly and efficiently using several different excels tools. Simply select the cells you wish to explore and hit the quick analysis tool button. You can choose to display your data in a chart, table, or sparkline.
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The tools offered by platforms like Excel and Google Sheets are never-ending. The more you learn about these tools, the more you will get out of your data sets. The specialists here at Boston Web Marketing are data experts and can help you pull relevant insights to increase your web presence. Contact us at 857.526.0096 to get started today!