Discover how to connect Tableau and Google Analytics effortlessly in this comprehensive guide. Learn to unlock valuable insights and gain a holistic view of your data to make informed decisions and drive business growth.
Emerging technology have made seemingly difficult things easier and faster. And one of such is the connector that helps to successfully integrate Tableau with Google Analytics.
Here, I’ll walk you through how to pull it off with breaking a sweat.
Let’s begin.
Table of Contents
Why Integrating Tableau With Google Analytics Matters?
Each organization faces difficulties in the data collection and analysis process. Each piece of untracked data represents a missed insight that could have helped a company stay one step ahead of its rivals.
A tableau is a fantastic tool for comprehending and obtaining hidden information from data from various sources, including Google Analytics, a powerful data analytics tool.
Before we go on since this talks more about Google Analytics vs Tableau, its only wise to start with going through Google Analytics.
Understanding Google Analytics
Statistical and analytical data is made available to users through Google Analytics, a web analytics service.
The management of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Product Marketing Operations is made easier by this tool. Every Google user has access to it without paying a dime.
It displays real-time changes in data through the use of its interactive features, such as Scorecards, Motion Charts, and Dashboard.
You can create a tailored report using Google Analytics to suit your company’s needs.
To have an in-depth knowledge of Google Analytics and how to successfully set up, check this insightful article on All you need to know about Google Analytics.
Understanding Tableau
Tableau is a potent business intelligence tool that can transform unstructured data into a format that is easy to comprehend.
It is a tool that is frequently used to visualize data and is simple enough for non-technical users to use.
It produces visuals with the use of Dashboards and Worksheets, assisting users in performing real-time analysis very quickly and securely.
It can be used without the user needing any programming knowledge or technical training.
The Usage of Google Analytics in Tableau
All you need is a functioning Google Account to use the Google Analytics service. Go directly to Google Analytics’ Sign-in page if you already have an account already.
At the bottom of the screen, in the left-hand corner, select the Admin button. There will now be a page that displays setup options. The Account, Properties, and Views sections of your account will be displayed.
Clicking the Create Account button will allow you to create an account. List your account’s information, including your name and the organization to which it is connected.
Either web or apps can be chosen as the preferred option, depending on the type of data you wish to measure. Make sure to properly specify the time zone and industry that your data belongs to. On Create, click.
Quick Tableau Set-up
With its user-friendly interface, the quickly developing business intelligence tool Tableau can analyze and show data in real-time. Even someone without technical knowledge can use it because it is simple to learn and operate.
The home screen for Tableau will appear once you have successfully logged in.
There are several sources listed in the Connect column that Tableau makes it simple to connect to. The source could be a server, a file, or even previously saved data sources.
By dragging your data into the canvas area in the middle of the screen, you may analyze it.
Several sample Workbooks are pre-loaded into Tableau. You can use these to have a better grasp of what a typical Workbook looks like and how Tableau lets you see data.
You can use Tableau in the manner described here.
Integrating Google Analytics to Tableau
The built-in Google Analytics Connector in Tableau makes it simple to link Google Analytics to the visualization tool. With the help of Tableau’s interactive interface, you may connect the two. You can change data and conduct meaningful analysis thanks to Tableau’s robust API support.
Making use of the Tableau Google Analytics Connector
The following steps can be used to put this into practice:
- Step 1: is to log into Tableau.
- Step 2: Logging into Google Analytics
- Step 3: Google Analytics data extraction
Step 1: Log Into Tableau
The first thing is to log into Tableau.
Then on your workstation, open Tableau and log in as a user with the Creator Role.
From the connect column on the left, choose Google Analytics.
You will then be prompted for your Google account information in a dialogue box that will open. Even better, you can choose the account you want from a list of Google Accounts you’ve previously stored.
Step 2: Logging into Google Analytics
Sign in to Google Analytics by carefully entering your Google account information.
You will be asked to grant Tableau access to your Google Analytics data once you have signed in.
To grant Tableau access to your data, click Accept.
A new tab will open in your browser once you have successfully granted access:
Step 3: Google Analytics Data Extraction
After successfully signing in, a screen with configuration settings will now appear.
This involves extracting data from Google Analytics. The information about your account, including the account name, properties, and views, will be displayed.
Enter the desired date range and segment selection in the filters menu.
Up to the prior day’s worth of data can be retrieved. The data will be for the last 30 days, with yesterday being the 30th day, if you choose a date range of 30 days.
You can filter users using the segments option. Users can create bespoke segments based on their needs, although Google offers a variety of predefined segments.
When connecting to Google Analytics, this can be quickly set up.
When loading data into Tableau from Google Analytics, you can choose up to 10 measurements and 7 dimensions.
To choose a predefined set of dimensions and measures, you may either create a custom set or just utilize the drop-down list.
Activate Tableau and choose the sheets tab to start exploring your data.
Why link Google Analytics (GA) to Tableau?
You can use pre-built charts or custom reports and dashboards from Google Analytics’ comprehensive platform to study the data.
So why would you want to connect it to Tableau? There are many various solutions to this issue, but I’d think the major motivation would be to add more data to your GA data and make it more accessible to a wider audience.
Why would your end users want to use a different, unknown platform when they can execute the majority of their analysis in Tableau Server?
Limitations of integrating Tableau With Google Analytics
In real-time, Google Analytics data cannot be loaded into Tableau. To make changes visible, the user must refresh the data source.
Users are not allowed to query more than 10,000 records at once due to limitations in the Google Analytics API for the connector.
The procedure is slowed down by scheduling extraction or running large-scale queries that affect performance.
A sampling set of data is frequently reflected while querying many dimensions simultaneously.
Keep in mind that only Tableau licenses that have been purchased can use the connector. You can extract the data into Google Sheets by utilizing the Tableau Public (the free version) if you wish to.
Calculator for Google Analytics Enhance it and connect to it.
Final Thoughts On Integrating GA & Tableau
Every day, new things emerge in the world of technology. This also includes Google Analytics Connector for Tableau. As much as using Tableau is simple, to begin with.
Users can construct visualizations without having any programming experience thanks to its Drag & Drop capability. It does have a learning curve, though, to use its more sophisticated capabilities.
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I am what they call an Ambivert
Felix is the Senior Content Editor and Strategist at Adilo, where he harnesses his expertise in social video marketing, online video platforms, video editing, e-commerce, e-learning, and marketing to to help businesses drive results. With a keen eye for storytelling and a pulse on industry trends, Felix crafts actionable content that empowers brands to elevate their video marketing strategies and thrive in the digital landscape.
