How to build a YouTube analytics report in Data Studio

Creating video content material takes time and price range, so understanding the way it performs is vital.

YouTube’s native analytics in YouTube Studio are strong, however they’re locked behind account entry. That may make reporting tough — particularly when you might want to share information or don’t have direct login entry.

Shifting that information into Google Information Studio (previously Looker Studio) makes it simpler to investigate and distribute.

With Information Studio, you may:

• Pull YouTube information into studies you already use.
• Schedule automated updates for stakeholders.
• Customise dashboards across the metrics that matter.
• Monitor efficiency with out counting on backend entry.

Right here’s the best way to pull your YouTube analytics right into a Information Studio report.

Utilizing a template or ranging from scratch

You’ve gotten two choices when organising a YouTube report in Information Studio.

• If you need one thing fast and simple, you should use Google’s YouTube Analytics template from their template gallery. It’s a terrific place to begin as a result of it offers a clear, well-designed report with foundational metrics and places you in an excellent place to grasp which metrics can be found. However know that this template has issues you’ll want to repair, which I’ll talk about under.
• The opposite possibility is to create a report from scratch, which is a superb alternative if you have already got a report you wish to add a brand new YouTube Analytics web page to, or should you simply wish to discover ways to use Information Studio.

The data under will provide help to do each.

Should you’re not the YouTube account proprietor

Should you’re organising this report for a shopper, or should you’re not the proprietor of the YouTube account, you’re going to run into a difficulty the place the YouTube account doesn’t present up as a usable supply in Information Studio. Right here’s the best way to get round it:

• Go to YouTube Studio settings > Permissions, and provides Supervisor permissions to the account e mail that you just’re utilizing in Information Studio.
• Get the Channel ID from the channel’s YouTube URL.
• Add a YouTube connector to Information Studio, go to Superior, and paste the Channel ID.

You need to now have entry to that YouTube account.

Utilizing the Information Studio YouTube Analytics template

From the Information Studio dwelling web page, click on Templates > Template Gallery. Beneath the class dropdown, click on on YouTube Analytics.

Clicking it will create a model new Information Studio report that’s largely prepared to make use of. It hundreds up with pattern information from the Google Analytics YouTube channel. Click on the button on the prime that claims “Use my very own information.”

The primary time you arrange a report, you might want to authorize entry to your information. Click on the Authorize button.

Select the Google Account linked to your YouTube channel, and then you definitely’ll see any linked channels within the dropdown on the prime of the web page.

You’ll discover that the information doesn’t change when you choose a web site right here. That’s as a result of this dropdown is linked solely to the opposite dropdowns subsequent to it, not any of the charts on the web page.

To replace all the pieces else on the web page, click on the Edit and Share button.

If that is the primary time utilizing Information Studio, you’ll additionally must do some fundamental account setup.

Then click on the Edit button on the prime of the web page.

Now you’ll want so as to add your YouTube channel as a supply. Click on the Add information button after which seek for the YouTube Analytics connector.

If the Google Account is the proprietor of the YouTube account you linked to this Information Studio report, it’ll present up within the Channel part as an possibility. 

Your fundamental YouTube channel shall be within the My Channel tab, and different channels are within the All Channels tab, as proven under. 

Should you don’t personal the channel, see the part above to attach different channels that you just don’t personal, however have entry to.

Now you’ll be capable to change the information supply on any charts on the web page. Merely click on a chart, and also you’ll see the information sources obtainable to you in the correct Properties panel.

You may change the supply of the entire charts on the web page by choosing a chart, right-clicking on it, going to the Choose menu, after which selecting “Charts with this information supply on web page” after which selecting your information supply within the Properties sidebar.

You’re largely accomplished, however as talked about earlier, there are some errors on this report that you just’ll want to repair. The charts on the backside of the report are utilizing the unsuitable metrics.

I don’t know why Google hasn’t up to date this template. It’s been like this for a very long time, so I don’t know in the event that they ever will. Within the meantime, you’ll must replace the next.

Change:

• Likes from “Common Watch Time” to “Video Likes Added”
• Subscriptions from “Video Hyperlink” to “Consumer Subscriptions Added”
• Dislikes from “Common View Share” to “Video Dislikes Added”

The charts within the Feedback part are right, so that you don’t want to alter something there.

Click on on every of the charts highlighted above, one after the other, and alter the metric within the Properties sidebar.

And now the report is completed and able to use. Click on the View button on the prime of the web page to view the report in a view-only format.

Copying a template into an present report

Information Studio doesn’t help the power so as to add or import templates into an present report, however you may copy a web page from one report to a different. Comply with the steps above to create a report utilizing the YouTube Analytics Channel template, then copy it into one other report.

To try this, go into Edit mode, choose all (Ctrl+A or Cmd+A), and replica all (Ctrl+C or Cmd+C). Then, in your present report, create a brand new web page, and paste all the pieces you’ve copied into the web page (Ctrl+V or Cmd+V), or right-click on the web page and choose Paste.

The entire charts will possible are available damaged, however you may simply replace them utilizing the tip talked about earlier – right-clicking a chart, selecting Charts with this information supply on web page, after which selecting the right supply within the Properties sidebar.

Customizing your report

The YouTube template in Information Studio has most of what you want, however you may add far more.

There are some metrics you merely can’t get in Information Studio that you just’d discover within the official YouTube Analytics backend, resembling income, how viewers discover your movies, watch habits, common viewing occasions, gadget varieties, genders, and retention, so there are some massive limitations, however there’s nonetheless a lot to work with.

So as to add extra charts to your report, you’ll must create extra space on the backside. Within the menu, click on on Web page > Present web page settings.

Within the Type tab of the Present Web page Settings sidebar, set the canvas measurement to one thing like 3,000 pixels. This will provide you with loads of area to work with, and you’ll all the time shorten or lengthen it as wanted later.

Now you may add many varieties of charts with a variety of dimensions and metrics.

You may add a number of metrics to graphs to get the information you want for higher evaluation. You can too rename headers to wash them up, and make them look much less cluttered.

You may pull in numerous information. Right here’s what’s at the moment supplied:

Utilizing Information Studio for ongoing YouTube reporting

Establishing a Information Studio report for YouTube is a good way to trace your top-level metrics, and will be particularly helpful for month-to-month shopper reporting. It takes siloed, hard-to-share information from YouTube, and places it right into a clear, automated, centralized instrument for simpler decision-making.

You can too arrange scheduling in order that Information Studio sends automated PDF exports to your e mail.

That’s it. As you may see, it’s pretty easy to arrange, however you too can add extra superior customizations to trace many different KPIs.