Visualize YouTube Analytics Data in Tableau

The CData ODBC Driver for YouTube Analytics enables you to access live YouTube Analytics data in business intelligence tools like Tableau. In this article, you will integrate YouTube Analytics data into a dashboard that reflects changes to YouTube Analytics data in real time.

The CData ODBC drivers offer unmatched performance for interacting with live YouTube Analytics data in Tableau due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from Tableau to YouTube Analytics, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to YouTube Analytics and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can visualize and analyze YouTube Analytics data using native Tableau data types.

Connect to YouTube Analytics as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

YouTube Analytics uses the OAuth authentication standard. You can use the embedded CData OAuth credentials or you can register an application with Google to obtain your own.

In addition to the OAuth values, to access YouTube Analytics data set ChannelId to the Id of a YouTube channel. You can obtain the channel Id in the advanced account settings for your channel. If not specified, the channel of the currently authenticated user will be used.

If you want to generate content owner reports, specify the ContentOwnerId property. This is the Id of the copyright holder for content in YouTube's rights management system. The content owner is the person or organization that claims videos and sets their monetization policy.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Add YouTube Analytics Data to a Dashboard

1. Click Connect to Data -> More Servers -> Other Databases (ODBC).
   Select the CData Data Source Name (for example: CData YouTubeAnalytics Source).
2. In the Database menu, select CData.
3. In the Table box, enter a table name or click New Custom SQL to enter an SQL query. This article retrieves the Groups table.
4. Drag the table onto the join area. At this point, you can include multiple tables, leveraging the built-in SQL engine to process complex data requests.
5. In the Connection menu, select the Live option, so that you skip loading a copy of the data into Tableau and instead work on real-time data. The optimized data processing native to CData ODBC drivers enables unmatched performance in live connectivity.
6. Click the tab for your worksheet. Columns are listed as Dimensions and Measures, depending on the data type. The CData driver discovers data types automatically, allowing you to leverage the powerful data processing and visualization features of Tableau.
7. Drop the Snippet_Title column in the Dimensions pane onto the dashboard. When you select dimensions, Tableau builds a query to the driver. The results are grouped based on that dimension. In Tableau, the raw query is automatically modified as you select dimensions and measures.

8. Drag the ContentDetails_ItemCount column in the Measures field onto the Detail and Color buttons. Tableau executes the following query:

   SELECT Snippet_Title, SUM(ContentDetails_ItemCount) FROM Groups GROUP BY Snippet_Title

   When you select a measure, Tableau executes a command to the driver to calculate a summary function, such as SUM, AVG, etc., on the grouped values. The SQL engine (embedded within the driver) is leveraged to process the aggregation of the data, where needed, providing a seamless experience in Tableau, regardless of the data source.

   To change the summary function, open the ContentDetails_ItemCount menu and select the summary you want in the Measure command.

9. You can create other charts using dimensions and measures to build SQL queries visually:

With the CData ODBC Driver for YouTube Analytics, you get live connectivity to your YouTube Analytics data, allowing you to build real-time charts, graphs, and more.