3 ways to automate Google Sheets
Google Sheets has remained one of the primary tools used by a significant number of companies over the years. This is all thanks to its versatility in storing tabular data for a wide range of tasks, from financial reporting to inventory management.
Despite all its advantages, the question of automating repetitive tasks related to data in Google Sheets remains open. Currently, there are several approaches to automation: Google Sheets Macros, External Plugins (from Google Marketplace), or a few tools like Mipler Data Workflow.
Before choosing the optimal approach, it is important to clearly define which tasks need to be addressed and how. To do this, it is necessary to address three main questions:
- Source of input data
- Necessary transformations
- Expected format of the result
Source of Input Data
In the simplest case, the source of data is the Google Sheets table itself, meaning the task boils down to transforming data within a single Google Sheets sheet.
However, there are scenarios where additional data needs to be obtained from other sources (API requests) or other files/Google Sheets, and then working with them as a whole. In this case, macros or plugins won't suffice; Mipler Flow can work with various data sources and aggregate them into a single table.
Transformations
Data transformation is the foundation of any automation involving structured or tabular data. Transformation involves a simple sequence of actions that result in the desired outcome.
Mipler Flow offers numerous possibilities for data transformation, encompassing all major mechanics: sorting, filtering, limiting by thresholds, removing/merging duplicates, filling gaps, changing values, splitting and merging columns, and more.
Obtaining the Result
The result, in turn, can be obtained in various ways depending on the expectations. You can simply insert the result into Google Sheets, or you can generate an Excel file and send it via email, or even create multiple PDF files for each row of the table (for example, delivery forms).
By using the right tools, it's possible to achieve a high level of automation in routine processes related to Google Sheets.
3 ways to automate Google Sheets
Google Sheets has remained one of the primary tools used by a significant number of companies over the years. This is all thanks to its versatility in storing tabular data for a wide range of tasks, from financial reporting to inventory management.
Despite all its advantages, the question of automating repetitive tasks related to data in Google Sheets remains open. Currently, there are several approaches to automation: Google Sheets Macros, External Plugins (from Google Marketplace), or a few tools like Mipler Data Workflow.
Before choosing the optimal approach, it is important to clearly define which tasks need to be addressed and how. To do this, it is necessary to address three main questions:
- Source of input data
- Necessary transformations
- Expected format of the result
Source of Input Data
In the simplest case, the source of data is the Google Sheets table itself, meaning the task boils down to transforming data within a single Google Sheets sheet.
However, there are scenarios where additional data needs to be obtained from other sources (API requests) or other files/Google Sheets, and then working with them as a whole. In this case, macros or plugins won't suffice; Mipler Flow can work with various data sources and aggregate them into a single table.
Transformations
Data transformation is the foundation of any automation involving structured or tabular data. Transformation involves a simple sequence of actions that result in the desired outcome.
Mipler Flow offers numerous possibilities for data transformation, encompassing all major mechanics: sorting, filtering, limiting by thresholds, removing/merging duplicates, filling gaps, changing values, splitting and merging columns, and more.
Obtaining the Result
The result, in turn, can be obtained in various ways depending on the expectations. You can simply insert the result into Google Sheets, or you can generate an Excel file and send it via email, or even create multiple PDF files for each row of the table (for example, delivery forms).
By using the right tools, it's possible to achieve a high level of automation in routine processes related to Google Sheets.