Boost your efficiency with Looker Studio tips

Looker Studio is a fantastic tool for building your report. But it's often not a person's actual job to create reports, so it can be hard to work with it. But with a few tips to increase your productivity, you'll find it easier than usual.

Apply filter to multiple components simultaneously.

One of the most time-consuming tasks in Looker Studio is ensuring every component on a page has suitable filters. Unfortunately, it is also the source of many mistakes, so it's always best to simultaneously apply filters to multiple charts.

You can apply a filter at three different levels :

• On a chart: The most common way is to select a chart and use the selected filter. To do so

• On a page: You use a filter for every actual and future chart of the page. To do so, go to the Current page settings in the Page menu and apply a filter in the adequate zone.

• On a report: You apply the filter to every chart on every report page. To do so, use a filter in the menu Report settings in the File button.

Quick advice:

• You can inherit a filter from a page or report configuration in the charts configuration.

• Filters are linked to a data source. Always try to use Page and Report level filters if you only have one data source in the page or report. You'll have an error message if a filter is applied on charts with a different data source.
  

Distribute components evenly and align them.

One of the most common use of Looker Studio is to display a line of cards, displaying the total numbers of something great for your business!

But having all your cards align at the same pixel is always a pain.

What if I told you you could distribute them evenly and align them in 4 clicks?

• Select all your cards.
• Right-click on them and find Distribute -> Horizontally.
• Right-click again, and find Vertical Align -> Top.

And you have a nice, evenly distributed line of cards. It will work with any component, so do not hesitate to abuse the vertical and horizontal alignment options.

Place a component at the report level.

On multiple pages reports, you will find it hard to have some consistency through pages. 

There is one feature to use to have the same page design throughout your report: the report-level component.

You can configure every component (a chart, a date selector, an image, a shape, etc.) to appear on all the pages in the same place.

It is excellent for keeping your design on every page. However, you must create one you like and upgrade all the designs to the report level.

Mass changes charts data sources.

One of the most use cases in Looker Studio is this: you created a report some time ago, and now you need a new page for a new data source. You will likely copy the old page and check every chart to modify the data source.

You can change the data source for every shared data sources chart on the page efficiently by doing this :

• Right-click on a chart.
• Go to Select -> Charts with this data source on the page.
• In the configuration column, you can change the data sources for every selected component on the page.

You can do a lot of actions in mass. Try to select multiple components simultaneously and check what you can do.

Copy only the style of a component.

One of the most valuable features lets you copy and paste only a component's style. You can avoid multiple hours of design integration with this neat trick:

• Right-click on a component, then Copy.
• Right-click on another component, then Paste -> Paste Style Only.

You can even select multiple components and paste the style to all of them.

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In conclusion, Looker Studio is a powerful tool for creating visually appealing and data-rich reports. To maximize productivity and ensure a smooth workflow, it is essential to utilize various features and techniques such as applying filters to multiple components simultaneously, evenly distributing and aligning components, placing components at the report level, making mass changes to chart data sources, and copying only the style of a component. By incorporating these productivity tips, you can streamline your report-building process, reduce errors, and create consistent, professional-looking reports in Looker Studio. Don't be afraid to experiment with these tips and tricks to find the best combination that works for your unique reporting needs. Happy report building!