Author Archives: Olivia Hallisey

Analyze your business data with Explore in Google Sheets, use BigQuery too

A few months back, we announced a new way for you to analyze data in Google Sheets using machine learning. Instead of relying on lengthy formulas to crunch your numbers, now you can use Explore in Sheets to ask questions and quickly gather insights. Check it out.

Quicker data → problems solved

When you have easier access to data—and can figure out what it means quickly—you can solve problems for your business faster. You might use Explore in Sheets to analyze profit from last year, or look for trends in how your customers sign up for your company’s services. Explore in Sheets can help you track down this information, and more importantly, visualize it.

Getting started is easy. Just click the “Explore” button on the bottom right corner of your screen in Sheets. Type in a question about your data in the search box and Explore responds to your query. Here’s an example of how Sheets can build charts for you.

Syncing Sheets with BigQuery for deeper insights

For those of you who want to take data analysis one step further, you can sync Sheets with BigQuery—Google Cloud’s low cost data warehouse for analytics.

Compare publicly-available datasets in BigQuery, like U.S. Census Data or World Bank: Global Health, Nutrition, and Population data, to your company’s data in Sheets and gather information. For example, you can see how sales of your medical product compared with last year’s disease trends, or cross-reference average inflation prices in key markets of interest to your business.

Check out this post to see how you might query an example.

Source: Google Cloud

Analyze your business data with Explore in Google Sheets, use BigQuery too

Analyze easily with Explore in Sheets | The G Suite Show

Quicker data → problems solved

Syncing Sheets with BigQuery for deeper insights

For those of you who want to take data analysis one step further, you can sync Sheets with BigQuery—Google Cloud’s low cost data warehouse for analytics.

Check out this post to see how you might query an example.

Source: Google Cloud

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

We all waste time at work, whether it’s on purpose (brushing up on Wonder Woman's history) or on accident (really should have budgeted more time for internal reviews). Luckily, G Suite can help you accomplish more at work, quicker. Here are four tell-tale signs you’re spending time on the wrong things, and tips on how to avoid these time-sinks.

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

The average worker spends an estimated 13 hours per week writing emails—nearly two full work days. Luckily, you can cut back on time spent replying to emails with Smart Reply in Gmail. Smart Reply uses machine learning to generate quick, natural language responses for you.

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

But you can save time polishing your presentations by using Explore in Slides, powered by machine learning. Explore generates design suggestions for your presentation so you don’t have to worry about cropping, resizing or reformatting. You can also use Explore in Docs, which makes it easy to research right within your documents. Explore will recommend related topics to help you learn more or even suggest photos or more content you can add to your document. Check out how to use Explore in Slides and Docs in this episode of the G Suite Show:

Explore feature for Docs and Slides | The G Suite Show

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

Curb time wasted with Quick Access in Drive, which uses machine intelligence to predict and suggest files you need when you need them. Natural Language Processing (NLP) also makes it possible for you to search the way you speak. Say you’re trying to find an important file from 2016. Simply search “spreadsheets I created in 2016” and voilà!

Another way to avoid losing files is by using Team Drives, a central location in Drive that houses shared files. In Team Drives, all team members can access files (or manage individual share permissions), so you don’t have to worry about tracking down a file after someone leaves or granting access to every doc that you create.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

According to internal Google data, less than 30 percent of enterprise users feel comfortable manipulating formulas within spreadsheets. “=SUM(A1, B1)" or "=SUM(1, 2)" is easy, but more sophisticated calculations can be challenging.

Bypass remembering formulas and time-consuming analysis and dive straight into finding insights with Explore in Sheets, which uses machine learning to crunch numbers for you. Type in questions (in words, not formulas) in Explore in Sheets on the web to learn more about your data instantly. And now, you can use the same powerful technology to create charts for you within Sheets. Instead of manually building graphs, ask Explore to do it for you by typing the request in words.

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: Gmail Blog

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: Drive

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: Gmail Blog

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: Gmail Blog

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

Explore feature for Docs and Slides | The G Suite Show

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: The Official Google Blog

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

Explore feature for Docs and Slides | The G Suite Show

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

According to internal Google data, less than 30 percent of enterprise users feel comfortable manipulating formulas within spreadsheets. “=SUM(a+b)” is easy, but more sophisticated calculations can be challenging.

Bypass remembering formulas and time-consuming analysis and dive straight into finding insights with Explore in Sheets, which uses machine learning to crunch numbers for you. Type in questions (in words, not formulas) in Explore in Sheets on web, Android or iOS to learn more about your data instantly. And now, you can use the same powerful technology to create charts for you within Sheets. Instead of manually building graphs, ask Explore to do it for you by typing the request in words.

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: Drive

Four signs you’re wasting time at work and how G Suite can help

1. You’ve spent more time emailing co-workers than you have actually working

2. You’ve spent the past hour formatting slides for a presentation

Is an image centered? Should you use “Times New Roman” or “Calibri?” Formatting presentations monopolizes too much of our time and takes away from what’s really valuable: sharing insights.

Explore feature for Docs and Slides | The G Suite Show

3. You can’t find a file you know you saved in your drive

Where is that pesky file? According to a McKinsey report, employees spend almost two hours every day searching and gathering information. That’s a lot of time.

4. You’ve fussed with a spreadsheet formula over and over again

Bypass remembering formulas and time-consuming analysis and dive straight into finding insights with Explore in Sheets, which uses machine learning to crunch numbers for you. Type in questions (in words, not formulas) in Explore in Sheets on web, Android or iOS to learn more about your data instantly. And now, you can use the same powerful technology to create charts for you within Sheets. Instead of manually building graphs, ask Explore to do it for you by typing the request in words.

Stop wasting time on menial tasks and focus more on important, strategic work. To learn more about other G Suite apps that can help you save time, visit https://gsuite.google.com/.

Source: The Official Google Blog

Imperial Nepal Treks: An entrepreneur’s journey to rebuild his tourism business after the great earthquake

Two years ago, Nepal experienced its most devastating earthquake in more than 80 years. Thousands of lives were lost, and many more lost their homes and livelihoods. Slowly, the community has been able to recover and rebuild their lives and businesses. Today, we hear from Anz “Anuj” Bajracharya, Director of Treks, Tours & Mountaineering at Imperial Nepal Treks about what he remembers from the day the earthquake hit, the impact it had on his company, and how he has restored and grown the business with a little help from the Internet.

The Imperial Nepal Treks team. Anuj is sporting sunglasses in the front row.

Tell us, what do you remember from April 25, 2015?
It was a quarter to noon on a Saturday, and my family and I were going to the movies. I was driving a car in the middle of the road. First there was just a shake, then there was another quake. Then there was panic. We couldn’t go back to our homes because walls were falling down, the roads were falling down.

For four nights, we lived in the car on the road, cut off from communication. No mobile phones, no telephones, we didn’t have any contact or way to talk to my parents or our relatives. All that time we had no information about our families and friends. It was so sad to see the destruction around us. But we were the lucky ones. The Imperial Nepal Treks team didn’t lose anyone. Everyone in my family and my wife’s family was okay. Our house didn’t totally collapse, though we eventually had to demolish it.

Imperial Nepal Treks earthquake reconstruction — The company assisted the W-Foundation and Black Yak in distributing supplies as a part of the rebuilding effort in the earthquake epicenter of Gorkha.

What impact did the earthquake have on your business?
Nepal’s economy heavily depends on tourism, so the earthquake affected all of us in the industry. Most of our guides were from Gorkha, the epicenter of the earthquake. And no tourist wanted to visit Nepal then, so we had to stop our business for a time. We almost gave up, but we didn’t. Slowly people from overseas started emailing us again, saying they wanted to visit Nepal. Many wanted to help with reconstruction efforts, so we helped with these campaigns.

Imperial Nepal Treks leads a group to the Annapurna base camp which has an altitude of 4,130 meters (13,549 feet).

At the time of the earthquake, you had a team of nine people. Today, you employ 30 guides who are permanent employees. How did you rebuild and grow your business in this short time?
Our business comes not from Nepal but from abroad—Singapore, the United States, Canada, Australia, and other countries. I knew the best way to reach people was through the Internet.

For many visitors, their first question is, "Is it safe to go up to the mountain [Everest]?" The online community helped us recover through word of mouth, recommendations, and reassuring reviews. What our guests tell us and share with others online after finishing their trek matters a lot.

Being found on Google Search is also important for an online-based business like ours. After the earthquake, I saw companies investing in AdWords. I talked to my partners and colleagues and said we should give it a try. We rely on online marketing to reach our customers, and AdWords is a large part of this.

Given what you’ve been through in the past two years, what’s your advice for other entrepreneurs?
Everyone wants a quick result, but we should learn to wait and watch sometimes. Business is not always about earning money, sometimes it’s about how we pause, learn, and adapt. Before I was working for Imperial Nepal Treks, I was a professional drummer. Because tourism is such a big industry here, I adapted to the market. I changed my profession and became a website designer for tourism businesses. You don’t have to always be a professional IT person or a business person to succeed.

What’s next for your business?
Our success with Imperial Nepal Treks really motivated us to do something new, so in 2017 we registered a new company, Ecstatic Himalaya. A lot of this is possible because of Google AdWords, which has helped grow our business. While Imperial Nepal focuses on opportunities for budget-conscious and backpacker trekkers, Ecstatic Himalaya will focus on more upscale and customizable itineraries.