People who do word processing in spreadsheet programs often struggle with picking the best option for their everyday work. While some live and breathe in Google Sheets, others use Excel as their absolute favorite software. But, is there really a better choice between the two? And if there is, how can you decide?
The answer is quite simple – the best software depends on the job you need it to perform for you. Many people have now left Excel for the Google Sheets option and find this to be the best decision they have made. Others remain loyal to the Microsoft product and consider it their secret weapon. ‘At the end, your job will decide which software you will use for the processing.’ – says Alejandro Moore, a content manager at AssignmentMasters.co.uk.
So, which one is the best choice for those who work in digital marketing? The answer here is simple – Google Sheets wins the battle here.
Advantages of Excel
Being an older software does not only provide Microsoft Excel with long-lasting reputation, but with a lot of experience and long-term development, too. The fact is, Sheets has a lot more to do to catch up with Excel, especially in the case of the following features:
1. Excel can Manage Larger Data Sets
Even though both programs give you the opportunity to process a huge amount of data, Sheets still has not figured out the way to keep the functionality optimized in such cases. Unlike Excel who is always responsive regardless of the data you are managing, Sheets is known to slow down when you are processing large data sets.
2. Excel offers More Types of Data Visualization
The biggest problem experienced by those who switch to Sheets is the data visualization. Excel has more types of data visualization that are non-existent in Google’s software, starting from pie charts to interactive options and conventional bar graphs.
This is why Excel is still the best choice for those who want to do professional data presentation, but this is not really something you are focusing on when in the business of digital marketing.
3. Excel has Numerous Functions and Formulas
The fact is, Google Sheets does not even come close to the array of functions and formulas Excel has. If you are dealing with mathematical or statistical data, Excel is a great option since it can be used for everything you may need.
How to Switch to Google Sheets
Yes, the advantages of Excel over Google Sheets are very obvious but still, the advantages Sheets offers for those in digital marketing make the decision much easier – switch to this software as soon as possible!
The process of changing your software is complex, which is why I decided to provide you with some quick guidelines:
1. The Add-Ons Section
Once you switch to Sheets, you may start missing the functionality of Excel, but do not panic. You can simply check the toolbar and look for the add-ons section. This section is full of amazing solutions for all your problems and all you have to do is look around. Starting from the tool that splits names to one that sorts data by color and removes duplicates, you will have no problem in handling the data for digital marketing.
2. Pivot Tables
Google Sheets does not have the solution of grouping the data into summaries as Excel does. If this is a problem for you, you can always turn to grouping the data in sorted pivot tables.
The solution is simple – make an adjacent column where you will add a date formula that extracts the date range you are planning to sort the data by. Then, pivot out the information and group it by the column.
At the beginning, you may find this to be much slower than the Excel option, but once you get used to it, the alternative does a really great job!
3. Charts
As I mentioned, data visualization is a real struggle to those who leave Excel and start processing data in Google Sheets. Excel has those amazing pie charts, a wide choice of bar graphs and much, much more. Google Sheets may not have these, but there is always a good alternative that will ease your change of software.
When it comes to charts, the best solution here is to add an annotation column to the right. Additionally, this software gives you the opportunity to copy the chart to Docs and use it from any place, at any time!
So, what is the best choice for your data processing if you are working in digital marketing? We have established that Excel has numerous advantages over Google Sheets, but if you are ready to make the change, Sheets can prove to be much better for your digital marketing strategy.
Mary Kleim is a digital marketing specialist with years of experience in processing data using the latest software. She is hard working and dedicated to the main goals – to increase brand awareness and turn prospects into conversions. Kleim is a digital marketer focused on effective communication through the best technology platforms, holding high reputation in initiating and maintaining good marketing campaigns.
Thoroughly enjoyed the piece of writing. But I don’t agree with your opinion that Excel can manage large data sets and I think Excel’s incompatibility in handing large data sets lead people to use spreadsheets. Am I right?
Thanks, Juby. My understanding is Excel handles large data sets better than Google Sheets. But if you’re truly handling large data sets you’re better off with SQL or another software designed for large data handling. I use Excel daily and handle data of a couple thousand rows by a couple hundred columns with formulas throughout. Even with all those calculations and significant data set size it moves pretty fast.