Data-Driven Decisions: How to Export and Master Your Event Analytics
Move beyond dashboard views. Learn how to export event analytics, analyze data in Excel or Google Sheets, create stakeholder reports, track growth, and uncover hidden trends that improve future events.
Beyond the Dashboard
Your event platform's dashboard gives you a quick overview: total views, popular sessions, peak times. That's useful. But what if you want to:
- →Compare this year's yoga retreat attendance to last year's by session type?
- →Show your venue partner exactly which time slots drive the most engagement?
- →Identify which presenters consistently fill sessions vs. which need more marketing support?
- →Create a custom visualization for your board meeting or sponsor pitch deck?
- →Merge event data with ticket sales data from your payment processor?
For these deeper insights, you need raw data. That's where CSV export transforms your analytics from "interesting to look at" into "actionable business intelligence."
The Power of Owning Your Data
When you export event analytics to CSV, you're not just downloading numbers—you're taking ownership of insights that can shape your event strategy for years to come. You can slice it, dice it, combine it with other data sources, and answer questions the dashboard was never designed to answer.
How to Export Your Data
Most modern event platforms offer CSV export functionality. Here's what to look for and how to make the most of it:
What Should Be Included in Your Export?
📊 Session-Level Data
- Session title, presenter, room, time slot
- Total views (how many people viewed this session)
- Click-through rate (views that led to detail views)
- Favorites/bookmarks count
- Calendar exports for this session
- Booking numbers (if applicable)
👥 Presenter Performance
- Total sessions per presenter
- Average views per session
- Click-through to bio/website
- Total engagement across all their sessions
📈 Time-Based Metrics
- Views by hour (traffic patterns)
- Peak engagement times
- Views before vs. during event
- Post-event archive access
🔍 Interaction Data
- Filter usage (which filters attendees use most)
- View mode preferences (cards, grid, my schedule)
- Share button clicks
- Search queries (if tracked)
Pro Tip: Export Regularly
Don't wait until after your event ends. Export data during the event to track real-time engagement. This lets you:
- Identify underperforming sessions and boost their promotion mid-event
- Recognize trending sessions and add capacity if needed
- Spot technical issues (sessions with unusually low engagement)
- Make data-driven decisions while you can still impact outcomes
Analyzing in Excel or Google Sheets
Once you've exported your CSV, the real magic begins. Here are practical analysis techniques you can apply immediately:
1. Sort by Engagement
Sort your session data by total views, favorites, or bookings to instantly identify:
- ✓ Your most popular content themes
- ✓ Best-performing presenters
- ✓ Ideal session lengths and times
2. Create Pivot Tables
Use pivot tables to cross-reference variables:
- ✓ Views by time slot AND day
- ✓ Presenter performance by room
- ✓ Session type popularity by demographics
3. Calculate Ratios
Create formulas to reveal deeper patterns:
- ✓ View-to-booking conversion rate
- ✓ Favorites per presenter
- ✓ Engagement rate (views ÷ total attendees)
4. Visualize Trends
Create charts to communicate insights:
- ✓ Line graph: Traffic over event duration
- ✓ Bar chart: Top 10 sessions by views
- ✓ Heat map: Engagement by time + day
Example Analysis Workflow
Key Metrics to Track
Not all metrics are created equal. Focus on these key performance indicators (KPIs) that actually drive event improvements:
Session Engagement Rate
Formula: (Total Interactions ÷ Total Schedule Views) × 100
Why it matters: Shows which sessions capture attention relative to total traffic. A session with 100 views and 40 interactions (40% engagement) is more compelling than one with 500 views and 50 interactions (10% engagement).
Presenter Performance Score
Formula: Average engagement across all presenter's sessions
Why it matters: Identifies your star presenters. Invite high performers back. Offer lower performers training or pair them with popular co-presenters.
Time Slot Effectiveness
Formula: Average engagement for sessions in each time slot
Why it matters: Reveals optimal scheduling. Morning slots might outperform late afternoon. Use this to schedule your most important sessions at peak times.
Conversion Funnel
Stages: Schedule View → Session Click → Favorite → Booking/Calendar Export
Why it matters: Identifies where attendees drop off. Low click-through? Improve session titles. High clicks but low bookings? Clarify prerequisites or capacity.
Content Category Performance
Method: Group sessions by type (workshop, lecture, practice, etc.) and compare
Why it matters: Shows what your audience really wants. If workshops consistently outperform lectures 3:1, adjust your next event's session mix accordingly.
Creating Stakeholder Reports
Different stakeholders care about different metrics. Tailor your reports to their interests:
🎤 For Presenters
Give each presenter a personalized report:
- • Total views across their sessions
- • Engagement rate vs. event average
- • Attendee feedback (if collected)
- • Booking/waitlist statistics
- • Year-over-year growth (for returning presenters)
💼 For Sponsors
Demonstrate value with hard numbers:
- • Total unique viewers
- • Demographic breakdown (if available)
- • Engagement duration
- • Social share metrics
- • Comparison to previous events
🏢 For Venue Partners
Show how attendees used the space:
- • Room utilization rates
- • Peak capacity times
- • Popular room features
- • Traffic flow patterns
- • Suggestions for next event
📊 For Board/Investors
Focus on growth and ROI:
- • Year-over-year growth trends
- • Engagement per marketing dollar
- • Attendee retention rates
- • New vs. returning attendee ratio
- • Projections for next event
Year-over-Year Comparisons
The real power of exported analytics emerges when you track multiple events over time. Here's how to build valuable historical comparisons:
Building Your Analytics Archive
Build one Google Sheet with tabs for each event: "2024-Spring-Retreat", "2024-Fall-Festival", etc.
Use identical column headers across all exports so you can easily compare and merge data.
Include event name, date, total attendees, venue, weather—contextual factors that might explain performance variations.
Build a separate tab with formulas that pull key metrics from all event tabs for at-a-glance comparisons.
Key Questions Year-over-Year Data Can Answer:
- Q:Are we growing?
Compare total views, bookings, and engagement across events
- Q:What content resonates?
Track which session types consistently perform vs. trending topics that fade
- Q:Are returning presenters improving?
Track individual presenter performance across multiple events
- Q:What's our attendee retention rate?
If you track attendee emails, measure how many return year after year
- Q:Did that marketing campaign work?
Compare views before/during campaigns vs. baseline traffic
From Data to Action
Analytics are only valuable if they drive improvements. Here's how to turn insights into results:
Your Post-Event Analysis Checklist
Start Mastering Your Event Data Today
Flow Grid's analytics export feature gives you complete ownership of your event data. Export to CSV, analyze in your favorite tools, and make data-driven decisions that improve every future event.
Get Started with Flow GridAnalytics export included on Pro plan • 5 free events to start
About the Author
Florian Hohenleitner
Flo is an event organizer, podcast host, and creator passionate about helping people grow and connect. After leaving corporate life, he trained as a yoga teacher in Bali, became a Thai massage practitioner, and now co-organizes the Mediterranean Acro Convention while hosting the Grow with the Flo podcast. He creates tools like Flow Grid to help event organizers build meaningful experiences.
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