CRM Analytics formerly known as Tableau CRM is a platform which connects data from multiple sources and enables creating interactive views of that data. Its intuitive point-and-click visual interface helps everyone in the org getting immediate access to the powerful data insights derived by means of the various assets. Here we discusses the basics of CRM analytics by introducing certain important terms involved.
The Analytics home has lists of items suggested for you, based on your usage and your org, as well as providing quick access to your recent and favorite assets. These lists are dynamic and update automatically.

You can favorite any of your assets by selecting Favorite option from the dropdown arrow placed to the right of the asset.

What is an asset?
CRM Analytics assets comprises collections of data in different levels of data refinement ranging from raw data to a highly curated packaged view.

An asset can be anyone of the following:
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- Dataset
A set of specially formatted source data, optimized for interactive exploration.
A CRM Analytics dataset is a collection of related data that can be created from many sources, including Salesforce objects, external data sources, and other datasets. Datasets are the foundation to analysis, dashboards, models, and predictions. The tools to create datasets include the Dataset Builder, which incorporates the instructions for building datasets using a dataflow, and Data Prep, which cleans and transforms data using a recipe.
We will cover Dataflow and datasets in detail in another article. To create a data set the simple way is to click on create and select Dataset. Choose any of the four options to create a new dataset.

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- Lens
A lens is a specific view into a dataset’s data to do exploratory analysis and visualization to get insight to a specific business question. It can be saved and shared independently or can be clipped to a dashboard.
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- Dashboard
Curated set of charts, metrics, and tables based on the data in one or more lenses.

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- App
A purpose-built set of analytics and answers about a specific area of your business. With apps, you can provide pathways through your data, plus powerful tools for spontaneous, deep explorations. After creating dashboards, lenses, and datasets, organize apps to present dashboards in relevant order, and then share apps with appropriate groups.
CRM Analytics apps are where you run your dashboards and lenses. An app contains dashboards, lenses, and datasets in any combination. Apps are like folders which allow users to organize their data projects in a private or shared manner.

On the CRM Analytics Home page, you can browse all of your assets, but when browsing an app, you’re viewing only the assets in that app.

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- Widget
Widgets are building blocks of an analytics dashboard. They can be data, text or image widgets. In the dashboard designer, you can add different widgets to perform functions. For example, widgets can calculate key performance indicators, filter dashboard results, visualize your data using interactive charts, and show record-level details in tables.

This article explained the basics of CRM Analytics. To learn more, click Explore Data and Take Action with CRM Analytics (salesforce.com)
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