Episode #10 | Christmas Special: 7 Gifts from OWOX in 2024

1. Empowering Data Teams and Business Users: OWOX is dedicated to providing tools and strategies for seamless data exploration and decision-making.
2. OWOX Reports Extension Updates: New features include Shared Data Marts, cost-efficient schedulers, and automated pivot tables and charts.
3. Google Sheets Blog Topic: Over 60 articles with practical templates to master Google Sheets, from basic functions to advanced visualizations.
4. Upgraded YouTube Channel: Transitioned to short-form content and YouTube Shorts for quick, actionable data insights.
5. Data Terms Glossary: A comprehensive, easy-to-access guide with over 100 definitions for commonly used data terms.
6. Google BigQuery Expertise: Revamped content with over 60 articles to help businesses leverage Google BigQuery as their data warehouse.
7. The Data Crunch Podcast: Launched to provide valuable insights about data and analytics in an engaging, conversational format.
8. Focus on Data Ownership: Highlighted the importance of businesses owning their data and creating a single source of truth.
9. Vision for 2025: Committed to making data accessible, removing barriers, and empowering businesses to grow with free tools.
10. Celebrating Audience Success: Acknowledging the role of the audience in OWOX’s growth and delivering value through continuous innovation.

Vadym:
Ho, ho, ho! 🎅 Merry Christmas to everyone watching or listening to The Data Crunch Podcast!
I’m Vadym, Growth Marketing Manager here at OWOX, and today, we have something truly special for you. Joining me as always is my co-host, the second Santa Claus of the evening, Ievgen, Head of Marketing at OWOX. Hey, Ievgen! Merry Christmas!

Ievgen:
Merry Christmas, Vadym, and to all our listeners and viewers! I’m so excited about this upcoming episode. We’ve wrapped up an incredible year here at OWOX, and what better way to celebrate than by sharing our highlights with you guys - the best audience we’ve ever had?

Vadym:
Absolutely. At OWOX, we know that our audience – people just like you – want to empower your data teams and business users to act on corporate data, make data-backed decisions and drive business growth.

But let’s face it, to do that, you need the right strategy and tools to make informed decisions.

Ievgen:
That’s right, Vadym.
The challenge, though, is that many businesses struggle with managing, with handling their data effectively. With making your data work for you.
Without the right approach, you might be left frustrated with siloed data, disconnected numbers, scattered reports, and limited by a lack of ownership over your data.

Vadym:
Exactly. And we believe that no one should waste time with data struggles. At OWOX, we don’t just care about data – we care about you, the person working with data every day.

That’s why we’ve been working hard all year, and today, we’re unveiling 7 special Christmas gifts from OWOX – designed to help you transform data from a pain point into your business’s greatest ally.

Let’s jump right in. Ievgen, tell us about the first gift.

Gift #1: OWOX Reports Extension for Google Sheets

Ievgen:
Absolutely! So we’ve basically updated our OWOX Reports Extension for Google Sheets a lot this year. It’s the best place for data teams, business users collaborate around their reports. It’s now great for both.
We introduced Shared Data Marts just about a month ago.
Data teams - just craft queries, save them, and share them with business users. 
And you know, C-levels, managers, everyone who needs the data - they don’t typically need SQL codes, all that complexity.
They just need their data.
Control how they are retrieved with filters, sorts, all that things, that are always hidden into the SQL itself.
Then - they need to set updates of their reports exactly when they need it.
Once a day, once a week, once an hour - we want this to be in the hands of business users. But data teams should keep control of the expenses, so we give this as well.
Vadym: Oh, yes, I like running reports myself now. Why don’t you tell us about Pivots and Charts now? 

Ievgen:
Oh yes, earlier this year we’ve released totally a game-changer for anyone who wants to explore data quickly: Pivots & Chart generator for Google Sheets.
Google Sheets is already a go-to tool for many of you guys, and this piece of our Reports extension makes it even more powerful by visualizing any of your business datasets quickly.

You can grab any table and convert it into plenty of customizable charts on the fly. 

And we’ve also created a SQL copilot earlier,
So yes, Vadym, this was a wonderful year.

Want to try it out? Go to www.owox.com and start your journey.
Vadym, I believe our next gift is also Google Sheets-related, right?

Gift #2: Google Sheets Topic on Our Blog

Vadym:
Exactly! If you love Google Sheets, you’ll love our next gift. This year, we launched a dedicated Google Sheets Tips topic on our blog, featuring over 60 articles to help you master Sheets like never before.

Topics range from VLOOKUP, QUERY, and FILTER, to creating charts, removing duplicates, and more.

And here’s the best part: every article includes a downloadable template with ready-to-use examples. That means you can learn and start experimenting in just a few clicks.

Check it out at owox.com/blog under the “Google Sheets Tips” section. Enjoy!

Back to you, Ievgen. I think you can't wait to share the next gift 🙂 

Gift #3: Upgrading Our YouTube Channel

Ievgen:
Yes. This year, we completely modernized our YouTube channel.
In 2023 I’ve been running long webinars once a month. But was too busy to craft something quick but actionable.
Well, this year I did.
We transitioned from long-form live training to shorter videos that are easier to digest. We talk about everything related to analytics - data, spreadsheets, warehouses, analytics strategies, Google Analytics, tracking.
We’ve released I think over 50 videos, 2-hour mini-course on data analytics, our 12-step framework.
Plus, we’ve recently added YouTube Shorts – perfect for quick insights in under a minute!
So yes, this was absolutely amazing.

Search for “OWOX” on YouTube, subscribe to our channel, and never miss out on the actionable data tips we share.

Vadym, I am curious what’s the next gift?

Gift #4: Data Terms Glossary

Vadym:
Ever wondered, “What does this data term mean?” We’ve got you covered with our Data Terms Glossary. 

It’s a quick, accessible guide to over 100 common terms, from “What is Google BigQuery” to “What is Data Mart” (and of course, we will continue to add more terms each week).

Visit owox.com/glossary or find it in our website’s top navigation menu.

Ievgen, I know that the next gift is a new topic that you started learning this year. Is that right?

Gift #5: Revamping the Google BigQuery Topic

Ievgen:
Yes, Vadym. Data warehouses are cornerstones of modern data analytics, and we’ve dedicated ourselves to covering it in depth.

When you work with data from advertising platforms, or basically from any other tool like HubSpot, stripe, whatever… When you start joining them - It’s often messy – different formats, inconsistent column names, and the worst part? You don’t actually own it.
The advertising platforms do.
Hubspot does. Even stripe does. But not you.
That’s why you need to store it somewhere you can take ownership and create a single source of truth for your business.
You need to get the data ownership.
Plus you need to make sense of your data.
So you need a data warehouse. 

Google, being the leader in search engines, ads and the creator of the widely used Google Sheets, naturally offers one of the most popular data warehousing tools: Google BigQuery. And we connect BigQuery and Sheets in our own awesome way, where Sheets just acts as a window to corporate storage.
This year, we published over 40 new articles and updated older ones, bringing our total BigQuery content to over 60 long articles already.

Explore everything from SQL queries to GA4 BigQuery Export and BigQuery Pricing on our blog at owox.com/blog under “Google BigQuery” topic. We hope you enjoy exploring it as much as we enjoyed creating it.

Vadym, I think it’s time to talk about one of our biggest milestones this year.

Gift #6: Launching the Data Crunch Podcast

Vadym:
Oh, absolutely! And the next gift is something you’re experiencing right now: the launch of The Data Crunch Podcast.

If you’re listening to this episode (or watching it on YouTube), you’ve been part of something special – we launched this podcast during the fall of 2024.

Now, Ievgen has been thinking about this since 2023. And finally, this year, we saw the right opportunity, teamed up, and brought this podcast to life.

Our goal is simple: to give you another way to learn about data, analytics, and all the cool things happening in this space. And what better way to do that than through a podcast you can listen to on a walk, during a drive, or even while cooking dinner?

This episode marks the end of our first season. We’ll be taking a short break after Christmas, but we’ll return in 2025 with even more exciting topics, expert guests, and valuable insights.

So, if you haven’t already, subscribe to The Data Crunch Podcast. It’s free, and trust me, you won’t want to miss what’s coming next.

Now, Ievgen, it’s time for the final gift, and this one’s a little different.

Ievgen, it’s time for our final gift – this one’s a little different, isn’t it?

Gift #7: Sharing Our Vision for 2025

Ievgen:
Yes, the final gift is special because it’s about the future: our vision for 2025.

We’ve learned so much this year, and as a company, we’re focused on continuing to deliver value to our clients, subscribers, and everyone who uses our products for free.
OWOX BI is now trusted by over 165k users who collaborate around data marts to make data-driven decisions and grow revenue faster.

So Here’s what we’re aiming for in 2025:

First, It's about helping you take full ownership of your data – because your data should belong to you, not the platforms you use.
And hint, it’s going to be 100% FREE.
No add-ons, no hidden fees.
FREE. Period.

Second, we are committed to making it easier to handle data and create reports – so you can spend less time struggling with tools and more time using insights to grow your business.

And finally, At OWOX, we believe everyone should have easy access to data. There should be no gaps between business data and decision-makers. So that’s what we are aiming for in 2025. 

Imagine a world where exploring data is as easy as driving a car—without the limitations of public transport (dashboards) or the cost of a private driver (data analysts). 

We can’t reveal everything just yet, but let’s just say 2025 will be full of exciting developments designed to make your life easier (no matter you’re a data man or making day-to-day decisions inside the business). So stay tuned!

Vadym:
I love how clear and focused that vision is, Ievgen. 

And as we wrap up, I have three things to say:

1. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for actionable data tips.

2. Install our OWOX Reports Extension for Google Sheets if you haven’t done so!

3. Book a call with our team at owox.com for expert guidance.

Ievgen:
And with that, this is officially the last episode of Season 1 of The Data Crunch Podcast. Thank you so much for tuning in, downloading episodes, and being part of this journey with us. Your support means everything to us.

Vadym:
We hope to see you back for Season 2 in January 2025. Until then, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of you!

Ievgen:
May the next year bring your business smarter decisions, more happy customers, and more revenue. See you soon in Season 2. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.