Leveraging the power of embedded analytics is easier than ever. 

Read on to learn how embedded analytics works with Polymer — a leading Business Intelligence (BI) platform with a drag-and-drop builder, built-in data management tool, and a plethora of other time-saving features.  

What is Polymer? 

Polymer is a no-nonsense BI platform built around helping you create amazing, interactive data visualizations with little to no coding. Its core features include a drag-and-drop dashboard builder, seamless reporting, and integrated data management.

In addition, Polymer also lets you use embedded analytics to enrich your app or web property with readable data visualizations — with or without code.

How to Use Polymer for Embedded Analytics

Here's a quick rundown of Polymer's advantages for embedded analytics: 

1. Consolidate All Your Data in One Place

One of the main advantages of Polymer is the easy-to-use data management tool. 

Use the available data integrations to easily pull data from business applications, including but not limited to Zendesk, Jira, Google Analytics, Airtable, and Dropbox. Polymer also connects with BigQuery and Google Sheets, providing you with a single source of truth for your entire organization's data needs.

Once your data is extracted and ready, use the V3 Data Manager for tasks like standardizing headers, adjusting number formats, creating custom metrics, and managing synchronization settings. Polymer also includes AI-generated summaries to help you understand and organize your data better.

2. Effortlessly Create Eye-Popping Data Visualizations 

With your data loaded and ready to use, it's time to fire up Polymer's drag-and-drop dashboard builder. This will enable you to create beautiful data visualizations to use for embedded analytics. 

From your Polymer dashboard, click 'New Board' to get started. 

If you choose not to use a template, the next step is to pick the dataset from your data manager. Select your dataset from the list and click 'Create Board' to proceed.

Take note that you can also automate the initial dashboard-building process with the help of AI. Just select 'Auto-Generated' in the next window or click 'Blank Board' to create data visualizations from scratch

Whichever you choose, you'll get the opportunity to create and customize professional-looking data visualizations without writing a single line of code.

Using the dashboard builder, create and customize a range of visualizations for data presentation or analysis. 

Some examples are:

• Headers — Compartmentalize your dashboard with headers to help viewers find specific data points. 
• Metric & KPI scorecards — Make it easy to track high-priority metrics and set target values to aid data analysis. 
• Pivot tables — Organize and summarize datasets using filters and categories. 
• Maps — Extract and visualize location-based data to help with your decision-making process. 
• ROI calculator — Quickly calculate ROI or evaluate the relationship between two metrics along with up to six influencing factors. 
• Scatter plot — Analyze the relationship between two metrics.

Of course, Polymer also supports the usual charts and tables — from column charts to line plots. See them in action by creating a free trial account here.

To create data visualizations faster, scroll to the bottom of your dashboard to see the "Suggested Insights" section. 

Here, you'll find a set of data questions that can be answered via a visualization. Just click on a question and let Polymer's AI do the work for you.

Speaking of AI, click 'PolyAI' from the main menu to launch Polymer's proprietary chatbot assistant. Type in prompts to generate visualizations, ask about your data, or request suggestions — all without leaving the dashboard builder.

3. Let Your Audience Explore Your Data with Interactive Features

Another thing that makes Polymer excellent for embedded analytics is interactivity.

Very little manual work is needed to take advantage of this feature. 

Basic interactions like mouse hovers, for instance, are automatically baked into your Polymer visualizations. This allows your audience to explore your data and uncover more actionable insights without needing additional reports. 

Users can also sort values by header, crop timelines, or view text-based explanations right out of the box.

Keep in mind that different interactions are enabled depending on the data visualization type you use. Explanations, however, are automatically applied to all visualizations with AI. 

To add a custom explanation, highlight the visualization you want to modify and click 'Explain.'

In the customization window, click 'Edit Description' to enable the rich text editor. This includes formatting tools like bullet points, boldface, and paragraph styles. 

You can also attach images, videos, and links to explanations. If you're pressed for time, click 'Generate Description' to get the whole thing done, or just use the auto-generated text as a reference.

4. Get The Ball Rolling with Templates and Scale as You Go

Polymer's drag-and-drop dashboard builder — paired with generative AI features — will allow you to build visualizations for embedded analytics in seconds rather than hours. 

If you like to save even more time, browse Polymer's library of templates to generate an entire dashboard report in seconds. 

From the main page, click 'Browse all Templates' to view templates that are relevant to your datasets.

On the template page, click 'Use this template' and follow the on-screen authentication steps to connect your chosen data source.

When done, it will only take a few seconds before Polymer generates your entire dashboard. Feel free to customize your blocks, add new ones, or use branding tools to instill your company's identity through personalization.

To check the entire lineup of templates, visit this page.

5. Inject Your Brand with White Labeling Tools

When it comes to embedded analytics, white labeling or personalization tools allow your data visualizations to blend in with the rest of your app or web property. 

We've already covered a few things that let you create personalized dashboard experiences, such as presentation elements and interactive features. The next step is to dive into the fine details of your data visualizations. 

Polymer comes with a slew of branding tools that can be applied to an entire board or at a block level. 

For individual visualizations like bar graphs, you'll be able to change pretty much every color you can see. You'll also be able to control advanced options like annotations, percentages, stacks, and more.

To customize your entire dashboard, click 'Settings' from the left menu. This allows you to personalize visual aspects that affect your entire board, including your logo, color theme, timezone, and URL.

If you're planning to embed your entire dashboard into your app or website, consider creating a custom pop-up modal and info banner. These elements allow you to set your audience's expectations as well as provide them with more background information, helping them grasp the story that your data is trying to tell.

6. Easily Integrate Your Data Visualizations with the Embed Code

At this point, we've covered how to build custom data visualizations, capitalize on interactive features, and instill your brand identity into your dashboard. The next step is to bring them all together and put the "embedded" into embedded analytics. 

Your easiest option is to generate an embed code — either for your entire dashboard or an individual data visualization. This allows you to pull Polymer assets into your app or web property (i.e., client portal) simply by copy-pasting a snippet of code. 

To generate an embed code for an entire dashboard, click 'Share Board' in the upper-right corner. From there, click the 'Copy Embed Code' button to automatically generate and copy a ready-to-use inline frame tag ("<iframe>") that directly attaches your dashboard to your destination.

The next step is to simply paste your embed code to your web property or app. Take note that, depending on the app's type, you may need to perform additional steps before plugging in your code. 

Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) won't have problems integrating your data visualizations — thanks to the fact that they support inline frames natively. Otherwise, you'll need to work your iframe tag into a web view widget or use another strategy supported by your development tool.

A more practical approach, however, is to use the Polymer API to pull functionalities from the web interface into your app.

This takes us to the next point. 

7. Seamlessly Weave Polymer Features into Your App with the API

Using the Polymer API offers the flexibility you need to design professional, cohesive apps that are powered up by embedded analytics. 

An API — short for Application Programming Interface — enables interconnectivity between nearly every internet-enabled device or software today. 

Check out Polymer's comprehensive API documentation for everything you need to know. This includes the platform's usable endpoints, working with API keys, integrating workspaces, enabling self-service data exploration, and many more. 

You can also explore the Polymer repository on GitHub for more instructions and resources to help you make the most out of the API.  

Try Polymer Embedded Analytics for Free

Ready to give Polymer embedded analytics a go? 

Good news — anyone can get full, unrestricted access to the Polymer platform without spending a single cent. 

Click here to create a 7-day free trial and explore everything Polymer has to offer. Build beautiful dashboards, create presentation elements your audience will love, and start spicing up your apps with highly digestible data visualizations.