What is Data Preparation?

As a data analyst, your job is to turn raw data into valuable insights that can inform business decisions. However, before you can even begin analyzing the data, you must first prepare it. This process involves cleaning, formatting, and transforming the data to ensure it is accurate and consistent. Without proper data preparation, your analysis could be flawed and unreliable. Therefore, mastering data preparation is a crucial skill for any data analyst. It will not only save you time and frustration but also ensure that your findings are accurate and trustworthy. 

Data Preparation can be done in a number of ways, whether it's by using SQL, with tools like Tableau Prep and Alteryx, PowerQuery in PowerBI or Excel, or using Python. 

Here are some of the more common tasks that you'll do during data preparation:

  • Changing column names
  • Changing column data types
  • Splitting columns
  • Removing columns
  • Adding/Removing Prefixes/Suffixes to rows
  • Joining Tables
  • Unioning Tables

Watch the video below to learn more about data preparation, and read this blog post to learn about one of the best free websites to practice data preparation.
@datawithluis Replying to @datawithluis This is how I would get started in Data Analytics if I were starting from scratch. Data Analysts can spend up to 80% of their time doing data prep. So be sure to master this skill! Let me know if you have any questions, and follow me for more Data Analytics content. #DataAnalyst #Analyst #PowerBI #MicrosoftPowerBI #Analytics #Dashboard #PowerQuery #DataTok #BusinessIntelligence #DataVisualization #PowerBITips #PowerBIHelp #DataHelp ♬ original sound - Luis - Data Analyst

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