Need to Write an Adobe Analytics Solution Design Reference? Let ObservePoint Do It For You

September 2, 2021 | Brandon Flynn
Blog image for Need to Write an Adobe Analytics Solution Design Reference? Let ObservePoint Do It For You

All websites exist for a purpose, and most sites use website analytics to record activity and progress towards business outcomes, information about site visitors, impact of marketing, and key vitals of a website’s performance. As sites grow, maintaining what is tracked and where is essential to team collaboration, change management, and coordination with development and marketing teams.

A Solution Design Reference (SDR) is an extremely useful tool for documenting your analytics implementation—what gets recorded, what naming conventions are in use, etc. However, creating this manually can be a lengthy, error-prone process.

One tool that addresses this is ObservePoint Labs, which automates this process and creates an SDR with a minimal level of effort.

This post will lead you through the process of using ObservePoint (OP) Labs to generate a Solution Design Reference (SDR) from Adobe Analytics. This document will include eVars, props, events, processing rules, list vars, and other information. This tool also functions for Google Analytics but that is not the focus of this post.

Goal: Create an SDR

Prerequisites:

  • You use Adobe Analytics;
  • You have an account in Adobe Analytics;
  • You have a complete report suite.

Step 1: Installing

Open a blank Google Sheet and click Add-ons > Get add-ons.

Google sheet with get add-ons highlight

 

Install ObservePoint Labs here.

ObservePoint labs in the Google add-ons

Step 2: Gathering API information

Next, let's jump into Adobe Analytics: Admin > Company settings > Web services

web services in adobe analytics

 

In the API Access tab, you should find the API info. You may see many users; find the data for your account. Take note of the Web Services Username and Shared Secret.

API Access Information shown

 

If you don't see it, you do not have proper access in Analytics or you do not have an account.

Step 3: Bringing it all together

Back in our Google Sheet, open the OP Labs add-on.

ObservePoint Labs now showing as an option in Google Sheets

 

Click the cog ⚙️ in the top-right and enter the API information here. The ObservePoint API key field should remain "optional."

In the User:Company field, enter the Web Services Username.

In the Key field, enter the Shared Secret.

Click "Continue"

user:company and key populated with information in the Adobe API field of ObservePoint

Step 4: Magic

Click: "Digital SDR - Adobe."

  1. Choose your report suite from the dropdown (you may need to refresh  🔄).
  2. Click: "Generate Template" (this will take a moment).
  3. After the template is generated, click: "Get Variables."
  4. Click: "Get Processing Rules" (requires admin permission).

You should now have detailed documentation for your report suite. 

generate options from the four listed items shown in ObservePoint