Top 3 trends in embedded analytics

As 2023 comes to a close, we wanted to draw attention to the 3 top trends in embedded analytics that we’ve both witnessed and helped drive. Embedded analytics helps software companies harness the power of data seamlessly within their applications. Staying ahead means embracing cutting-edge trends.

Here are the top three trends shaking up the world of embedded analytics for SaaS companies.

‍

1. User Empowerment with Self-Service Analytics

‍

Gone are the days of waiting for a dedicated analytics team to generate reports.

B2B software companies know this isn’t a sustainable method of scaling this operation; they would prefer their users to self-serve and build their own views or reports.

At Vizzly, we see that many of these companies also see self-serve analytics as a competitive advantage - especially those that serve mid-market or enterprise markets.

SaaS sectors that have gravitated the most to this genre of embedded analytics include:

• Human Resources
• CRMs & ERPs
• Learning & Development
• Logistics & Transportation

Vizzly is doubling down into this trend, leveraging AI to make self-serve analytics and custom reporting even more accessible to the non-data literate segment. More to come on this later.

‍

2. The Advent of the Semantic Layer

‍

For those asking, 'What is a semantic layer?' it's a level of abstraction that sits on top of your database, helping you prepare and model your data for building data apps—like analytics dashboards or reporting capabilities.

For Vizzly, this is a new term for an existing bit of tech - previously, we referred to this capability as our ‘query engine’. But that simply doesn’t go far enough to describe the functionality on offer. The semantic layer offers:

• Ability to define what fields are and how they should behave
• A place for you to make your data ‘data visualization’ ready
• Ability to set metadata needed for LLMs and AI capabilities

Some embedded analytics providers will use third-party providers for this; others, like Vizzly, offer a proprietary semantic layer so you can maintain a consistent experience end-to-end as you build your user-facing analytics dashboard.

‍

3. AI-Enabled Analytics

‍

This will come as no surprise to many reading this. For many B2B software companies, having an AI component or play to your product is table stakes (similar to analytics and reporting). That said, most B2B software companies don’t have core competencies working with LLMs. They expect to work with a third-party provider — like Vizzly — to help them model their data and integrate an AI-based capability into their user-facing apps.

From Vizzly’s perspective, it’s critical any AI play adds genuine user value.

After months of discovery and development, we’re proud to say Vizzly AI will be launching in January to a select group of companies. There are a heap of benefits, a few of which are:

• Helping users explore data with fewer constraints
• Helping users get from question to answer quicker
• Empowering users not familiar with traditional BI interfaces

We’ll disclose more about what we’ve built here in Q1 '24.

‍

Conclusion

‍

As we close 2023, it’s clear: the embedded analytics space is evolving fast, and Vizzly is leading the way with self-serve analytics, embedded AI—all powered by a powerful semantic layer—to help organizations shape and prepare their data for visualization and AI-based capabilities.

‍

Thank you for joining our journey, and see you in 2024!

‍