Analyze Excel sales data and make a chart with ChatGPT

How to do it

1. 1

   Save a copy without personal data

   Delete names, phone numbers, addresses, emails and any order IDs that can be traced to a person. Keep only date, category, quantity, amount and channel.

2. 2

   Check the first twenty rows look right

   Dates should be dates and amounts should be numbers. If an amount is text like "1,200", convert it to a number in the spreadsheet before uploading, or the totals will come up short.

3. 3

   Have it describe the file before drawing conclusions

   Don't open with "analyze this and give me recommendations." First have it repeat back the row count, the date range and the columns it sees.

   Prompt

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   I've uploaded sales details with personal data removed. The only columns are date, category, quantity, amount and channel. Please analyze it in English for a manager who doesn't know statistics terms. Work in order, don't skip steps: 1. In five lines, list the columns you actually see, the row count and the date range. If there are blanks, negative amounts or obviously wrong dates, say how many rows first. 2. Compare each category's amount over these three months. Name the category that rose most and the one that fell most, with numbers. 3. Look at amount by day of week. Only draw a conclusion if the gap is clear; otherwise write "no clear weekday difference." 4. Draw a bar chart: categories on the x-axis, amount on the y-axis. The title must be a one-sentence conclusion, not "Sales chart." 5. Write three next steps. Each must tie back to a number above. Don't guess causes that aren't in the file, like ads or weather. If the data isn't enough, say so. Don't fill gaps.
4. 4

   Make the chart title one sentence

   If its title is still "Sales by category," ask it to rewrite the title with the rising or falling category as the subject, followed by the number. Before you put the chart in a deck, check that category names on the x-axis aren't cut off.

   Prompt

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   Change only the chart title. Don't recalculate. Title format: "(falling category) down (number), (rising category) up (number)". If your last answer doesn't have those two numbers, say the numbers are missing. Don't make them up.
5. 5

   Check three numbers against the spreadsheet

   Pick three numbers it mentioned and check them with SUMIF or a pivot table. If a category doesn't match, leave it out of what you tell your manager.