Ingest and use Adobe Analytics classifications data in Analysis Workspace in Customer Journey Analytics

In this video, I’ll show you how to ingest Adobe Analytics classification data to use in analysis workspace projects in Customer Journey Analytics. These are the topics I’ll cover. This video will be relevant to users of Adobe Analytics who use or have used classification data in Analytics reports to roll up base values collected through implementation like marketing tracking codes or product skews, and these get rolled up to other levels of aggregation. There are several ways to ingest or produce Analytics classifications. I’ll be covering the first method, using the Analytics Source Connector and Experience Platform. Review the benefits and drawbacks for each method shown here. There is a separate video for using derived fields in Customer Journey Analytics. If you’ve used Processing Roles in Adobe Analytics, this feature will be familiar. A link to the documentation is also referenced on the page. I’ll start with reviewing classifications in Adobe Analytics. I’m in the Analytics Admin Council. Once I select a report suite, I’ll go to Edit Settings, Traffic, Traffic Classifications. The page field is selected under Select Classification Type. This value is currently set up for classifications. You can see the defined buckets of aggregation here below. In a separate process, text files that contain all unique page name values and corresponding classification values are generated. The files are then uploaded, typically through FTP, and once processed, the classification values are available in Reports. To see this, I’ll add a classification field to the Analysis Workspace project in Analytics. I’ll use the Filter feature to grab the classification field and drag and drop it to the Freeform table. You can identify this as a classification column of the base page value because it’s referenced in the parentheses to the right. So, what we’re looking at here are all the classification values in the FSI Retail Bank Pages column for the pages text file uploaded to the system. Now I’ll use the application switcher in the top right area to open Experience Platform. The analytics data, as well as associated classification data, is ingested into Platform separately. Since my end goal is to use classification data in Customer Journey Analytics, I need to ingest it first. Once I select Sources in the left panel, I’ll click on Add Data under Adobe Analytics. In the Select Data step, the first two choices are Report Suite and Classifications. I’ll select Classifications, and when I do this, it lists all of those available to ingest using the Source Connector. At the bottom, I see the Page Classification dimension for the Report Suite I showed you in Analytics earlier. If you don’t see any classifications listed, and you think they should be, contact your Adobe Account team. Notice some of these are grayed out. This means they’ve already been ingested. I’ll click the checkbox to the left of Page to select it, and then Next in the upper right corner. There’s nothing else to configure. The classifications will be synced weekly, and that’s the only option using this workflow. As I mentioned earlier, you’d need to use a custom process if your classification files are updated more frequently. At this point, I’ll select Finish in the upper right corner. The data flow has been created successfully. It’s the first one in the list. When I select it, the properties display in the right panel. I can receive alerts related to this data flow by selecting the three picker, and then Subscribe to Alerts. Then I can choose which alerts I want to receive. I’ll select the first option so I’m aware when the data is ingested into Platform. I receive my alert about data being ingested for my classification data flow. I’ll open the target dataset to open the monitoring view for my classification file. There’s one file with 391 records. At the bottom, there’s a link to the batch ID, as well as the status of the batch, which is successful in my case. In the upper right corner, I’ll select Preview Dataset, and this shows me a preview of what’s been ingested. Now I’ll close the modal. The default name assigned to this dataset is quite long. I think I’ll update it so that when I add this dataset to my connection in Customer Journey Analytics, it’ll be easy to find. All I need to do is type in a new name and hit Enter. I’ll see a Changes Saved confirmation at the bottom here. If you need to break down a classified column by the variable that captures the base value in Analytics, creating a new identity namespace and marking the schema fields with the new identity namespace is necessary. I’ll start with creating the new identity by selecting Identities in the left panel. In the upper right corner, I’ll select Create Identity Namespace. In the modal, I’ll give my identity a name and symbol, and then I’ll choose the cross-device ID as the type. Then at the bottom right, I’ll select Create. Now that my identity namespace exists, I’ll go back to the dataset from the Sources Dataflow screen, since the classification Dataflow I created is still at the top of the list, and it’s easy to find that way. There are other ways to get to this screen, though. I want to open the Classification schema to configure the identity field there. Once the schema opens, I’ll expand the hierarchy and locate the key field. This is the field in the classification file that contains the ID or base value collected in the page variable. In the Properties section at the right, I’ll scroll to the bottom and select Identity, as well as Primary Identity, followed by Analytics Pages, which is the new identity namespace I just created. This identity is primary for this schema and is secondary in the schema used for the Analytics Report Suite data. Next, I’ll apply and save the changes. I’ve opened the schema for the Analytics Report Suite. I’ll scroll to find the page variable in the hierarchy. There it is. I’ll select Name and then I’ll scroll the Properties panel on the right. Next, I’ll select Identity and then I’ll choose Analytics Pages from the list box. Again, this isn’t a primary identity for this data source. It’s a relational identity with the classification file. Now I’ll choose Apply at the bottom and Save at the top. It’s time to open Customer Journey Analytics to start using this classification data. I’ll open it from the application switcher in a new browser tab. First, I’ll select Data Management Connections to show the new classification data source. I’ve already added it to an existing connection. I’ll use the Filter feature to locate the connection. Once the connection shows up, I’ll click on the list of datasets included and locate the classification dataset. There it is right there. Now I’ll go to Data Management, Data Views. I’ll use the Filter feature to locate the data view. Next, I’ll click on Components. Now in the left panel at the bottom, I’ll expand Lookup Datasets and then I’ll locate the Page Name dataset from the list and expand that. Once that’s done, you can add all the fields or you can be selective if you want. I’ll close out of this and show you how to add a classification field to an Analysis Workspace project next. I’m in Workspace and I’ll select Create New in the upper right corner and now I’ll create a blank project. Once the blank project with a freeform table loads, I’ll update the date range in the right corner. Now I’ll use the Filter feature in the Component panel to search for one of the classification columns. I’ll drag and drop this field into the freeform table. This is the report we viewed in Analytics at the beginning of this video. To demonstrate the ability to do a breakdown of the base value captured in the page variable, I’ll right click on the Home value, then I’ll choose Breakdown, Dimensions, Page Name. This is accomplished by setting up the identity namespace I showed you earlier. You should feel comfortable ingesting an Analytics classification file into Experience Platform and using the data in a Workspace project in Customer Journey Analytics. Thanks and good luck!