Welcome to Round 6! In this round, we’ll discover how both functions behave when we insert a new worksheet column. In other words, does inserting a new worksheet column break the formula? Or, will it keep working? Let’s find out … the round begins now. Round 6 We would like to retrieve some information […]
Round 5 begins now! In this post, the goal is to understand the results of each function when no matching rows are found. That is, when the lookup value is not found in the data table. Do the functions return an error? The closest match? 0? Well, that is why we are here, so let’s […]
Welcome to round 4. In this round, we want to explore the issue of return values. Specifically, the data types that our two heavyweights can return. Can they return text values? Numbers? So, that’s the idea … let’s jump right in. Round 4 … ding! Round 4 We have some account numbers, but we […]
Welcome to Round 3. In this round, we want to explore the idea of column order. That is, we want to find out if the order of the lookup table columns matter to these functions. Let’s find out! Round 3 … begins now! Round 3 We are trying to build a little report, and […]
Round 2 begins! In this round, the goal is to understand what happens when values that are supposed to match are stored as different data types. Different data types? Cells can store many kinds of data, including numbers, text, dates, times, and so on. The format you apply to a cell doesn’t impact the data […]
It is time! In the first post, we met VLOOKUP. In the second post, we met SUMIFS. And now, the battle begins! Here is how it will work. The competition will consist of several rounds. In each round, we will use VLOOKUP and then SUMIFS to perform the same task. Then, we’ll determine who wins […]
This is the second post in the Battle of Heavyweights series, where we are comparing VLOOKUP to SUMIFS in order to understand their key differences. Knowing these key differences will help us determine which to use in a given workbook. In the previous post, we were introduced to VLOOKUP. Now, it is time to meet […]
This is the first post in a series called Battle of Heavyweights. In the series, we’ll use a boxing metaphor to compare VLOOKUP and SUMIFS. Now, as you read the next paragraph, use your best announcer’s voice and be sure to imagine the roar of a cheering crowd 🙂 “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the […]
In this post, we’ll learn how to add up a column of numbers based on the values in another column. For example, we are trying to analyze product sales based on average customer rating. That is, customers rate our products on a scale of 1 to 10, and so each product has an average rating […]
In this post, we are going to use the data model to improve our reporting process. This is the fourth post in the Stop Wasting Time series, and this is where everything we’ve learned comes together. By the time we have finished this post, updating our report will be extremely easy. In fact, it will […]