Identify trends, patterns and anomalies

Trends, patterns, and anomalies are 3 critical insights you can extract from metrics data. Trends show directional movement over time: whether metrics are consistently increasing, decreasing, or remaining stable. Identifying a trend requires looking at data across multiple time periods rather than focusing on isolated data points. Patterns reveal recurring behaviors or cycles within your data, such as weekly usage spikes every Monday or quarterly purchasing surges. These patterns often correlate with external factors like work schedules, seasonal changes, or marketing campaigns. Recognizing these patterns helps you predict future behavior and plan accordingly.

Anomalies are data points that significantly deviate from established patterns, potentially signaling problems or opportunities. For example, a sudden drop in conversion rate might indicate a broken checkout flow, while an unexpected usage spike could reveal a viral mention of your product.

If you see an anomaly, check:

• How does this compare to last month, week or same time last year?
• How does this compare across devices?
• How does this compare across markets?