What you can do with spreadsheets in Storytell:

• Analyze up to 1 million rows of data

• Ask questions that span multiple Excel sheets

• Get instant insights without writing formulas

• Generate charts and summaries from your data

Key capabilities

Handle large datasets with ease

Storytell can process files with up to 1 million rows, making it perfect for:

• E-commerce: Customer transaction histories and order data

• Sales: CRM exports and performance tracking

• Finance: Trading records and expense reports

• Operations: Quality control logs and inventory data

Work across multiple Excel sheets

If you have Excel files with multiple tabs, Storytell automatically connects related data between sheets. For example, with a retail inventory system containing separate sheets for Products, Suppliers, Orders, and Stores, you can ask questions like: "Which suppliers had delivery delays that affected inventory in our Northwest stores?" and get comprehensive answers.

Ask natural language questions

Instead of writing complex formulas, simply ask questions like:

• "What's our average order value by region?"

• "Which products had the highest growth last quarter?"

• "Show me customer trends over the past year"

Storytell understands your business terms and translates them into the right analysis.

Best practices for preparing your files

Structure your data

For the best results, organize your spreadsheets with these principles in mind:

✅ DO:

• Put column headers in the first row

• Keep each row as a complete record (one customer, one transaction, etc.)

• Use consistent data types in each column (all dates, all numbers, etc.)

• When prompting, specify the actual column name like "Customer_ID" instead of "Column1" or “Column J”

❌ AVOID:

• Merged cells in your data (headers are okay for simple cases)

• Mixing different types of information in the same column

• Blank rows in the middle of your data

• Using generic names like "Data" or "Info" for columns

Optimize Excel files with multiple sheets

• Create clear relationships: Use consistent column names across related tabs (like "Customer_ID" in both your customers and orders sheets)

• Separate different types of data: Put lookup tables (like product categories or store locations) in their own tabs

• Include headers everywhere: Make sure every tab has clear column headers

• Keep it manageable: Storytell works best with up to 30 tabs per Excel file

What works best vs. what's challenging

Files that work great with Storytell

• Clean data tables: Customer lists, sales records, inventory tracking

• Multi-sheet workbooks: Related data across different tabs that can be analyzed together

• Large datasets: Transaction logs, survey responses, operational data

• Consistent formats: Files where each row represents the same type of record

Files that may need special handling

Some file types are more complex and might not work as smoothly:

• Formatted reports: Files with lots of merged cells, subtotals, and complex layouts

• Survey exports: Complex multi-question layouts with varying structures

• Dashboard-style files: Mixed content with charts, summaries, and multiple data sections

• Pivot table exports: Pre-summarized data with groupings and totals

Technical limits to keep in mind

• File size: Up to 1 million rows per file

• Excel tabs: Maximum of 30 tabs per workbook

• Processing time: Large files (500K+ rows) may take 5-10 minutes to process

• Formula handling: Excel formulas become static values (they won't recalculate)

Getting started with your data

Ready to upload your first spreadsheet? Here are some quick tips:

1. Check your headers: Make sure your column names clearly describe what's in each column

2. Clean up obvious issues: Remove blank rows and make sure data types are consistent

3. Ask simple questions first: Start with basic queries before moving to complex analysis