Exploring an analytical data model
Analytical data models allow you to organize the data so that it can be analyzed.
Models are defined by the quantitative values that you want to analyze or report (known as measures) and the entities by which you want to aggregate them and are based on connected data tables (known as dimensions).
A model can, for example, include a table with numerical sales measures (such as revenue or quantity), as well as dimensions for products, customers, and time. This would combine sales data of one or more dimensions (for example, to identify total revenue per customer or total items sold per product per month).
The model is conceptually a multidimensional structure known as a cube, where each location in which the dimensions meet represents an added value.
To understand this cubed data organization, let’s look at the following figure:
Figure 5.3 – Cube data model