Descriptive analytics is the process of analyzing historical data to identify trends, patterns, and insights that describe what has happened over a specific period. It involves summarizing past events and data points to provide a clear picture of the current state of your business. Techniques such as data aggregation, data mining, and data visualization are commonly used to transform raw data into meaningful summaries. By leveraging tools like SQL, Excel, and Python libraries (e.g., Pandas), businesses can generate reports and dashboards that highlight key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics. Descriptive analytics lays the foundation for more advanced analytics by providing a comprehensive understanding of past performance, enabling better decision-making and strategic planning.