Storytelling and Data Visualization

WHAT IS DATA VISUALIZATION?

Data visualization is the presentation of data in the form of a graph or chart that enables employees in all departments to easily comprehend the data. Data visualization is very useful as many people are visual learners and need to see the reporting in a simple visually appealing report, rather than a bunch of numbers.

USING DATA VISUALIZATION FOR STORY TELLING

It is important that your data tells a story. “The data story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It should also include a thesis (or a hypothesis), supporting facts (data), a logical structure, and a compelling presentation.” (morgan) It is important that your data tells a story. “The data story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It should also include a thesis (or a hypothesis), supporting facts (data), a logical structure, and a compelling presentation.” (morgan). If you are planning on being a scientist, and will be frequently presenting data to an audience, I would suggest that you do your research on data storytelling and become an expert at it. This will really give you an edge over others and will show that you know what you are talking about, and that you understand the data you are presenting. It also shows that you took the extra steps to really interpret the data and provide your input, and that you didn’t just throw some numbers into a chart. Go the extra step. Put the data together to tell a story… your story, your hypothesis.  

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BEST DATA VISUALIZATION TOOLS?

There are many data visualization tools in the marketplace, however, we will discuss two of most popular ones, SAS Visual Analytics, and Tableau.

SAS Visual Analytics – part of the SAS suite of products, this tool allows you to create interactive reporting in a visually appealing format, as well as dashboards. This program can run on a server or you can access it in the cloud. This program also has a feature that will select the best graph based on the data you have and what you are looking to analyze with the data.

Tableau – Probably the most known data visualization tool in the marketplace, Tableau is offered on the desktop platform, on a server, or online, in the cloud. Tableau is mainly focused on data visualization, whereas SAS has many other features.

Please do your own research on these products to fully understand the capabilities each of them have, and the need for your organization. Both tools are very advanced with great capabilities, however, one will be better suited than the other, so do your research!

TYPES OF CHARTS & GRAPHS, & WHEN TO USE THEM (source)

Bar Graphs: A bar graph is used to show a comparison among different variables.

Line chart: Line plots are a great graph to use when comparing values; also great to comprehend trends in your data.

Pie chart: A pie chart is great to show the composition of something; all the pie slices should add up to 100%.

Scatter Plot: A scatter plot is useful to show the distribution of your data. This is great graph to use when trying to see a trend between two different variables.

Heat Map: A heat map is used to show a connection between two variables, and shows ratings information for each item. The map shows the results using a gradient of a color from light to dark to show the degree of saturation.

It is important that you are using the right graph that best represents your data and the results you are presenting. Certain graphs are more appropriate than others, in that it will provide a much easier understanding of the data. Do your research, and be sure that you are using the correct chart to present your data.