9 Secrets for More Effective Data Visualizations
Posted: Wed Jan 29, 2025 5:42 am
To create and present data visualizations, we need to know some fundamental concepts and apply good practices. The way you design the visualization and highlight certain data can have a certain impact on the interpretation by your reading audience. In this article, we reveal nine ways to improve the aesthetics and functionality of your visual representations.
Know your goal
Before presenting a graph or table, we must ask ourselves what we want our readers to understand and what relevant information we are going to provide them. Then, we must determine if the graph really conveys our objective.
Choosing the right chart
While bar charts are the most commonly used because they are easy to interpret and people are more familiar with them, there are other types of charts to consider. Many can be made in Excel, without special software. Let's look at some examples:
Plain text
It consists of highlighting a key number china number data that tells a story. However, it is not advisable to overuse this tool or the impact will be lost.
Heat map
Combine a table with the technique used in a heat map – adding colors that vary in intensity to show relative performance – and it can help readers process and see patterns more quickly.
Layered bar chart
It's a good space-saving technique and clearly illustrates the difference between items you're comparing.
Small multiples chart
It is a tool for dividing complex information into a manageable and comparable array of information. The technique uses multiple views to show different partitions of a data set, using a series of similar tables or graphs with the same scale and axes that can be easily compared.
Less is more
Avoid including too much information in a graph, as too many measurements can be confusing and difficult to interpret. Among other things, we suggest:
Removing the legend: This is a good strategy to clean up the graph and allow for quick interpretation of it.
Label bars directly: makes it easier for the user to process the information.
Colors in the title and average lines : indicate which categories are which, making a separate label unnecessary.
When the actual numerical value is important, label the points directly; when the overall trend is important, leave the axis labels in place. However, do not use both axis and individual point labels.
Use color meaningfully
There is no point in coloring every element of a chart without any real intention. Color has to be used to convey a message. We recommend, when developing a chart, that you color as many elements as possible in gray. After doing so, use another color to highlight key points. Colors in subtitles can be used to designate what the different colors in the chart represent, which allows you to eliminate the legend.
On the other hand, you can use colored shapes as performance indicators to make your designs more accessible. For example, use an empty red circle to indicate “bad” and a full green circle for “good,” or add a triangle as a “warning” symbol that will only appear when the status of a KPI (key performance indicator) is at an unacceptable level.
Know your goal
Before presenting a graph or table, we must ask ourselves what we want our readers to understand and what relevant information we are going to provide them. Then, we must determine if the graph really conveys our objective.
Choosing the right chart
While bar charts are the most commonly used because they are easy to interpret and people are more familiar with them, there are other types of charts to consider. Many can be made in Excel, without special software. Let's look at some examples:
Plain text
It consists of highlighting a key number china number data that tells a story. However, it is not advisable to overuse this tool or the impact will be lost.
Heat map
Combine a table with the technique used in a heat map – adding colors that vary in intensity to show relative performance – and it can help readers process and see patterns more quickly.
Layered bar chart
It's a good space-saving technique and clearly illustrates the difference between items you're comparing.
Small multiples chart
It is a tool for dividing complex information into a manageable and comparable array of information. The technique uses multiple views to show different partitions of a data set, using a series of similar tables or graphs with the same scale and axes that can be easily compared.
Less is more
Avoid including too much information in a graph, as too many measurements can be confusing and difficult to interpret. Among other things, we suggest:
Removing the legend: This is a good strategy to clean up the graph and allow for quick interpretation of it.
Label bars directly: makes it easier for the user to process the information.
Colors in the title and average lines : indicate which categories are which, making a separate label unnecessary.
When the actual numerical value is important, label the points directly; when the overall trend is important, leave the axis labels in place. However, do not use both axis and individual point labels.
Use color meaningfully
There is no point in coloring every element of a chart without any real intention. Color has to be used to convey a message. We recommend, when developing a chart, that you color as many elements as possible in gray. After doing so, use another color to highlight key points. Colors in subtitles can be used to designate what the different colors in the chart represent, which allows you to eliminate the legend.
On the other hand, you can use colored shapes as performance indicators to make your designs more accessible. For example, use an empty red circle to indicate “bad” and a full green circle for “good,” or add a triangle as a “warning” symbol that will only appear when the status of a KPI (key performance indicator) is at an unacceptable level.