Data Storytelling
a key skill:
the ability to communicate findings and insights, clearly & effectively
"telling a compelling story with your data helps you get your points across effectively" -Informationweek,may 2016
Data story
def
must be true, not just emotionally and factually
data story vs. normal stories
is about a person, a goal, & a challenge
data stories same but backed up by data
Data without a story is of no use
normal stories don't have graphs
Real data storytelling
a way
to share facts
in the form that listeners understand, appreciates & remember the story best
Stories vs. Data
A story beats data!
A story beats a story that includes data!
"Drop-in-the-bucket" effect
Focusing on statistics halt emotional responses to the issue of the story - it shifts to an analytical mind
when people think analytically, it hinders them to act compassionately
people get overwhelm when the scale of the problem is too big
solution: tells one story to avoid drop in the bucket effect
Define & R'ship
- stories
- Data Storytelling
Data Visualization
What ❓
weaves data and visualization into a narrative
tailored to a specific audience
to convey
credibility in the analytical approach
confidence in the results
a compelling set of insights that is actionable to the audience
story is data driven
- Data Visualization
Why present visually?
It makes complex data easier to understand
Increases information retention
pulls out key messages and provides clarity
you control the message
it creates something shareable
it creates excitement
Type
Qualitative
only half of the story
purpose
makes sense of data,
but rarely generates insights that stimulate actions
terrific tools to use when telling the data story because they provide credibility and give weight to points being made in the story
communicating findings & insights effectively through graphical means (graphs, charts, mind maps, infographic etc.
What to show?
Comparison
Distribution
Composition
Relationship
changing over time
static
pie chart
tree map
stacked area chart
stacked bar chart
among items
over time
bar chart
circular area chart
line chart
bar histogram
scatter plot
line histogram
scatter plot
if designed a certain way, can inspire listeners to take actions
ideas to display qualitative data
Quantitative
infographic
information about quantities; that is, information that can be measured & written down with numbers
also
focuses on numbers
can be displayed through graphs, charts, tables
displayed over time e.g. line chart
information about qualities; can't actually be measured
also
represented through pictures that explore data in visual way
focus on visualizing themes of data
can tell a story
like quantitative,
can be displayed graphically e.g. bar chart, pie chart. it's tricky
a great way to convey qualitative information on data
photos besides participant's responses
showcase open-ended survey data besides close-ended data
TOOLS
8 commandments
- Begin with a Question
- End with an insight
- Tell a compelling story
- Explain with visuals, narrate with words
- Be honest & credible
- Be clear & concise
remove unnecessary part of the story
- know and cater to audience
- Provide context
what are audience's interest? e.g. details vs. high-level
compare metrics to industry benchmark
set up story, what will audience learn?
something useful to learn
people remember stories not data
don't sugarcoat negatives
understand better with visuals, graphics
add voice to data
e.g.
plotly
google charts
Tableu
key elements
It pairs data, the graph and words
not only describing the graph, but also tell a story to lead audience through the analysis process
Narrative + Data
it helps to explain to your audience
what's happening in data
why a particular insight is important
ample context & commentary is often needed to fully appreciate an insight
Visuals + Data
can enlighten audience to insights
that are not easily seen without graphs
many interesting patterns and outliers in data hidden if not visualized
Narrative + Visual
can engage or even entertain audience
combine the right visuals, narrative and data - the data story can influence and drive change
visualizing data effectively, but more than just create visually appealing data charts
present data the last stage of the pipeline
a structured approach
for communicating data insights
involving 3 key elements
data
visuals
narratives