[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
In her book “<\/span>Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals<\/span><\/a>“, Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic highlights the importance of telling stories when presenting data. In the era of big data, companies have access to more information than ever before. But volumes of data alone provide little value without the ability to synthesize insights and communicate meaning. This is where the emerging practice of data storytelling becomes critical.<\/span><\/p>\n Since data alone means little without context, narrative and storytelling can make it much more compelling. By blending compelling narrative with visual data exploration, we can shape raw data into stories that inform and inspire.<\/span><\/p>\n In this article, we’ll dive deep into data storytelling and explore how to take data analysis from flat statistics to an engaging storyline that captivates your audience.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_id=”storytelling” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n In her book, Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic aims to help business professionals effectively communicate insights using data storytelling. According to the author, presenting data is not just about charts and graphs but about telling a compelling story that resonates with the audience.<\/span><\/p>\n Here are some of the key ideas from the book:<\/span><\/p>\n The importance of context<\/b><\/p>\n Choosing an effective visual<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n Clutter is your enemy!<\/b><\/p>\n Think like a designer<\/b><\/p>\n Lessons in storytelling<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_id=”sheets” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Now we can put it all together and start telling stories with data. In order to engage the audience and tell a story, we will follow some of the principles presented in the book:<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Let’s say we need to secure increased investment in training and development for the sales team. As a sales manager, I will prepare a compelling presentation for upper management, utilizing data storytelling to illustrate how strategic training initiatives correlate directly with sales growth. We’ll begin by identifying the audience, figuring out what they need to know and how we can convince them to invest in training.<\/span><\/p>\n Who: CEO and directors.<\/span><\/p>\n What: Understand how investing in training and development can increase sales.<\/span><\/p>\n How: Show the correlation between training budget and sales.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Here’s the table containing the data we have collected over the last two years.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/static.sheetgo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Storytelling-with-data-1.webp” alt=”Storytelling with data 1″ title_text=”Storytelling with data 1″ align=”center” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n After performing some exploratory analysis, we have concluded that there is a strong correlation between training budget and sales. If presented in a table format, showcasing the correlation between the training budget and sales over time would be challenging, as the nuances of the upward trend and its impact on sales wouldn’t be as visually apparent to the audience.<\/span><\/p>\n Therefore, choosing the appropriate visuals can help the audience identify the relationship between these two variables. In order to show the increase of sales revenue, a simple <\/span>column chart<\/span><\/a> would be enough.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/static.sheetgo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Storytelling-with-data-2.webp” alt=”Storytelling with data 2″ title_text=”Storytelling with data 2″ align=”center” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n However, we need to show the audience that this increase in sales has been associated with a higher investment in training. In this example, we could use a stacked chart or a combo chart to convey this message.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/static.sheetgo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Storytelling-with-data-3.webp” alt=”Storytelling with data 3″ title_text=”Storytelling with data 3″ align=”center” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n This combo chart highlights the relationship between training budget and sales revenue. As you can see, this graph shows the audience that the money invested in training is little compared to total sales revenue. However, it’s not easy to identify a correlation between these variables.<\/span><\/p>\n By building a <\/span>scatter plot<\/span><\/a>, we can show the audience that there is strong correlation between money invested in training and sales revenue.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/static.sheetgo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Storytelling-with-data-4.webp” alt=”Storytelling with data 4″ title_text=”Storytelling with data 4″ align=”center” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n With just a few charts, we can tell a very compelling story to back up our argument that the company needs to keep investing more in sales training.<\/span><\/p>\n We could start off by asking our audience how important they believe it is to invest money in sales training. With that question in mind, we can build a narrative that would show them the correlation between sales training and sales revenue.<\/span><\/p>\n After presenting the data, the audience would be equipped with all the information they need to make an informed decision.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_id=”conclusion” _builder_version=”4.22.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n By telling stories, we can engage our audience and help them make sense of the data. Had we just presented all the data in tables and graphs, the audience wouldn’t be able to read the data so easily.<\/span><\/p>\n If you want to learn how to build an eye-catching dashboard, check out these articles on how to make <\/span>bar charts<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>line graphs<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>pie charts<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>scatter plots<\/span><\/a> in Google Sheets.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In her book “Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals”, Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic highlights the importance of telling stories when presenting data. In the era of big data, companies have access to more information than ever before. But volumes of data alone provide little value without the ability to synthesize insights and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":43844,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[39,28],"class_list":["post-44681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-google-sheets-features","tag-connections-t","tag-spreadsheets"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44681","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44681"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44681\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sheetgo.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Storytelling with data: a data visualization guide for business professionals<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Storytelling with data in Google Sheets<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Understanding the context<\/span><\/h3>\n
Choosing an appropriate visual and thinking like a designer<\/span><\/h3>\n
Telling a story<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Conclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n