DATA VISUALIZATION
USING EXCEL
Data visualizations in Excel are representations of
numerical data in a visual format. You can organize data
in a spreadsheet into a more accessible and organized
format like a line graph, Gantt chart or bar graph.
IMPORTANCE OF VISUALIZATION
Visualizing the data enable decision-makers to
interrelate the data to find better insights.
1. Analyzing the Data in a Better Way
2. Faster Decision Making
3. Making Sense of Complicated Data
3
Common Visualization Types
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COMPARISON
-compare values side-by-side in a visual manner to easily see
differences.
-In a way, it shows size proportions in one quick view.
-easy to understand right away
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COMPARISON
BAR/COLUMN CHARTS:
Compare between items or categories
2015 Ticket Sales by Gender Number of complaints by Type
MINI BAR 2
421,099
CONCIERGE 2
350,354 AIR CONDITIONING 3
STAFF ATTITUDE 6
Ticket Sales
ROOM INTERIORS 6
DELAY IN ROOM SERVICE 9
FOOD QUALITY 17
164,050
ROOM CLEANING 34
91,033 DELAY IN REGISTRATION 43
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
COMEDY THRILLER DOCUMENTARY ROMANCE No. of Complaints
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COMPARISON
LINE CHARTS:
Compare between/across time
Stock Prices (Google VS. Amazon)
$900
$800 R² = 0.5602
$700 R² = 0.6844
$600
Google
$500
PRICE
Amazon
$400 Linear (Google)
Poly. (Amazon)
$300
$200
$100
$0
6/4 7/4 8/4 9/4 10/4 11/4 12/4 1/4 2/4 3/4 4/4 5/4
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COMPOSITION
-see how the different parts of the whole add up, usually
stacked to 100%
-see how elements of a summed metric add up (not 100%).
-see how elements evolve over time
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COMPOSITION
PIE CHARTS:
Most over-used chart type in business
REVENUE
Apparel Electronics Toys & Games Housewares
17%
31%
20%
32%
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COMPOSITION
STACKED AREA CHARTS:
Show compositional evolution over time.
2015 Ticket Sales by Genre per Month
Comedy Thriller Documentary Romance
120,000
100,000
80,000
TICKET SALES
60,000
40,000
20,000
MONTH
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DISTRIBUTION
-allows us to look deeper into summarized statistics like
averages
-easy to understand visual representation of numeric
values
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DISTRIBUTION
HISTOGRAM:
Visual representation of counts over a range of values.
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DISTRIBUTION
HEATMAPS:
Shows density over a table or matrix of values, easily
find hotspots in data..
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RELATIONSHIP
-uncover patterns between two data series
-detect outliers even do manual clustering
-easy way of testing or exploring a hypothesis
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RELATIONSHIP
SCATTER PLOT:
Versatile plot that shows relationships between data.
Can uncover outliers
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RELATIONSHIP
Dual Axis Graph:
Overlay two data series in a single chart to directional
relationship between data.
Clicks VS. CPC
600,000 $2.00
$1.80
500,000 $1.60
400,000 $1.40
COST/CLICK
$1.20
CLICKS
300,000 $1.00
$0.80
200,000 $0.60
$0.40
100,000 $0.20
0 $0.00
MONTHS
Clicks Cost/Click
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DATA VISUALIZATION BEST PRACTICES
1. Less is more. Make every pixel and word count.
2. Avoid decorative use of graphics.
3. Avoid Pie Charts
4. Avoid three dimensional charts.
5. Start Bar Chart at Zero
6. Use sparklines to show trends on the X-Axis
7. Use color only to accentuate
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