Beyond Excel:
5 Steps to a visually
persuasive dashboard
Many professionals use Excel
to store data that they want
to visualize and turn into
dashboards.
The trouble is, creating
a visually persuasive
dashboard isnÂ’t always
simple.
Beyond Excel | 2
Excel dashboards may add
unnecessary complexity
because users often spend
more time trying to understand
the data instead of learning the
answers to their questions.
Many charts also lack interactivity
which limits the ability to explore
data and uncover meaningful insights.
Beyond Excel | 3
What if you could turn this
around and start creating
visually persuasive
dashboards?
Beyond Excel | 4
Visually persuasive
dashboards arenÂ’t just
about making beautiful
charts and graphs.
They enable you to:
Communicate the most important
information about a given subject and
draw attention to any anomalies
Convey your findings rapidly with all the
information at your fingertips
Engage users with interactive
visualizations
Beyond Excel | 5
5 steps for creating
visually persuasive dashboards:
1.
Identify
key metrics
2.
Develop
a layout that guides
users through the
data
3.
Provide
a comparison
for your KPIs
4.
Design
the dashboard
to maximize
comprehension
5.
Drive
engagement
Beyond Excel | 6
1
Identify key metrics
This is a classic case of less is more. Go beyond
identifying whether a metric is relevant to your
dashboard and instead ask yourself, “is this data point
imperative to this dashboard?” If not, leave it out.
Establish common ground by using metrics
that users immediately recognize such as capital
expenditure, change in sales, or time to hire.
Integrate metrics from credible sources to help you
gain buy-in.
Beyond Excel | 7
2
Develop a layout that guides
users through the data
Try to anticipate usersÂ’ questions and organize
metrics accordingly, so your dashboard is ready to
deliver answers. Group related metrics together to
show how they form the big picture.
Users generally tend to look at content on the top
and left sides of a page or screen first. Place the
most important metrics in these areas.
Consider a grid layout which lets you space metrics
evenly across the dashboard to maintain visual
cohesion.
Beyond Excel | 8
3
Provide a comparison
for KPIs
Absolute measures donÂ’t give context, which reduces
usersÂ’ ability to understand and act on data. Instead,
include comparisons and trends to show how your
organization is progressing toward its goals.
For instance, if 500 prospects visited your booth
on the first day of an industry conference, so what?
Show how this compares to the traffic on the other
days of the show and to that of last yearÂ’s show.
Highlight metrics that are moving in the wrong
direction to amplify awareness, so corrective action
can be taken.
Beyond Excel | 9
4
Design the dashboard to
maximize comprehension
Use charts that are user-friendly and easy to
interpret, such as bar and line graphs. Avoid
charts that require users to spend extra time
comprehending the data.
Eliminate fancy shading, outlines, and icons
when creating charts (also known as “chart junk”).
It distracts users and can reduce the impact of your
visualizations.
Use color to add meaning. For instance, use similar
hues for objects that are related to one another.
Use red or orange to alert users to a critical point.
Beyond Excel | 10
5
Drive engagement
Consider how users will want to interact with the
data. Star and snowflake schemas make it easier for
users to configure their view of the data.
Invite users to explore the data more deeply by including filters that allow them to view the data in a
variety of ways. Provide ways to drill into data, such
as separate pages or windows of analysis.
Give users action items based on the results they just
viewed. For instance, you can recommend next steps,
revised business goals, or a person to contact for
more information.
Beyond Excel | 11
Now that you know some
recommended best practices
for creating stunning dashboards
make sure it passes the
visual persuasion test:
It answers usersÂ’ primary and
secondary questions
Users are able to explore
their data freely
Someone viewing the dashboard
for the first time can immediately
understand what it’s showing
Go Beyond the Dashboard | 12
Ready to learn more?
data
visualization
pitfalls
(and how to avoid them)
Check out the 5 Visualizations
Pitfalls (and How to Avoid
Them) e-book to learn
visualization tips and tricks
Visit the Qlik Design Blog
for more tips and best
practices to best present
your data
Beyond Excel | 13
A B OUT QLIK
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