Here are potential matches between the evidence and charts:
1. Quarterly revenue comparison for star products - Line Chart
2. States with the lowest level of inequality - Choropleth
3. Market share of our new deodorant - Pie Chart
4. Correlation between obesity and consumption of doughnuts - Scatterplot
5. My income compared against everyone in Malaysia - Histogram
The line chart is best for showing changes over time, which is needed for the quarterly revenue comparison. A choropleth map can show values for different states/regions. A pie chart works well for comparing relative market shares. A scatterplot allows viewing correlations between two variables. And a histogram can show the distribution of one
2. About this Day
Data Storytelling is combination of a strong narrative and an effective visual
Data
Storytelling
Narrative
(Morning)
Visual
(Afternoon)
3. 01
02
03
04
05
06
Introduction to Data
Storytelling
Narrative: 30-Second Story
Narrative: Consider the
Audience & Call to Action
Visual: Choosing a Chart
Visual: Design Aesthetics
Visual: Data Visualization
Best Practice
About this Course: Table of Contents
Data Storytelling is a 2-day Course
5. Introduction to
Data Storytelling
• What is Data
Storytelling?
• Business Impact of
Data Storytelling
• About this Course
• Learning how to
Learn
Chapter 1
6. What is Data Storytelling?
Data Storytelling is growing in importance – but we don’t have a formal definition yet
“Complex ideas communicated with clarity, precision and
efficiency.”
– Edward Tufte
author of “The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 1983
“Data stories explore and explain how and why data changes over
time, usually through a series of linked visualizations”
– Gartner, 2018
“Data storytelling is the process of translating data analyses into
layman's terms in order to influence a business decision or action”
– SearchCIO, 2015
9. Learning How to Learn – (1) Dissect Model Visuals
Why does this chart/visual work so well?
10. Learning How to Learn – (2) Dissect Poor Visuals
What makes this a poor visual?
Source: http://www.perceptualedge.com/example19.php
Go to the source to read Stephen
Few’s full dissection of why this is not
a good chart
• Which represents a larger amount:
Mortgage Lending 2007 or NHS?
• How much greater is Mortgage
Lending 2007 than State Pensions?
• Does State Pensions compared to
Tesco Revenue look like the
difference between 62 and 59, or
much greater?
• Which is bigger: Income Support or
Police?
11. Learning How to Learn – (2) Dissect Poor Visuals
What makes this a poor visual?
12. Learning How to Learn – (3) Makeover Poor Visuals
The best way to learn is to practice
Source: https://www.makeovermonday.co.uk/makeovers/
13. Learning How to Learn – (3) Makeover Poor Visuals
The best way to learn is to practice
Source: https://www.makeovermonday.co.uk/makeovers/
14. Learning How to Learn – (3) Makeover Poor Visuals
The best way to learn is to practice
Source: https://www.makeovermonday.co.uk/makeovers/
16. What is this visual trying to tell us?
BP 2017 Annual Report
17. Beautiful Visual without a cohesive story
Too much information, too small a space
u Cognitive Overload
v Uninformative
Title
w Proportions not
comparable
x Axis not clear
18. Suggested re-design – Refine the message
Make ’Renewables’ the focus of the visual & build a visual hierarchy
19. What is this visual trying to tell us?
New Zealand Oil & Gas 2015 Annual Report
20. What is this visual trying to tell us?
New Zealand Oil & Gas 2015 Annual Report
u Segments not
comparable
v Uninformative
Title
w Confusing color
scheme
x Wasted space on axes
21. Learning Resources
1. Makeover Mondays: makeovermonday.co.uk
2. BBC Visual and Data Journalism:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-32209370
3. Tableau Public Gallery:
https://public.tableau.com
4. Perceptual Edge:
http://www.perceptualedge.com/
5. https://viz.wtf/
Theory is covered in this course but practice is what solidifies learning
22. End of Chapter Activity – (30 minutes)
Spend 10 minutes to think back to your work or personal
life:
• What is the last data story that you may have tried to
tell?
• Describe the situation
• How effective was the story?
• What do you think could have been improved?
One or two participants will be asked to share their
experience with the class
What is the last data story you might have tried to tell?
23. Narrative:
30-Second Story
• Point, Evidence,
Explanation
• Pearls of Insight
• What am I trying to
say?
• End of Chapter
Activity
Chapter 2
25. Point, Evidence, Explanation - Point
• Most data is still processed as a
table
• We can easily be tempted to show
them all the clams we picked up
(rows & columns)
• Remember! Only the pearls are
valuable (insight)
Exercise
What can you tell from the table about
the three categories?
It’s simple to forget the fundamentals when overwhelmed by Big Data
27. Point, Evidence, Explanation – Evidence
What did you think about the three categories?
Lets flesh out some of the concepts discussed
Where is the evidence to support the argument or
statement that you have made?
33. End of Chapter Activity – (1 hour)
• Download and take a look at your data of choice
• Do some simple initial analysis and answer some of
the following questions
• What kind of narrative can I build on this?
• What would be the point of my story?
• Is there evidence in the data to prove this?
• What kind of explanation would I have to provide?
One or two participants will be required to share their
examples of P-E-E with the class
Remember – sift through all the clams to find the pearls of insight
34. End of Chapter Activity – (1 hour)
Example from “Electricity Generation Mix” Dataset
• What kind of
narrative can I build
on this?
• What would be the
point of my story?
• Is there evidence in
the data to prove
this?
• What kind of
explanation would I
have to provide?
• Data is in GWh – A quick Google search reveals
that this means GigaWatt hours
• There are six different categories of fuel sources
• There is data for the years 1990 – 2017
• I could either focus on one of the energy sources
or I could look at the overall consumption pattern
over time
• I work for an oil and gas company – I might be
more interested in those data points?
• The total energy generation could also be
interesting as an indicator of market supply
35. End of Chapter Activity – (1 hour)
Example from “Electricity Generation Mix” Dataset
• What kind of
narrative can I build
on this?
• What would be the
point of my story?
• Is there evidence in
the data to prove
this?
• What kind of
explanation would I
have to provide?
• I could talk about the pattern for all five energy
types
• I could show the audience all the energy
categories and the total to allow them to make
their own conclusions
• Maybe I should focus on the oil & gas fuels since
those are the ones my company is most concerned
about
• Should I focus on growth over time or relative
proportion in a given year?
• I will focus on the rise and fall of gas as a fuel for
electricity generation
36. End of Chapter Activity – (1 hour)
Example from “Electricity Generation Mix” Dataset
• What kind of
narrative can I build
on this?
• What would be the
point of my story?
• Is there evidence in
the data to prove
this?
• What kind of
explanation would I
have to provide?
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
60000
70000
80000
1990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017
Chart Title
Hydro Gas Coal Oil Diesel Others
37. End of Chapter Activity – (1 hour)
Example from “Electricity Generation Mix” Dataset
• What kind of
narrative can I build
on this?
• What would be the
point of my story?
• Is there evidence in
the data to prove
this?
• What kind of
explanation would I
have to provide?
• Why are gas and coal such important fuel for
electricity generation in Malaysia?
• Did anything happen in 1997 and 2011 to cause a
drop in use of gas as a fuel type? Some quick
research reveals the following potential causes:
• The Asian financial crisis in 1997 could be a major
contributing factor to a fall in fuel usage
• Malaysia produced a lot less petroleum in 2011 (down
10.3%) could the lower supply have caused the drop in
popularity as a fuel in that year?
38. Narrative:
Consider the
Audience & Call to
Action
• Selfish Storytellers
• Who is my audience?
• Bias & Objectivity
• End of Chapter
Activity
Chapter 3
40. Who is my audience?
These personas help when tailoring a message to a particular audience
Source: https://hbr.org/2013/04/how-to-tell-a-story-with-data
41. Building a Persona of the Audience
Questions to frame your narrative
• Who is this person?
• She is detail-oriented
• She is time-poor
• She is higher management and mostly concerned with financials – not a technical person
• What is this person trying to accomplish?
• She wants to understand the trend of crude oil prices over the past 5 years
• She recently entered the role and wants to prove herself with quick wins
• What is a pain point for this person?
• She is under pressure to decide if the company should continue with its off-shore
exploration activities but has to do so with limited information available
• How might this person resist?
• She might not believe in analysis results because her gut instinct told her otherwise
• She does not trust the opinion of her lower level analysts
42. Exercise: Think of a recent audience for your data story
Answer the questions below
• Who is this person?
• What is this person trying to accomplish?
• What is a pain point for this person?
• How might this person resist?
43. Avoid Bias: Be Objective & Offer Balance
• Avoid misleading audience about
the underlying data
• Viewers & Decision Makers will
eventually find inconsistencies
which will cause the designer to lose
trust & credibility, even with a great
story
Avoid misleading the audience
44. Avoid Bias: Be Objective & Offer Balance (Examples)
Avoid misleading the audience
45. How to Guide: Misleading the audience (1)
1. Having a non-zero baseline on a bar chart
without informing the audience
2. Using 3D effects to skew visual perception of a
graph
3. Selectively removing outliers for a “smoother”
visual
4. Inconsistent time intervals to hide patterns in
time-series data
5. Arbitrary maximum or minimum values to
obscure data
Many ways to achieve the same outcome
46. How to Guide: Misleading the audience (2)
1. Having a non-zero baseline on a bar chart
without informing the audience
2. Using 3D effects to skew visual perception of a
graph
3. Selectively removing outliers for a “smoother”
visual
4. Inconsistent time intervals to hide patterns in
time-series data
5. Arbitrary maximum or minimum values to
obscure data
Many ways to achieve the same outcome
47. How to Guide: Misleading the audience (3)
1. Having a non-zero baseline on a bar chart
without informing the audience
2. Using 3D effects to skew visual perception of a
graph
3. Selectively removing outliers for a “smoother”
visual
4. Inconsistent time intervals to hide patterns in
time-series data
5. Arbitrary maximum or minimum values to
obscure data
Many ways to achieve the same outcome
48. How to Guide: Misleading the audience (4)
1. Having a non-zero baseline on a bar chart
without informing the audience
2. Using 3D effects to skew visual perception of a
graph
3. Selectively removing outliers for a “smoother”
visual
4. Inconsistent time intervals to hide patterns in
time-series data
5. Arbitrary maximum or minimum values to
obscure data
Many ways to achieve the same outcome
49. How to Guide: Misleading the audience (5)
1. Having a non-zero baseline on a bar chart
without informing the audience
2. Using 3D effects to skew visual perception of a
graph
3. Selectively removing outliers for a “smoother”
visual
4. Inconsistent time intervals to hide patterns in
time-series data
5. Arbitrary maximum or minimum values to
obscure data
Many ways to achieve the same outcome
50. Call-to-Action
Call to actions instruct the audience on what is expected of them having seen the visual
Call-to-actions are most
effective when they:
• Use action words
• Articulate the
consequences of non-
action
• Instill Urgency
53. Visual:
Choosing a Chart
• Information Encoding
• What information am
I trying to convey?
• Data Storyteller’s
Toolbox
• End of Chapter
Activity
Chapter 4
54. McGill & Cleveland (1984)
Elementary Perceptual Tasks – The study of human efficiency in perceiving different signals
• Some charts are easier to understand than others – this is because the perceptual
tasks involved are easier
• Lets play a game to understand how we perceive difficulty in perceptual tasks
55. How much longer is A compared to B?
Answer in multiples – 12 times! 20 times!
A
B
2X
56. How much steeper is A compared to B?
Answer in multiples – 12 times! 20 times!
6X
A
B
57. How much larger is A compared to B?
Answer in multiples – 12 times! 20 times!
10X
A B
59. Charts should be selected based on precision required
Different Perceptual Tasks are used in each chart
60. Perceptual Tasks on Charts
One chart can sometimes have multiple information signals – primary and secondary
Comparing length of bars - Easy
Compare angle in the middle
- Medium Difficulty
Compare 2D
area - Difficult
62. Recall from Morning – Point, Evidence, Explanation
What is your evidence? Is it a change over time? Is it a distribution of numbers? A category comparison?
Deviation
Distribution
Correlation
Change over
Time
Ranking
Magnitude
Part-to-
Whole
Source: https://ft-interactive.github.io/visual-vocabulary/
63. Choosing a Visual: Change over Time
Give emphasis to changing trends
Deviation
Distribution
Correlation
Change over
Time
Ranking
Magnitude
Part-to-
whole
Source: https://ft-interactive.github.io/visual-vocabulary/
64. Choosing a Visual: Part-to-Whole
A bit like a recipe – how much is one group as a percentage of the entire population
Deviation
Distribution
Correlation
Change over
Time
Ranking
Magnitude
Part-to-
Whole
Source: https://ft-interactive.github.io/visual-vocabulary/
65. Choosing a Visual: Magnitude
Show size comparisons – these can be relative or absolute
Deviation
Distribution
Correlation
Change over
Time
Ranking
Magnitude
Part-to-
whole
Source: https://ft-interactive.github.io/visual-vocabulary/
66.
67. Exercise: Match the “Evidence” the to “Chart” – (10mins)
Sometimes multiple charts can be used – justify!
Bar Chart
Pie Chart
Stacked Bar
Chart
Choropleth
Histogram
Scatterplot
Line Chart
1. Quarterly revenue comparison for star
products
2. States with the lowest level of inequality
3. Market share of our new deodorant
4. Correlation between obesity and
consumption of doughnuts
5. My income compared against everyone in
Malaysia
68. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Line Chart
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
1-2017 7-2017 1-2018 7-2018 1-2019 7-2019
Sales
Revenue
(RM
mil)
Malaysian Refined Petroleum Revenue 2017-19
Eastern Region Revenues rose the most in Q1 2017 on the back of a
government-led township development initiative in Sabah & Sarawak
Do
• Choose meaningful axes tick intervals
• Label lines directly
• Draw attention to lines of interest through use
of color
• Lighten gridlines to enable focus on data
• Include annotations or labels to provide
context
Don’t
• Create a spaghetti graph by keeping
everything in multiple colors
• Use a line chart for categorical data as the
lines imply continuity
Line Charts are best used for change over time
Eastern
Northern
Central
Southern
Govt. Subsidy Introduced Eastern supply lines disrupted
69. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Bar Chart
Do
• Limit the number of sub-categories to three
• Change the spacing between bars – visual
grouping can have a big effect on
perception
• Use Data Labels if accuracy is needed
• Include context such as a benchmark or
average if necessary
Don’t
• Make the bars touch one another – that is
a different chart altogether known as a
histogram
Bar Charts are used to compare between different categories
4.3
2.5
3.5
4.5
2.4
1.2
2.4
4.4
1.8
2.8
1.9
0.6
2.0 2.0
3.0
5.0
2.5
0.5
Oil Gas Renewables Hydro Coal Nuclear
Billion
tonnes
of
oil
equivalent
Malaysian Energy Consumption Mix 2019
Nuclear energy is an energy source that is being under-used in Malaysia
due to the strict regulation around its production
Northern Southern Central
Previous Year Average
71. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Stacked 100% Bar Chart
Do
• Limit the number of sub-categories to three –
the non-zero baseline makes it difficult to
compare
• Use data labels – this is a must for stacked
bar charts
• Add a meaningful scale to remind the
audience that this is normalized data
• Use a landscape orientation especially when
category names are long
Don’t
• Use category labels at an angle – they are
difficult to read
• Overwhelm with too many super categories –
remember cognitive overload
Stacked bar charts compare categories & sub-categories
4.3
2.5
3.5
4.5
2.4
1.2
2.4
4.4
1.8
2.8
1.9
0.6
2
2
3
5
2.5
0.5
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Oil
Gas
Renewables
Hydro
Coal
Nuclear
Billion tonnes of oil equivalent
Malaysian Energy Consumption Mix 2019
Nuclear energy is an energy source that is being under-used in Malaysia
due to the strict regulation around its production
Northern Southern Central
73. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Pie Chart / Donut Chart
Do
• Add Data Labels Directly onto the Chart
• Use colors that are clearly distinguishable from one
another
• Try to limit the number of sub-categories being
used
• Choose an appropriate amount of white space in
the middle of the donut
Don’t
• Use multiple layers of Donuts – this is not a
Croissant
• Add Donut Explosion
• Use 3D effects – it doesn’t add any value to the
message
Compare Proportions to Whole
Oil 2
Gas 2
Renewables 3
Hydro 5
Coal 2.5
Nuclear 0.5
Malaysian Energy Consumption Mix 2019
Nuclear energy is an energy source that is being under-used in Malaysia
due to the strict regulation around its production
[billion tonnes of oil equivalent]
74. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Impact Metrics
Do
• Use size & bolding for a visual hierarchy on
your impact metric
• Support the impact metric with sufficient
context
• Provide context through non-disruptive
background images
Don’t
• Distract from the impact metric by using the
same bold/size for supporting elements on
the visual
• Try to provide too much explanation – impact
metrics by nature need to be short and sweet
Report on success or key achievements/figures from a report
https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/bringing-talent-home
75. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Impact Metrics
Report on success or key achievements/figures from a report
Source: Storytelling with Data – Cole Nussbaumer Knafflic
77. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Tables / Heatmaps
Do
• Provide sufficient spacing between columns for easy
interpretation
• Use borders meaningfully – they do not always need to be
included
• Select alignment of text carefully – similar metrics should
be aligned in the same way
• Consider introducing sparklines, bars, heatmap coloring to
break monotony of visual
Don’t
• Use bold/thick gridlines that obscure the data being
presented
• Present a table with too many rows & columns –
remember the audience wants the pearls not the clams
• Include unnecessary decimal points
Tables and Heatmaps should be avoided in presentations but can be used as last resort
78. Tables / Heatmaps
What went wrong here?
X Candy Central 15.1234% 123.1 0.4232
Y Apple Northern 20.5234% 198.1 3.134
C Jack Central /
Eastern
10.461% 212.2 8.4123
G Tom Southern /
Central
25.134% 432.5 0.983
79. Data Storyteller’s Toolbox – Geographic Maps
Do
• Limit to just showing one kind of variable
• Provide supporting elements such as a table or a bar
chart below as an alternative to precision
• Choose a color scale that is easy on the eyes (blue and
oranges are recommended)
• Consider adding a data label/annotation where
appropriate
• Normalize the data before plotting – absolute numbers
might not visualize well
Don’t
• Use Choropleths alone to monitor subtle differences (color
scale not easy for human eye)
• Choose a confusing color scheme such as red-purple-blue
Great to show clear regional patterns in the data
Malaysian Unemployment Rates (2017)
Northern states experienced highest rates of
unemployment in 2019
Local economy
recession
in Northern
Regions
81. Example – Malaysia Electricity Generation Fuel Mix
Choosing an appropriate chart
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
60000
70000
80000
1990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017
Future of Malaysian Electricity Generation is Hydroelectric
Proposal to build water dams in East Malaysia will generate 10,000 GwH of Hydroelectricity a year
saving the government an estimated RM 400,000 monthly through cheaper energy.
Hydro
Gas
Coal
Oil
Diesel
Others
83. Less is More: Eliminating Chart Junk
Maximizing the amount of signal sending “data ink” on the visual
“Good graphical representations maximize data-ink and
erase as much non-data-ink as possible,”
Edward Tufte - author of Visual Display of Quantitative Information (1983)
Ink used to send
information to audience
Total Ink Used
Data-Ink
Ratio
84. Cognitive Load
• Every element added to a blank
screen takes up cognitive load for
the audience
• Our brain has limited “space” to
process information
• The reason why we didn’t like to
look at the previous visual is that
there is excessive cognitive load
• Cognitive load culprits:
• Clutter
• Lack of Visual Hierarchy
Minimize the amount of “Brain Space” being used by your visual
85. Example of Poor Data to Ink Ratio
Repeated content is not always bad – but it should be done purposefully
Example of non-data ink
• Legend repeats information already on
axis
• Bananas in background distracting and
doesn’t send information
• Extra decimal places
• 3D effect doesn’t add any additional
information as all bars are same width
102. Exercise: What did you see first?
Building a Visual Hierarchy
The order I viewed the
elements is:
01. ________________
02. ________________
03. ________________
04. ________________
05. ________________
06. ________________
Source: Data Points, Nathan Yau
103. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
Source: https://visme.co/blog/visual-hierarchy/
104. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
105. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
106. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
107. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
108. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
109. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
110. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
111. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
112. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
113. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
114. Visual Hierarchy: How-to-Guide
12 Visual Hierarchy Design Tips
1. Size & Scale
2. Color & Contrast
3. Typographic Hierarchy
4. Spacing
5. Proximity
6. Negative Space
7. Alignment
8. Rule of Odds
9. Repetition
10. Leading Lines
11. Rules of Thirds
12. Perspective
115. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color Saturation
2. Beware Existing Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive Load
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
116. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color
Saturation
2. Beware Existing
Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive
Load
4. Complimentary
Colors
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
https://playfairdata.com/3-storytelling-with-color-tips-to-improve-your-data-visualization/
117. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color
Saturation
2. Beware Existing
Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive
Load
4. Complimentary
Colors
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
https://playfairdata.com/3-storytelling-with-color-tips-to-improve-your-data-visualization/
118. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color
Saturation
2. Beware Existing
Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive
Load
4. Complimentary
Colors
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
119. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color
Saturation
2. Beware Existing
Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive
Load
4. Complimentary
Colors
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
120. Using Color Purposefully for Storytelling
Tips on using Color
1. Reduce Color
Saturation
2. Beware Existing
Color Associations
3. Reduce Cognitive
Load
4. Complimentary
Colors
Color is an information encoder – we need to know how to use it
121. Note: Color blindness affects green & red most often
Try to choose orange and blue colors instead
122. End of Day Activity – (2 hours)
Task
Redesign the visual from before. Remove chart junk
and justify the use of every element on the visual –
if it isn’t needed then remove it! Redesign the visual
to have a strong visual hierarchy using the concepts
discussed
One or two will be required to share their findings
with the audience
Remember – sift through all the clams to find the pearls of insight
123. Example – Malaysia Electricity Generation Fuel Mix
Building a visual hierarchy
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Thousands
Future of Malaysian Electricity Generation is Hydroelectric
Proposal to build water dams in East Malaysia will generate 10,000 GwH of Hydroelectricity a year saving
the government an estimated RM 400,000 monthly through cheaper energy.
Coal
Gas
Hydro
Others
Diesel
Oil
Based on data from the Department of Statistics, Malaysia 1990-2017
1997 Asian financial crash led to
a dramatic fall in local energy
demand
2011 production of Gas was down 10.3%
compared to the previous year
Hydro has had a 400% increase
in 2017 compared to 2016
125. Redesign this table using the Data Storytelling Process
Start with the Narrative, and with the Visual
Survey of student’s interest in science both
before and after attending a pilot summer
science camp