Cincinnati Tableau User Group Event #5 Presentation (Data Visualization Design Tips - Russell Spangler)

1. Tableau USER GROUP
CINCINNATI
Event #5 – 84.51º & Visualization Design

2. 2
ARRIVE & NETWORK
Socialize with other Tableau
users, and grab a chair for
the event.
84.51 Presentation
Tableau and data
visualization culture at
84.51°
VIZ DESIGN
Techniques used to improve
data visualization design
AGENDA
5:00
Introduction to the local
Cincinnati Tableau User
Group and discuss future
events
INTRODUCTION
5:30
5:40
6:00
6:30
SOCIALIZE
Talk to your local Tableau
users and discuss Tableau
related items

3. 3
Administrators
ERIC DUELL JEFF SHAFFER CRAIG WORTMAN
VP of Analytics and Intelligence
E.W. Scripps Company
Vice President, IT and Analytics
Unifund
Data Analyst
Unifund
Adjunct Professor of Data
Visualization at the
University of Cincinnati.
Adjunct Professor of Data
Visualization at the
University of Cincinnati.
Tableau Desktop and Server
user for four years.
@ericduell @HighVizAbility @WortmanCraig
www.DataPlusScience.com

4. 4
GROUP LEADER
@russellspangler russellspangler@gmail.comwww.linkedin.com/in/russellspangler/
RUSSELL SPANGLER
Sr. Data Visualization Developer
Senior Data Visualization Developer at
Convergys. Adjunct Professor for Data
Management at the University of Cincinnati.
Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in
Information Systems. Tableau Server
administrator and Tableau desktop user for
about 4-5 Years.

5. 5
JOIN US
You Should Join The Cincinnati
Tableau User Group
- Donald Trump
Please Join The Cincinnati
User Group Page
http://community.tableau.com/groups/midwest
Search for “Cincinnati Tableau User Group”

6. 6
FUTURE EVENTS
Location. Please contact us if you
have a good location to host any of
the future events. Events should
be free and can be sponsored by
local companies. Capacity for the
venue should hold at least 50
people.
Time. Events can be morning,
afternoon or evening on most
weekdays. Currently we’ve
decided after work on a weeknight
seems to fit easiest with most
schedules. We’ll try to provide at
least a 3 week notice for future
events.
Ideas. We are looking for
feedback on type of topics for
future events. Depending on
experience level material can be
adjusted to help build the group.
Location TIME IDEAS
Format. We can create hands-on
learning events or we can focus on
discussions and how individuals
are utilizing Tableau in their work
environment.
Volunteers. Looking for
volunteers that have material or
topics they would like to present
and looking for experienced
members to help other members
when questions arise.
Happy Hour. Future happy hour
to help meet people with help from
a little liquor courage. Willing to
accept sponsors.
FORMAT VOLUNTEERS HAPPY HOURS

7. EMAIL ISSUES
• We do not receive access to emails provided to the Eventbrite website
• Email recipients list:
• Cincinnati Tableau customers (email used for your license)
• Members of the Cincinnati user group (http://community.tableau.com/groups/midwest)
• Previously attended a Cincinnati user group event (email provided on the Eventbrite
website)
• Not receiving emails:
• Join the user group page (emails will be sent directly to user group members)
• Connect with me on LinkedIn or follow me on Twitter
• Periodically check the Cincinnati user group page.
• Email schedule:
• Initial email 3-4+ weeks prior to the event (directly from Tableau, event will also be posted
to Eventbrite & the user group page)
• User group email a few days after the initial email
• Final/reminder email a week prior to the event deadline
7

8. 8
84.51 PRESENTATION

9. 9ViZ DESIGN

10. 1010
DESIGN PROCESS
Determine what pieces of data to focus on by understanding the intended use
and audience for the visualization.
FOCUS (Purpose)
Design by balancing best practices with the requirements of your project.
Simpler designs usually are the easiest to process quicker when visualizing.
DESIGN
Begin building your ideas and start to create pieces of your final visualization.
Build pieces and make sure they work with your overall vision (don’t be afraid
to revisit a design idea or make suggestions to improve a design choice).
BUILD

11. Questions
• What are the most interesting pieces of information to focus on
• Which pieces of data are the most important
• What “story” do we want to tell
• What is the goal of this visualization
• Who/what is the intended audience for the visualization (executives
are usually interested in different data compared to team
managers)
• Predefined color palettes
• Preference for certain chart types
• Any current examples of reports/dashboards currently being
used (this also helps show before & after improvements)
11

12. PreATTENTIVE ATTRIBUTES
12
• Use preattentive attributes to help create focus on data points
• Attributes can isolate focus or show focus across multiple data points
• You can use multiple attributes to convey one focus point
Example: Red Down Arrow (the direction of the arrow shows negative performance and the color
red also enforces the negative direction)
• Some attributes are more difficult for people to interpret (pie
charts, donut charts, radial graphics are usually more difficult to understand
than a bar chart)
• Be careful when using a lot of colors on your viz
• If your visualization is meant to be a dashboard, give it the 30 second test.
If you can’t understand how you are performing after glancing at your
design in 30 seconds, you might need to rethink your design

13. PreATTENTIVE ATTRIBUTES
Recommended Site: http://www.csc.ncsu.edu/faculty/healey/PP/
https://www.google.com/search?q=preattentive+data+visualization&source=lnms&tbm=isch
13
http://stevensanne.com/data-viz-in-6-weeks-wk-3-perception-cognition/
http://blog.fusioncharts.com/2014/03/how-we-decode-visual-information-podv/

14. 14
I recommend sketching out ideas before opening Tableau
SKETCHING

15. DESIGN TIPS
• More items on your design usually causes individuals to take longer
to process your visualization
• Remove any unnecessary items (if the end user only cares about the trend
of a KPI then you do not need to show all the numbers associated for each
month)
• Watch out for text on charts and the color of the text compared to the chart
color
• Don’t over complicate your design, your design should need minimum
instructions in order to comprehend it
• Remove all the additional components and re-add as you need them
• Use color markers or pens to sketch your ideas better
15

16. 16
MAKE A BETTER BAR

17. BAR RESCUE
17

18. BAR CHART RESCUE
18

19. BAR CHART DESIGN
19
The Data:
Use RANDBETWEEN
and RAND in Excel to
create mockup data
(Generates randomly
every time you make a
change)

20. BAR CHART DESIGN
20
Standard Tableau
Bar Chart

21. BAR CHART DESIGN
21
Tip: Add a
space before
the number
Synchronize axis
Tip:
Transparency is
your friend
Dual axis

22. BAR CHART DESIGN
22
Remove axis
labels (numbers
provide details)
Remove borders
to provide a more
stylish chart
Sort Values
Descending
Use reference lines to
add additional details
on the same chart
(averages, goals, etc.)

23. BAR CHART DESIGN
23
Before:
After:

24. TIPS
• Use Gray text as a substitute for Black text
• Compare the text color with chart colors
• Use transparency, dual axis, and reference lines
• Allows you to overlap multiple charts/graphics (adds more information on one chart)
• Can provide as a guide to show distance of values from highest possible value
• Add a space before numbers on bar charts
• Add spaces (blank lines) before or after labels to push numbers above
or below shapes
• The size (width, length) of the bars can increase or decrease the ability
to see patterns/trends in the data
24

25. 25
LINE CHART/GRAPH

26. LINE CHART DESIGN
26
The Data:
Standard Tableau
Line Chart/Graph

27. LINE CHART DESIGN
27
Charts can get
“busy” very
easily

28. LINE CHART DESIGN
28
I like to
remove any
lines to
create a
cleaner chart

29. LINE CHART DESIGN
29
If I only want to see the trends, I
can remove the details that the
number labels provide
Add points to a line chart by
using dual axis

30. LINE CHART DESIGN
30
Color different points of interest

31. LINE CHART DESIGN
31
You can use shape size to
increase awareness

32. DIFFERENT VIEWS
32
May you don’t like Line Charts
Shapes with circles
Area Chart
Bar Chart
Bar Chart with dual axis to color
negative values darker

33. FONTS & COLORS
• Readability
• Sans Serif Fonts (Arial, Helvetica)
• Use larger and more weighted (bolded) fonts to display
important numbers
• Use color to provide insight, context, and draw attention to
important items
• Gradient colors can help display values
• Add spacing between different colors to help separate values
• Pick colors that are preferred by your audience
• Also use shapes, icons, and images to help provide
information to your design (up/down arrow, +/- signs, etc.)
33

34. TIPS
• Work on your design and techniques for more common chart types
• Make sure you focus on all deign aspects of your viz (one badly
designed chart might ruin a well designed dashboard)
• Balance best practices with the needs of your business and
audience preferences
• Multiple designs help show your audience different techniques and
views of the data
• Using simple techniques can create a clean looking visualization
• Create your own style
• Don’t get upset when someone doesn’t like your design/viz
(everyone is different)
34

35. 35
DESIGNS

36. BEFORE
DESIGNS
• Grids of numbers
• Line charts with a lines clustered together
• Heat maps using stock color pallets
RULES
• Images produced from Tableau to be used in PowerPoint
• Most of reports should assume no interactivity
• Still need to show most of the numbers
• Need to indicate performance (favoring the usage of arrows)
36

37. CONVERGYS
37

38. CONVERGYS
38

39. CONVERGYS
39

40. CONVERGYS
40

41. 41
ThankS
Don’t Forget to Join the
Cincinnati User Group Page
http://community.tableau.com/groups/midwest
Search for “Cincinnati Tableau User Group”