The visual display of data can be an art form, and the field of infographics has really started taking off the last few years. But you don’t need to have a graphics or information design degree to improve the storytelling of your own data.
The goal of a chart or graph is simple: Don’t just show the data itself; show the MEANING of the data. The two below slides show the exact same data, but neither have any message.
So, let’s give this data some context and meaning (and in the process take out a lot of the PowerPointyness.)
Without adding or removing any of the data, the story starts to take shape visually. Obviously, we are showing that the US is by far the most obese country in the world at 31% of its population. This might very well do for this fictional presentation, but we can take it even further if we like…
Again, we haven’t changed the data at all, we’ve just given it MEANING. Also note that removing 3D, tick marks, needless axes and colors has actually focused the audience more on the important information.
The consulting firm McKinsey has an internal rule that any chart placed in a presentation or report must contain the meaning of the chart at the top left of it (i.e. “West coast sales lag the rest of the country.”)
Still, while it is most often best to explain the meaning of on screen data like McKinsey does, there are times in guided presentations where it can actually be stronger to have a slide that requires explanation. But if you’re going to do this, then it’s often best to severely limit the data that you do show…
Regardless of how you present, try your best to show the visual story of the data and not just the data itself.
