In many companies it is still common practice to prepare data for visualizations with Excel. But Excel dashboards are usually unnecessarily complex and also visually unattractive and unconvincing. Although it takes just a few steps and the right solution to analyze data quickly and easily and gain profitable insights.
Ideally, dashboards should not just be inflexible charts and graphs, that should present the most important data on the respective topic and problem area in a clear manner. In addition, the information and analysis results should be able to be shared quickly and other users should be involved with interactive visualizations to gain insights and make decisions.
With the right analysis tool a visually compelling dashboard that covers all the important requirements can be created in a few simple steps. In addition to identify the necessary key figures and develop an appealing layout, comprehensibility and interaction with the users also play a decisive role.
The right key figures from the right sources
The first step is to identify all relevant – and only the relevant – key figures that are required for the dashboard. It should be ensured that these are obtained from reliable sources and easily recognizable and comprehensible to the user (e.g. changes in sales).
Organization is everything
The selected key figures should then be organized in a way the dashboard can answer potential user questions. For this purpose, for example, related measured values can also be grouped. The right visual arrangement of the key figures plays a role as well. For example, a screen is usually read from top left to bottom right. So ideally, the most important key figures should be placed in the upper left corner.
A grid layout can also provide even distances and a better overview. In general, user-friendly and easy understandable visualizations should be used to avoid a distraction from the actual statement of the data. The use of colors can also provide a better understanding.
In order to an improved understanding and evaluating of the analyzed data , company goals and developments should also be clarified by means of comparisons and trends. How was the turnover compared to the previous month, for example? Were there more visitors this year than last year? Marked indicators should also be used to draw attention to areas where action may be needed.
Interactive integration of users
When examining data, the user should always be given the opportunity to interact with the data independently and explore it as deeply as possible. For example, specific filters or drilldown options can be installed to view the data from different angles or in a focused way.
Therefore, only a few simple steps are required to make efficient analyses and integrate other users interactively. A powerful and dynamic data analysis solution such as Qlik Sense can provide optimal support.
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