How to Use Storytelling Conventions to Create Better Visualizations
Story is the best form of communication we have. To the steely-eyed analyst, it may seem superfluous and manipulative — a way to persuade with emotion instead of facts. While it is true that some have used story to mislead and befuddle, to discard it altogether is like blaming shoes for an inability to dunk a basketball. Stories aren’t the problem; false stories are. The goal of the analyst, then, is not to avoid stories, but to tell better ones.
Not only is story an effective way to communicate, for the data analyst it is unavoidable, because every presentation of data tells a story whether it is intended or not. If the story isn’t made explicit, the audience will make one up. Take the ubiquitous tabular report as an example…
A visualization project doesn’t succeed by accident. Behind every one is a developer who has mastered the data, the subject matter, and the user stories. No one understands the content better than she does. By comparison, the audience’s vantage point is limited. If left to their own devices, chances are good that they will miss important insights or draw incorrect conclusions.
