before & after: data storytelling examples
Any data visualization tool can create a graph or slide—but it doesn’t know your data, stakeholders, and organization like you do. That’s the difference between an ineffective chart and a great data communication that inspires an audience to make a smarter decision. We invite you to explore the following storytelling with data transformations where we take ineffective visuals and turn them into powerful data stories.
Hover over each image to preview the makeover and click to see the stepwise transformation.
You’ll discover practical tips to can bring your own data to life!
FAVORITE TRANSFORMATIONS
These are our favorite transformations. These can be one we think people will like the most and can be dynamic using the hover.
Transform a combo chart with table
Remake a series of pie charts
Tackle a stacked diverging bar chart
LATEST TRANSFORMATIONS
These are our latest transformations. These can be updated when a new set of three is generated.
Transform a combo chart with table
Remake a series of pie charts
Tackle a stacked diverging bar chart
POPULAR TRANSFORMATIONS
These are our most popular transformations. This could be based on a periodic review of the webpages and seeing which are viewed most
Transform a combo chart with table
Remake a series of pie charts
Tackle a stacked diverging bar chart
EXPLORE OUR LIBRARY
With over 100 makeovers, find your favourites using the filter options below. I think we need the Universal PlugIn here. And I don’t think there’s a way to make this dynamic as in the hover functionality. I think that’s ok with the sections above though.
Transform dashboard insights into an action-inspiring story.
Dashboard interactivity makes data discovery much easier, but to drive meaningful change, it is usually more effective to craft a separate presentation specific to the story we want to tell. Creating a presentation tailored to our audience lets us deliver our findings in a way that will resonate with them and frees us from having to compete for attention with unrelated charts, filters, and text.
The same techniques that work on a single graph can be applied more broadly to larger publications.
Strengthening a communication can happen at multiple levels. Depending on your needs, your availability, and the intended use of the end product, you may find yourself focusing on small details in a single visual, the overall structure of the larger document, or a little of both.
Arrange intuitively and emphasize thoughtfully.
You can help your audience understand the key takeaways more quickly and easily by considering how you arrange and emphasize your data. In this transformation, we take intentional steps to understand the context, reduce the effort to interpret the graph, arrange information intuitively, and emphasize data thoughtfully.
Graphs—if well designed— get the point across faster than tables.
Tables are fine to lookup numeric values, or if your audience desires a level of specificity with the data. If your data has an overarching message, then think about graphing it instead. See how a square area chart was more effective at visualizing this organization’s identity survey.
Resist the urge to pack everything into one graph.
When we attempt to answer too many questions in a single visual, we don’t answer any single one as effectively as we could if we break things up into separate graphs. Read how using multiple graphs, tying the text visually to the data, and developing a narrative for both a live presentation and leave-behind took this banking example to the next level.
Distinguish between insights and a call to action.
We sometimes make graphs that simply highlight a takeaway. However, when we step back and think about what story the data tells—is it a success or a call to action?—it can reveal new ways to visualize the data that will help your audience understand something new. This pharmaceutical example illustrates the transition from showing data to answering a question in a way that leads to better insight.
Design with the audience’s end-goal in mind.
When shifting between exploring data and explaining data, ask yourself why am I communicating with data in the first place? Asking yourself these five questions will improve your value as a data communicator in your organization.
Trends are easier to spot in graphs than in tables.
We can make things easier for our audience by visualizing time series data in line graphs. Audience needs may further dictate additional design choices, as outlined in this article.
Short on time? Prioritize audience, words, and graph choice.
Time constraints are real. Read how in just one hour, you can plan, create and deliver a presentation that resonates.
Connect the dots so the audience knows how elements are related.
When showing what could be viewed as disparate data—but isn't—design thoughtfully so your audience doesn’t have to work hard to understand. In this project management example, choosing more effective visuals, active titling and using color strategically made the associations between the different parts of the data and story more apparent.
Use graphs that are easy to read.
While there are countless ways to visualize data, it’s a handful of recognizable charts that will typically get our point across in an effective way. When we stick with familiar data visualizations, our audiences can more quickly decipher, understand, and act upon the data! Learn why a simple bar chart was wildly more effective in this retail example.
You are welcome to use these resources to learn or teach with proper attribution:
Knaflic, Cole. storytellingwithdata.com. © 2025
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