How to increase your revenue by improving data management

Nowadays, most companies, from the smallest to the largest, have at their disposal a large amount of data, more or less structured, that are collected on a daily basis, both from the management systems used to carry out business processes and from the platforms used to publish digital and social marketing campaigns.

In this context, the visualization and analysis of this data becomes extremely important in order to guide business decisions and strategies in a way that is immediate and easily understood by all: in fact, data visualization allows one to:

• Easily understand the data. Through the use of graphs and tables, it is possible both to understand the trend of a given KPI (e.g., turnover or margin) and to understand from which factors the analyzed results are determined.
• Predict future trends. Closely related to the previous point, it is precisely this immediate ability to trace the causes of a given result that gives the tools to predict possible future critical issues or opportunities.
• Share data and guide decisions. A decision will be extremely more understandable within the business system if it is accompanied with elements of data visualization, thanks to the simplicity with which the human brain can process information represented graphically. In addition, it will be possible to immediately share the business situation with the outside world.

But what are the elements that make a data visualization dashboard truly effective?

1) Define the objectives and the people it is aimed at:

Before we begin to develop our dashboard it will be necessary, as in all projects, to answer some basic questions useful in planning an effective data visualization dashboard.

Through the answers to these questions we may begin to identify an initial outline, a starting point. to arrive at a complete result.

2) Ensure data accuracy:

The first thing that must be ensured when we produce a dashboard is definitely that the data represented within it is correct. We then need to identify where the necessary data are located and import them into the data visualization tools in the correct format.

Another crucial step, especially when merging data from different sources (such as can be those from Google Analytics and our own internally produced data) is to ensure that the process of merging the charts is done without distorting the actual data in any way.

3) Choose the appropriate charts for the data being analyzed:

Each type of chart may be more or less suitable depending on the type of data you want to show or the context in which you are moving. Here, a small recap on the main types:

• Bar graph: the simplest graph of all but also, probably the most effective. In fact, it can be used in many instances, starting from visualizing a trend and ending with a comparison in order to identify a benchmark.
• Pie chart: this type of chart is very useful when you want to show the proportion to the total of a given population of data.
• Linear graph: the most useful application of this type of graph is definitely in relation to the passage of time, as, even comparing multiple dimensions, they are very intuitive in displaying trends.
• Tables: is the most effective mode of data visualization when you want to go to analyze information in more detail. However, care must be taken not to put too much information in the table, otherwise the intuitiveness and speed of visualization of the dashboard may be lost.

4) Choose the right graphics and colors:

It is very important that the message we want to convey through the dashboard is supported by choosing the right graphics and colors to effectively evince the meaning of the report. Definitely it must have attractive but light graphics that allow the user's eye to be guided in reading.

Another important point is that of colors, which must be chosen in a way that is consistent with the template used, but somehow support the understanding of the dashboard, for example, always choosing the same color to represent the same dimension or metric.

5) Find the right mix in the analysis of past, present, and future data:

The data mix here must meet a number of useful requirements to provide a clear view of past trends, insights into future possibilities, and an overview of the current situation.

Having a balanced mix of data-driven insights will significantly improve your decision making in a number of key areas, enabling your company to develop key initiatives that will drive the business forward by helping you outperform the competition.

In addition, most data visualization tools allow you to effectively manage dates, enabling you to focus your analysis on the time period you are interested in visualizing

6) Make the dashboard interactive:

One of the most revolutionary aspects of these types of tools is definitely their interactivity, as they allow you, in a fluid way, to manipulate the dataset at your disposal at will.

It will, in fact, be possible to alternate and combine the dimensions and metrics we are most interested in, for the time period we want to analyze.

The goal of interactivity is to build dashboards that will help you simplify analytical processes and make them more user-friendly while at the same time providing immediate answers to questions.

If your dashboard is interactive, you have many more opportunities to keep your data simple but powerful, so this point is critical to consider if you want to build the best dashboard possible.

7) Make sure the dashboard is mobile-friendly:

When creating dashboard designs, you must remember to optimize the end results for mobile devices.

Mobile dashboard design differs greatly from a larger screen such as a desktop or tablet in that you have a much smaller space and different screen sizes, but professional dashboard tools will help you adjust desktop designs quickly and seamlessly.

At Fontoso we consider data visualization very important for any type of business, both in the present and even more so in the future, because it makes the evaluation of your results over time easily explainable and usable by every element of the company.

In fact, modern platforms, such as Google Datastudio, make these dashboards extremely easy to consult, even for people less inclined to use innovative tools.

This is why we propose to build your dashboard, providing our knowledge of the data and financial significance of all the variables considered, making, with your help and needs, the most powerful and useful tool to improve your business performance.

Examples of data visualization screenshots created with Google Datastudio:

Home page

With such a screen, frequently set as the homepage of the dashboard, it is possible to give an introductory view of the main KPIs of the business. This view is very useful for understanding, in broad strokes, the business performance for the time period under consideration.

Trend

Through such a visualization it is possible to show the trend over time of a metric of your choice. In this way it is possible to understand where the business started and in what direction it is going, including having the ability to understand certain dynamics of seasonality within the business.

Benchmark

With graphs placed in this mode, it is intuitive to visualize comparisons between different areas of your business, or between different departments or production lines in your company.

It can be useful to understand which part of your company is doing better in which geographic area or population segment your business is having less or more success.

Tables

If, on the other hand, just displaying data in graphs is not enough, it is still possible to go into detailed analysis through the use of tables that can reach the highest level of detail.

At Fontoso, we recommend the use of this kind of visualization, in order to go and analyze the various trends and comparisons identified visually in the other dashboards. In this way, we will be able to understand what caused a particular event to occur.

Conclusion

This is only a small part of the purposes that can be achieved through the use of these business intelligence tools. We are always ready to listen to customers' needs to find together dedicated solutions to meet any kind of interest. Contact us for a Free Consultation using the dedicated form.