1. Data storytelling
To take your communication to the next level, you need to tell a story.
2. Why do you need to tell a story?
It might seem counterintuitive to tell a story as it seems the opposite of just stating the facts.
However, storytelling should be seen as a delivery mechanism for sharing insights and ideas in a more memorable and persuasive way than just pure facts.
Using storytelling provides the following benefits: it makes your key points more memorable; it allows you to keep the attention and engagement of your audience; it helps you convince your audience of your message; and finally, it motivates them to take action.
3. Components of data storytelling
What does it take to make a data story? There are three parts: the data, the narrative, and the visualizations.
The data is the foundation of our story; it provides the key insights we wish to communicate.
The role of the visualizations is to support our key insights by showing them in a clear way.
The narrative provides structure to the whole; it gives us the right sequence to tell the story, from problem-over insights to our conclusions and recommendations.
4. Elements of a narrative
Every story has characters, a problem, a setting, a plot, and a resolution. We can link these different elements to the core elements of our own data communication.
The characters become the stakeholders; the problem is the business problem, the setting is the relevant background needed to understand the problem, the plot consists of the central and supporting insights, and the resolution is equivalent to the solution and recommendations we propose at the end.
5. Narrative structure
How do we put all of these things together? This is where narrative structure comes in.
First, the problem is introduced. This problem is supported by the necessary background to understand the problem.
The problem is framed so that it acts as a hook. For example, by stating it as a question that will be resolved by the end.
The supporting insights then lead up to the central insight. This acts as a sort of 'Aha' moment.
Finally, the story's ending consists of the proposed solution and recommendations for the next steps.
6. Example narrative
Let's make this more practical with an example. Suppose you're working for an airline company.
Customer satisfaction is in decline. Why? This is our problem—the why question can act as a hook. We can give some more relevant background, depending on what our audience needs to know.
Now we build up some supporting insights. The number of supporting insights you need is case-specific, but a good rule of thumb is to use no more than three to avoid overwhelming your audience.
In our example, the satisfaction decrease is evident mainly in the summer months. When analyzing the complaints in those months, we noticed that the highest number of complaints relates to problems with the air conditioning.
This leads us to the central insight: the dissatisfaction is mostly related to the aircon not working correctly.
Although the central insight comes after the supporting insights in the narrative structure, it is best to think about the central insight first when crafting your story so you know which supporting insights you need.
Finally, we end our story with a proposed solution and recommendations. In this case, the hiring of two more technicians to fix problems more quickly.
7. Let's practice!
It's time to craft your own stories!