- Choosing a Chart Type
- Understanding a Date-Based Axis Versus a Category-Based Axis
- Using a Chart to Communicate Effectively
- Adding an Automatic Trendline to a Chart
- Showing a Trend of Monthly Sales and Year-to-Date Sales
- Understanding the Shortcomings of Stacked Column Charts
- Shortcomings of Showing Many Trends on a Single Chart
- Using a Scatter Plot to Show a Trend
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Shortcomings of Showing Many Trends on a Single Chart
Instead of using a stacked column chart, you might try to show many trendlines on a single line chart. This approach often leads to confusion. In the top chart in Figure 3.39, for example, the sales trends of five companies create a very confusing chart.
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Figure 3.39 Instead of using a single chart with five confusing lines, you can compare your company to each other competitor in smaller charts.
If the goal is to compare the sales results of your company against those of each major competitor, why not show four individual charts, as is done at the bottom of Figure 3.39? In these charts, the reader can easily see that your company is about to overtake the long-time industry leader MegaCo, but that quick growth from NewCo might still cause you to stay in the second position next year.