Effective Data Storytelling

Preface

While many data visualization principles are covered in this book, it is not a data visualization book. I want to set that expectation upfront, or else you may be disappointed. However, if you’re looking to communicate your insights more effectively to others, you’ve found the right book. If you want to better understand why data storytelling is so effective, again—this is the book. If you’re seeking to drive positive change with data, this book will equip you with everything you’ll need (at least, from a communication perspective). As you go through each chapter in this book, you’ll notice I start each one with a story—because that’s how much I believe in the power of storytelling. Let us begin this adventure together, once upon an insight…

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After more than two years of intense research and writing, I’m excited to share my perspective on data storytelling. My journey toward writing this book began in 2013 when I convinced Adobe’s event team to let me deliver a breakout session on “data storytelling” at our upcoming customer conference. At the time, it was an emerging topic that resonated with me. Having worked with data for the better part of my career—over 15 years in enterprise analytics—I experienced daily how critical effective data communication was. This session was my first formal opportunity to share some of the early concepts and frameworks I had developed. When the presentation went extremely well and I was asked to repeat the session, I knew I was ...