“The effectiveness of data visualization can be gauged by its simplicity, relevancy, and its ability to hold the user's hand during their data discovery journey.”
—Jagat Saikia
As I mentioned at the beginning of this act, a snazzy new chart type can feel like a shiny holiday present to a data practitioner. The new shapes, the colors, the lines, yeehaw! And as you're learning, the downsides are that many charts don't communicate data well and most executive decision-makers don't understand unfamiliar charts.
The upside is that there are several unconventional chart types that are well-suited to facilitate accurate comprehension…once your stakeholders become familiarized with them. I highly advise against walking into a meeting and displaying these charts cold without preparing to do a step-by-step walkthrough (preferably using the Object or Shape Pacing methods).
The following sections introduce my favorite off-the-beaten-path chart types that you won't find in most data visualization tools.
The Target Variance Bar Chart
I have a groovy kind of love for this visualization. There may be scenarios where you have categorical or time-based results with individual performance benchmarks, such as salesperson-level sales quotas or profitability by quarter. Consider the example in Figure 25.1 before I break down the mechanics.
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