How to do data visualization!

Data visualization is a graphic exhibition of numbers and data that helps you understand these figures and to make them more user-friendly. Most businesses must deal with an incredible amount of numbers and as these need to be displayed, it’s not a good idea to put them in your presentation or in your video as they are. Creating a graphic that explains them is the best way to make it easy for the audience to read and follow, but also to make them more interesting.  

Of course, this blog post will focus on data visualization in videos, which are probably the most effective media for this. Without a doubt, the Babelee platform is a great tool for creating videos that containt data visualization. 

So, what are the benefits of data visualization? Let look at some of them: 

1. Since the numbers will be grouped into tables, they will be significantly easier to read rather than if they were just listed as they are. This is already a great pro: remember that one of the main goals of a video is to engage the audience and what is a great way to engage? Make something originally boring into something interesting. 
2. A graph or a table will also offer a different point of view of the numbers. In this way, you can show a particular view of the data that perhaps you didn’t notice just by looking at the raw figures. For example, a pie graph shows a more accurate analysis of the data rather than the numbers.  
3. As a consequence of a different point of view, you will more easily recognize recurring trends or big differences in your data that are difficult to notice when just looking at raw numbers. A graph, instead, shows how certain numbers grow or decrease, unlocking the possibility to do an in-depth analysis. 
4. We already said that tables make data easier to read. What’s more, easier in this case also means faster! Tables can help you quickly understand the data than by just looking at the numbers. Our mind prefers to read figures represented schematically rather than simple numbers, as it can understand them easier. 
5. Another consequence of these points is the ability to make better decisions based on the data shown. A deeper analysis allows you to make a better study of all the data and  see the trends and the differences, leading to a more accurate outcome. Naturally, this is very important for your brand, especially for marketing purposes, since a precise analysis will bring great results.  
6. Once again, adding animated graphics will definitely grow the amount of attention viewers pay on the contents of your video. Keep in mind that in every video moving objects are always better than static ones. 

Before you start, make sure to have what you need! This checklist will be helpful. 

• Data, structured well: obviously, the main thing you need for data visualization is data. Be certain that your figures are well organized so that it won’t be difficult for you to use them as you produce your video. Try to use an Excel spreadsheet. Remember that data is made of numbers and numbers require order: you can’t expect people to understand what you are saying if you cannot understand it yourself. 
• What is this data about? You can’t just show a bunch of numbers without any meaning or viewers will definitely get lost and end up losing their attention. Instead, you need to frame them in a story so that everything will start making sense. This process is called data telling: Make sure you know what it is and how to do it.  
• Choose the right template and use it. As we’ve said before, templates are crucial when it comes to video production as they make the job easier and faster. Still, if you are new and you don’t know what templates are and how to use them, check out this blog post.  
• If the video requires it, use personalization. Again, personalization is one of the key factors that can have a great influence on the quality of your videos. It has the power to transform your creation  from an average video to a great production that is unique from any other. As a consequence, viewers will feel a lot involved in your video. To discover more about personalization, take a look at this blog post. 
• In order to reduce production time and the amount of work, use automation.  

As we said before, one of the best platforms for creating data visualization is Babelee. Here’s a guide about how to use it. 

First of all, start by using a template (we already discussed why you need it). Babelee offers you a lot of ready made templates where you can begin creating your video. Just search “Data Visualization” among the topic sections and make your choice! Otherwise, if you prefer working using something you made, you can import your own templates or a pre-set from Adobe After Effects.  

Once you have selected the template you prefer, you can start working on it. Edit the video according to your needs. Keep in mind that the more you work on a template, the less your video will look like something already made. Again, if you don’t know how to do that check out this blog post. 

Instead, if you want to work on a brand-new video without any pre-made samples, start by thinking about a story: a good plot is useful for engaging viewers and capturing their attention. Then, start working on the best way to represent your data: on Babelee you can choose between a lot of composition grids, such as histograms, pie graphs, linear graphs, etc. All the graphs you can choose inside the platform are editable, depending on the data you want to put inside them. You can enter the figures manually or, if you have collected them in an Excel sheet, you can just copy the table and paste it in the graphs inside the Babelee platform. The graphs adapt to the data you have and are customizable.  

Babelee is also very helpful if you are not used to video editing or data visualization. In fact, the software can provide valuable support if your are struggling with the production aspects. 

• Make sure that your presentation of the data is easy to follow. Don’t forget that the video must be understood even by those who don’t know a lot about data visualization. 
• Keep in mind to create a story that helps the viewers to pay attention to the figures. 

Data visualization is a powerful tool to make your data more understandable and videos are very useful in this sense, since they perfectly match what data visualization needs to perform at its best.  

Now that you know everything about this topic, it’s your turn. Download Babelee and start sorting the data you collected to put them inside your next video!