How can you create and share data stories effectively?

Before creating and sharing data stories, you should understand your audience. Understand how they consume the data and what captures their attention. Craft your data story according to your audience's preferences.

Understanding the audience and their expertise can help in deciding not only the format of the story but also the tone and depth of data you can convey. If your audience has basic knowledge of the subject matter already, you can focus more on in-depth data story. But if the audience would be more comfortable with simple and easy to understand language. Storytelling should be complimented with visuals like graphs etc. to make it easier.

Understanding your audience is indeed the first and most crucial step in crafting a compelling data story. As a storytelling consultant, I've found that this step is often overlooked in the rush to present data. However, it's the key to ensuring your story resonates with your audience, aligns with their goals and challenges, and is presented in a way they can easily digest. Remember, a story told without considering the audience is like a gift given without considering the recipient's preferences.

Understanding who you are telling your story to is vital, and this will vary dependant on the channel. While it is common practice to segment the People in your storytelling, it is super important to remember that they are all individuals ... we are all unique. So try not to over segment them.... not everyone is going to engage with all of your storytelling, and that's OK. Also, take a reflection to note how you want your audience to feel - an emotional connection is key, and the feelings you can elicit will support that.

You should always know your audience but this is especially important when sharing data stories. Data can turn people off if it's not presented in the right way. Think about the following: how the data relates to your target audience, why they need to know this data, how comfortable they are with data, what background knowledge they have/need, and what are audience-friendly ways to present the data.

While choosing the data you need to be careful that you include all the information that affects the data. There may be some limitations and other factors that might be influencing your data. When you are drafting your data story, you should include all relevant information to avoid bias.

Not all data is created equal. Select data that directly supports your objective. Focus on the most relevant and impactful metrics. Avoid overwhelming your audience with too much information. Instead, highlight key points that drive your message home.

Avoid overwhelming your audience with excessive data. Data should be used to support your storytelling. If the available data is relevant to your message, simplify it and make it accessible for your audience. Including too much data, or confusing data, will turn your audience off.

Knowing the message you wish to convey and land first will then lead back to the data you wish to use and more so - how you wish to present it. There are so many ways to collect, access and in turn visualise data, more so than ever before. So play around, experiment and select the right data and format that works for you (as a storyteller), but also for your audience.

It’s not just about presenting numbers but about integrating them into a narrative that your audience cares about. By wrapping key metrics and patterns in stories, you can avoid data overload and ensure your message remains clear and impactful. Simplifying data through filters and aggregations helps maintain the audience's engagement and understanding, ultimately making your story more persuasive and memorable.

Data visualization can make complex information more accessible: Choose the Right Type of Visualization: Match your data visualization to the story you’re telling (e.g., bar charts for comparisons, line charts for trends). Simplify: Avoid clutter. Use clear labels and consider your color choices carefully to enhance readability. Context: Provide context to your visuals to help your audience understand why the data is important.

Be it story or any form of content the goal is to make your audience understand the message you want deliver. You can make your audience understand the data by visualizing it. Present the data in graphs, charts, tables.

Data visualisation should be simple and must be complimented with a clear narrative. Explaining what the graphs & visuals mean and highlighting important information is essential to keep the focus on what’s more important.

Data storytelling is often neglected. In countless meetings, we hear figures ("So many likes, shares, impressions...") without the narrative. What's the significance? Good or bad? Next steps? In an era where data is abundant, effectively crafting stories from it is crucial. Engaging storytelling, akin to copywriting, transforms dry numbers into compelling narratives. Numbers alone rarely captivate. To keep your audience engaged, lead with a striking conclusion and unravel the story from there, much like a filmmaker. This approach holds the audience's attention and adds depth to the data's meaning.

Just providing data through stories won't give you the desired results. You should create a need for the data through stories. Make your audience understand the importance of the data by narrating the data!

Craft a Compelling Narrative. Data alone can be dry and impersonal. Wrap your data in a compelling narrative that adds context and emotion. Begin with a hook to grab attention, build your story around a logical flow, and conclude with a strong call to action. Think of it as weaving a thread that connects the dots for your audience.

There are lots of effective ways to test a story. One way is to boil it down to a brief synopsis and share it with a friend or connection. Is it clear? Do they get it? Does the story pique their interest and compel them to hear more? Are there things you need to work on? One of my favorite Mark Twain quotes is "I would have written you a shorter letter but I didn't have the time." Effective storytelling takes time, refinement, and commitment.

Feedback, and being continuously open to it, is crucial for improved storytelling. It can come in any form, dependant on your storytelling scenario. Be open to the responses to your data story, either live or prior to sharing. It may give you the chance to change your story there and then, or improve upon the next one.

Don’t show data for the sake of showing it. Your data should support your story. And your story support your data. But when you find the right data, it will not only support your story but also build your credibility and trust.

Storytelling should always compliment the data. The story should highlight important data elements and make it easy for the audience to understand it. It should not take away the focus from main information.

Don’t just present data; interpret it. Highlight key insights and explain their significance. Tell your audience why these insights matter and how they can be applied. This adds depth to your story and helps your audience see the bigger picture.

Just remember that all communication is storytelling. The moment you view it through that lens you can really open yourself up to enhancing the impacts you can have every day through your life. Storytelling is not just for that big moment.... it is for the every moment. Stories. Change. Lives.