The Importance of Data Storytelling

Business leaders need to make decisions quickly, often needing immediate business insights. But the unfortunate truth is that effective information relay takes time because data is complex and effective brevity is time-consuming.

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Data storytelling is arguably the most important soft skill for data analysts. Great storytelling transforms analytics into insights by making complex information intuitive and easy to understand for decision-makers.

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Data Visualization Needs Simpler Tools

All analysis projects start behind schedule. We’ve all heard the familiar, “we need answers yesterday!” Too often, this relentless pace tends to obscure everything data analysts do.

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Data analysts explore and iterate and test and build as fast as they can – but never fast enough. So it’s no surprise that there’s little time saved for good data storytelling. The result is that great analyst work doesn’t have the impact it should because decision-makers can’t quickly absorb key findings.

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Rushed storytelling is a tooling problem. Even after analysts spend thousands of hours becoming experts, BI tools and coding libraries take time to create high-impact visuals. Analysts have to access data, rearchitect data models and tinker with endless configurations.

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Even using Excel to create a one-off visualization can take hours. That’s time decision markers and data analysts don’t have. So businesses end up with great analytics and poor synthesis.

But ChatGPT empowers data analysts to be captivating storytellers again. Here’s how.

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Leveling Up with ChatGPT

There’s a lot of buzz around ChatGPT right now, and it can be tough to cut through the noise. For data analysts, ChatGPT is your new AI-powered helper.

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Data analysts are world-class critical thinkers. They identify problems, create mental models, formulate hypotheses, test solutions and persuade others. Dealing with headache-inducing tech gotchas and spaghetti code disrupts thinking and wastes precious time.

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With ChatGPT, analysts now have an assistant to solve technical headaches and keep them focused on what’s critical.

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Imagine outsourcing your data visualization. With ChatGPT, you can provide verbal instructions just like you would with a colleague. Instead of waiting hours between iterations, you get results immediately.

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Here is an example from Marek Rogala using ChatGPT to create visuals. He simply asks for a plot of life expectancy v GDP per capita. ChatGPT writes the code to create the visual, makes recommendations and takes feedback. Make sure to check out the whole thread for more details!

ChatGPT can even work with whatever visualization package your business uses. You think in English and ChatGPT does the machine stuff.

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Seeing the Future

Soon, AI-powered helpers will free data analysts from technical pain points so they can focus on delivering business solutions. Starting today with ChatGPT, analysts can be better, faster data storytellers. That means more time for building analytics – on your favorite analytics platforms like Savant – and better-informed decision-making.

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Have you started using ChatGPT? Tell us how you’re using it to level up!