Data Storytelling is a smart and efficient tool for communicating information. To understand when to use it, you must start by identifying the final recipient of the message (based on the data), who will be inextricably linked to the context for which it is used.
The people consuming data in the form of [Data] Storytelling
The target population is the consumer/end user of the data (vs. the person who works on the data), and the person we want to provide with an analysis or review.
We will send them a message so that they can make decisions or take faster action in light of the information received.
These people may include:
- Neophytes. These are individuals who have no particular knowledge in a given field. These people will need to be given information in addition to the data itself, like contextual details to improve their understanding, benchmarks to evaluate and compare, and sexy visualizations to draw them in.
- Non-data expert. These are people who might not be familiar with the numerical data, but want the results of the analysis to guide them in their daily work.
- Non-expert in the field for which data is being presented. These are people who, for example, work in other functions in the company and to whom we want to communicate a message, people who are not experts in our profession and need help reading the data so they can get a handle on unfamiliar information and understand the interactions with their own business. They may also be clients or business partners, to whom the data is being presented to accelerate their decision-making.
- Non-digital natives or digital immigrants Even though they may be a specialist in their profession, a data officer in their field, these people come from a previous generation for whom the advent of digital tech was seen as an upheaval, so they are not accustomed to using business intelligence tools and often find them complex to grasp.
- Top Management / C-level. These are the decision-makers in a business. They are exposed to a plethora of data which they do not necessarily have a perfect command of, but which they must figure out in a very short time so they can make decisions, give directives and take action. They therefore need (i) clarity in the presentation of the data, (ii) contextualization of information, (iii) access to the data.
- Remote end users (agencies, stores, dealerships). This concept of off-shoring or remote use is super important. Sales offices/branches often find it difficult to get to grips with inter-department BI tools for the following reasons:
- not enough time to figure out how it all works: The priority is business.
- lack of a common vision of the business: It is not uncommon to see each branch or office manage their activity using their own KPIs. It is essential that all branches look at the business in the same way
- Training in these tools can be very long and very expensive (cost of training, cost of hours not worked and cost of in-store substitution). Rolling out the training program across all stores can take several months.
In what context is Data Storytelling used?
There is a tool for every need. Data Storytelling is particularly suitable for the following use cases. And experience proves it. Check it out.
Sending information to business line users thanks to a flawless UX-Design
The business lines (or end users) do not need to rework the information.
It's about providing an operational solution, rather than equipping business lines with a reporting instrument.
Advantages compared to a self-service BI tool:
- An improved User Experience for your users: Data Storytelling tools generally have a very high usage rate. Navigation is simple, and the information is easy to understand
- A single vision across the department
- Getting people to focus on their jobs while being able to independently edit the analyses and change the narrative used, without being dependent on the IT department
- Making data constantly accessible on any medium and able to be shared
- Making data actionable using Data Storytelling: suggesting an action, recommendation, etc.
- A single information platform (you don't have to decide which data source to use…)
A few examples of use:
C-Level. A major group in the tourism sector wants to give its Executive Committee and hotel managers a tool for managing their activity. Each hotel manager is given access to the key figures for their hotel and can compare them to others, identifying strengths and weaknesses. Previously, the Group had multiple dashboards with siled data that could only be accessed by computer. See our Executive Management page
Sales A tool for sales representatives in France and around the world so they can manage their sales performance and their situation in relation to budgets set. The app had a real educational purpose since the users were not tech-savvy at all! See also the BNP Wealth Management case and our Sales Management page
Marketing. A major luxury brand monitors its sales performance on a monthly basis using data purchased from panelists and compares itself to its main competitors on French and foreign markets with differentiated access depending on the market.
HR. The Global HRD of a major Group wants to manage the Group's workforce and talents. See also the Pôle Emploi case and our Human Resources page
Finance. With Idemaps, Management of financial and operational indicators of a Distribution Network
Operations. A turnkey app for shopping center managers in the field, where all operational, contractual and financial information is collated in one place.
Exchange of information between a company's functional divisions and business lines
Organizations are often criticized for information silos and gaps that slow down productivity. Using Data Storytelling, you can share your business data with others in the company in a smooth and controlled way
Advantages compared to a self-service BI tool:
- Perspective provided (editorialization)
- Contextualization of the data
- A controlled channel of information
Example of use:
An app developed for a bank and intended for market directors to provide a market vision, and for agency directors to provide a view of distribution, using the same set of data.
Need for accessibility to data anytime and anywhere (mobile use)
Classic data exploration BI tools are developed exclusively for desktop use. This fits in with the type of people equipped with them, and how the tools are used: data experts (analysts, Data Scientists for example) with several hours of daily use.
Data Storytelling tools are designed to be multi-media (desktop, tablet and smartphone), because the aim of these tools is to communicate encrypted information. Mobility is therefore native, meaning it adapts to all devices with the same configuration. Other BI tools often have to be completely reconfigured to tailor them to different screen sizes… (loss of performance and additional cost).
So if you need your information on tablets and smartphones, a need generally expressed by sales people and Top Management, you're better off using Data Storytelling tools.
Need to communicate data to your network (agencies, stores, dealerships, franchises)
Advantages compared to a self-service BI tool:
- A single, shared vision across all sales offices/branches, with the ability to personalize the reading of information in a dynamic way
- Clarity and readability of information for everyone, whatever the user's profile (thanks to the User Experience)
- A fully mobile solution (app accessible from any mobile device without additional configuration)
- A communication platform for all information from head office to sales offices (not only encrypted data): chat, communication planning, communication training, visual merchandising, etc.
- Built-in recommendations to help teams orient their work
A few examples of use:
Networks. the first example of use is for the management of shopping centers, subsidiaries or dealerships.
Stores. A head office wants to let the person in charge of shopping centers manage the stores with daily feedback of sales data, and to offer the stores the opportunity to compare their performance to the network as a whole.
Dealerships. A company equips its Sales Department with a DS tool to help them manage the entire network of dealers and concessions so that head office can centralize the sale of spare parts and each dealer can see their performance within the network.
Agencies. Department directors want to have a vision of the business in terms of the percentage of the target achieved by Region/Zone/Agency, and to give agency directors an easy management tool that allows them to evaluate their activity and compare themselves to other agencies. See also the Crédit Agricole case
A need to communicate data to your stakeholders (customers, partners… your entire network!
Data Storytelling is also used as a decision support tool for entire business ecosystems, because visualizations are simple, reading and understanding is supported, and the user experience makes navigating data easier.
Advantages compared to a self-service BI tool:
- a self-service BI tool does not cover this scope nor is it so extensive
A few examples of use:
Commercial.
It offers a sales support tool for sales people, where data is fundamental to decision-making.
A tool to help sell billboards to advertisers based on location, point of contact and number of faces in relation to target customers.
The local authority department of a bank wanted to have a tablet-based management tool for assessing the financial situation of municipalities. Sales people were issued with a tool so that they could sell their service using a customized report.
Clients and Partners.
Providing information access to other stakeholders outside the company. The information transmitted is pivotal to their decision-making. Often, information is submitted in an excel format that is difficult to use or understand, and is changed into an interactive app with immediate results.
This is also the case for feedback and summaries from marketing studies or satisfaction surveys, the results of which are made clear and comprehensible thanks to Data Storytelling >>read this article!
The Business Ecosystem.
Making internal information more accessible so that everyone can get the most out of it. This applies to Data Storytelling for Open Data. The credit insurance company of the Allianz group, Euler Hermes, decided to use Data Storytelling to present the narrative of non-payment across sectors and countries around the world.
See also the case of ADP, which publishes its Social and Environmental Responsibility commitments using a Data Storytelling app.
