In a world where information overload is the new norm, good data storytelling is more important than ever. But presenting complex data sets in an easily digestible way is an art form.

It’s not just about listing your findings – data storytelling provides the why behind the numbers with supporting narratives and visuals to paint a clear picture. This gives it real depth and context.

In this guide, we’ll explore the process and give you tips on how to tell your own story with data. Let’s start with the basics.

What is data storytelling?

Data storytelling turns raw information into narratives you can use to inform and influence decision-making. Numbers are visualised, and language is used to describe findings in a way that helps your audience make sense of patterns and results. It’s less death by numbers, and more context and meaning – guiding people to take better informed courses of action.

Marketers might use data to tell the story of how past campaigns performed. This can help them decide if tactics are worth repeating, or if the approach needs tweaking.

HR professionals can use it to identify workforce trends, like whether employees are representative of the population in that area, for example, or to track KPI performance.

It’s a bridge between data and decisions. Ultimately, it makes the complex, simple – allowing for better decision-making and clearer, informed outcomes.

Benefits of telling a story with data.

Telling a story with data helps you visualise and understand its purpose, meaning you can use it more efficiently. You’re not just gaining insight, but you’re turning quantitative findings into something tangible that can help build a wider, more comprehensive picture.

Data storytelling can also help:

• Influence decision-making. Provides depth to the data, which you can use to guide decisions across the business. Having more tangible evidence helps you to reason, which can be useful for making cases for and against certain decisions.
• Simplify complex information. Break down large chunks into smaller, more focused segments, and build data stories into the more digestible sections. This allows audiences with different levels of expertise to better understand technical information at a glance.
• Build trust and credibility. Connects and resonates with audiences due to its clarity and transparency. Clear, visualised data gives more confidence to those interpreting it.
• Align stakeholders around shared goals. Helps different departments get on the same page and understand a proposed strategy.
• Drive engagement and retention. People remember stories more than statistics. Telling stories with data helps information resonate better, over a longer period of time.

Key elements of data storytelling.

Data storytelling relies on three key things. Each of them plays an important role in turning data from raw numbers into interpretable findings that hold relevance and meaning.

The three core components of data storytelling are:

1. Quality data.

Remember – you get as good as you give. If you put rubbish data in, you’ll get an unclear, inefficient data story out of it. Make sure it’s up to date to ensure trustworthiness and transparency.

2. Clear narrative.

A well-structured narrative guides your audience through the data, with key points emphasised and their consequences. A good way to remember it is Data + Meaning = Value.

3. Compelling visuals.

Pictures paint a thousand words. Charts, maps, graphs, and infographics allow you to recognise trends and patterns in data at a glance. Insight is easier to miss when you’re just looking at raw numbers.

5 steps for effective data storytelling.

Crafting good data stories is an art form, but you don’t need to be a design whizz to do it. Here are some simple steps anyone can follow to succeed:

1. Identify your audience and objective.

Know who your target audience is, and why you’re trying to tell a story from the data in the first place. What is the objective of your project? How do you plan to achieve your goals? The key is to get to know your audience’s interests and knowledge level and tailor your story accordingly.

2. Collect and analyse your data.

Gather data that’s real. Look for things that stand out in your findings – are there any trends or relationships? Can you identify any useful or unusual outliers? Taking a more analytical approach can help direct the focus of your narrative and back it up with data-driven insights.

3. Develop your data storytelling narrative.

Build a logical storyline that flows and ensure it’s relevant to what you want to achieve. Your narrative should clarify why your insights matter, and what steps are needed to action them. This helps back up your arguments with reason, adding more credibility to your work.

4. Enhance your story with visuals.

Bars charts, graphs and infographics help break the data down from complex information into a clearer story. It’s more impactful, too. For example, if you’re testing two creative assets for an upcoming marketing campaign. You might want to use a bar chart to compare the two sets of data and see which asset had a more positive impact on clicks, engagement, and conversions.

5. Validate and share your data.

Check, check, and check again before sharing your work. Does it align with your message? Does it reinforce the point you’re trying to make or disprove it? A story free from errors is a credible one, and a clearer narrative makes it easier for your audience to interpret and find relevance.

How can Adobe Express help bring your data storytelling to life?

Data storytelling has never been easier. Bring narrative to life in a flash, with full creative control from start to finish. No design experience needed – you can easily use Adobe Express to tell a story with data.

1. Brainstorm your story with a detailed concept map.

You don’t need to worry about starting with a blank slate. Use one of our concept map templates to organise your ideas. Build in the key parts of your data, then structure and build the narrative flow with the built-in customisation tools.

2. Create a custom presentation from professional templates.

Telling the data story to your clients or internal stakeholders? Use the Adobe Express presentation maker to create professional slides that showcase your data in the best light. Each slide design is fully customisable, so you can add your own features to shape your presentation into something that resonates with your audience.

3. Turn your complex data into compelling visuals.

Turn numbers into visuals easily with Adobe Express’ intuitive design tools. They’re simple to use, no creative experience necessary. Customise layouts, colours, and graphics to match your audience’s needs and your specific business goals.

4. Enhance your slides with branded text effects.

Polish your data and storytelling techniques with personalised AI text effects. Use them to create your own fonts and branded effects and save them for future projects. Enter your prompt and refine and edit the results until you’re happy with the outcome.

Transform your data storytelling into compelling visuals with the AI Presentation Maker.

Adobe Express’ AI Presentation Maker is a powerful tool for creating quick and easy data storytelling presentations. It’s super simple: just enter your prompt and watch the AI tool bring your data and design to life.

No long-winded creation process, no time-consuming deck building – it’s efficient. It’s also great for producing a few presentation variations to assess different ideas.

Make your own data storytelling presentations with the free AI presentation maker.

Try Adobe Express for free now

Good to know.

What is the main goal of data storytelling?

The main goal of data storytelling is to translate complex data into a clear narrative that’s easy to understand. Decision makers can then use this straightforward story to make business decisions. As they’ll have a clearer view of the data, they’re more likely to make better decisions.

What are the key principles of data storytelling?

Key principles of data storytelling are accuracy of data, understanding your audience, and building a clear narrative with meaningful visuals. You’ve also got to make sure it aligns with strategic goals. Combined, they can ensure you’re delivering a credible message.

Is data visualisation the same as data storytelling?

No, data visualisation is not the same as data storytelling – but it’s a component of it. Think of data visualisation as your imagery and data storytelling as the narrative. Graphs and charts present data, storytelling narrates it. Together, they can help explain why your data is important.

Is Adobe Express free?

Yes, our free plan offers many core features including thousands of templates, photo editing and effects, animation, and 5 GB of storage. See our pricing page for details and to compare plans.