A lot of people look at charts and graphs that are in texts books or case studies that help them understand the information being given, but I have always wondered, are those specific charts there for a reason? When creating data reports, creativity is extremely important depending upon who the audience is. Some people want a more broad and to the point breakdown that will quickly generate revenue, while some may want a more finite chart that breaks down each category to the smallest detail.
Not all people learn in an analytical way, some need to see the facts in color in order to grasp what is truly going on. Leslie Belknap states in 3 Simple Tips for Creative Data Visualization, “people respond better to visualizations consisting of recognizable objects.” I have always found this to be true when giving presentations and explanations to people. If I put up a PowerPoint for a presentation with dull line graphs that doesn’t give much explanation, people lose interest extremely quick and they don’t retain the information. But if you present the information in a way that is pleasing to the eye, the viewer will have no choice but to read the information.