The superstore data that Tableau provides is a helpful tool for practice, mockups and trying out concepts. However, one of the frustrations is that it can get “out of date” so to speak so the latest date in the data set might be December 31, 2021 even though today’s date is month’s later.
When joining two tables in Tableau, have you ever wondered any of the following questions?
Is the join working?
Is the join resulting in data duplication?
Am I losing rows of data due to the type or argument of the join?
Want to set up filters or parameters on your Tableau dashboard so they disappear or reappear based on a user selection? I ran into this scenario recently when working with a client. We had a handful of pre-set date ranges a user could select (e.g. Month to Date, This Quarter, etc.) but we also wanted to give the user the option to select a custom date range.
This video covers how you can create a parameter which is used in a Tableau dashboard to control two date ranges at once, a “selected period” (e.g. month to date) and a “comparison period” (e.g. previous month to date).
Let me guess, you have a value (maybe a null) displaying in a Tableau filter and you want it to go away? You don’t want to leave it just sitting there because it’s ugly and your users are insatiably curious. You know if you leave it they are going to select it and you’re going to have to answer questions about what this “null” value means and why it’s a filter option.
In its natural state, survey data is rarely in a format where it is optimized for analysis. If you need to visualize survey data, it's likely going to require some preparation and reshaping.
Have you ever created a worksheet in Tableau only to have the dreaded 'Abc" text sitting there as a distracting eyesore for your users? You don't have to live with that! Check this video out for a few methods which can help you get rid of that pesky placeholder.
Do you have a field that needs leading zeros added? Maybe a postal code or ID that got formatted as a number and as a result dropped the leading zeros? If that's the case, check out this video for a couple alternatives to get those leading zeros at the beginning of your field again!
Tableau is a wonderful data visualization tool, but like any software, it has limitations and idiosyncrasies which make it difficult to work with at times. Thankfully, Tableau is aware of this and even created an ideas forum to crowdsource feature requests from users. In this video I talk about 10 ideas I would love to see Tableau incorporate into their products.
Does Tableau have a PROPER() function? No! But can we convert strings to proper case anyways with some ingenuity? Probably! Check out this video to learn how you can apply proper case to single word, multiple words and even deal Irish style names in Tableau!
Bar in bar charts are a great visual for comparing values in Tableau. They can compare two related measures, or a measure and a target! Check out this video to learn about the two primary approaches for building bar in bar charts, and why a Dual Axis might be the right fit for you.
Sometimes, you need a totally customized date filter for a Tableau dashboard. A fully customized date filter allows you to list the exact date ranges you want a user to be able to select from, and then filters the worksheets in the dashboard to that selected range. Check this video out to learn how you can utilize a parameter, calculation with date logic and worksheet filters to give your users a fully customized list of date ranges they can select and filter on.
Diverging bar charts can be a quick, effective tool for looking at the relationship between multiple measures in Tableau. If your users need the ability to compare two measures across a dimension and want the ability to quickly sort on either of those measures, consider building them a diverging bar chart!
Want to learn how to build a slope chart in Tableau? Want to add customizations to that slope chart like coloring the values based on whether they are increasing or decreasing? Check out this video to learn about this visual and how to use it effectively.
Having a lot of zeroes in a crosstab or highlight table can be clunky and visually overwhelming. Lots of zeros can divert your users' attention away from actual data values because the visual looks cluttered.
Reference lines in Tableau can serve a number of purposes. They can provide a constant point of reference, display an average, represent a dynamic, field-driven value, heck, they can even keep your axis length fixed to help users limit data comprehension issues due to change blindness.