Sankey diagrams: An essential tool for data visualization and analytics
Sankey diagrams are an often-underused but powerful tool in the realm of data visualization and analytics. They help in representing data flows in a way that’s visually intuitive, making it easier to understand complex information and uncover trends that might otherwise be obscured. This guide aims to illuminate the potential of Sankey diagrams, demonstrating how they can be effectively introduced into your data analysis toolkit.
### Understanding Sankey Diagrams
Sankey diagrams are named after the Scottish engineer and printer, Matthew Henry Phiri, who invented the typeface that is widely known as Phoenician today. They take the form of a flow chart, showing the quantity of flow from one statistical entity to another. The key characteristics are that the width of the arrows in the diagram is proportional to the amount of data passing through at that point in the system being plotted.
### Key Applications of Sankey Diagrams
1. **Resource Tracking**: Ideal for visualizing the sources, allocation, and distribution of resources. Whether tracking the flow of money from investor to employee, or raw materials through a manufacturing process, Sankey diagrams offer clarity.
2. **Energy Use Analysis**: The diagram shows energy flows, including energy sources, losses, and usage. This is particularly useful in the field of sustainability analysis and in designing energy-efficient systems.
3. **Web Analytics**: Helps visualize traffic flow on websites, showing where website visitors come from and where they go, useful for understanding user navigation patterns.
### Creating Sankey Diagrams
1. **Data Collection**: Gather the flow data you want to visualise. This could be quantities, measures, or any type of flow data depending on the context.
2. **Choice of Software**: You have several options for creating Sankey diagrams, both online and offline. Tools like Tableau, Microsoft Excel (with add-ins), Processing, and SankeyDiagram.net offer different levels of complexity and customization.
3. **Designing the Diagram**: Start by inputting your data into the software. Pay attention to the scale and the color scheme to best represent the flow and distinguish between different flows.
4. **Adjusting for Readability**: To ensure the diagrams are easy to understand, balance color, size, and line thickness. Avoid overcrowding and use color coding to differentiate between various flows or time periods.
5. **Review and Improve**: Once the Sankey diagram is created, review it for accuracy and clarity. Make adjustments as needed to ensure that the information is presented as effectively as possible.
### Best Practices for Effective Use
– **Focus on Key Flows**: Highlight the most significant paths in the data flow with thicker lines or distinct colors to draw immediate attention.
– **Be Consistent**: Maintain uniform width scaling as the diagram width decreases to ensure accurate interpretation.
– **Provide Context**: Label your diagram with dates, units of measurement, and descriptions where necessary to aid understanding.
– **Interactive Elements**: Where possible, make the Sankey diagram interactive so users can click on specific nodes to explore deeper details.
### Conclusion
By harnessing the power of Sankey diagrams, you can significantly enhance your data analysis capabilities, ensuring that complex flow datasets are not only comprehensible but also compelling to non-specialist audiences. As an advanced form of data visualization, they are invaluable for revealing insights that might otherwise remain buried in figures or tables. As you explore and incorporate this tool into your analytics toolkit, you’ll notice an improvement in the way you communicate data, making your findings far more engaging and impactful.
