Client told me our reports were useless - changed how I present data

A client in Chicago straight up said they never looked at the monthly analytics I sent because it was just numbers on a page. They wanted to see what mattered in 10 seconds, not dig through 20 pages. I cut everything down to 3 key metrics with arrows showing up or down, and added a one sentence summary at the top. Now I get questions about the data instead of silence. Has anyone else had to completely redo their reporting style?

3 comments

3 Comments

jakeb8110d ago

Did you try adding a visual like a red or green arrow next to each number?

smith.nancy10d ago

Oh yeah, I actually just read about this somewhere. A UX blog or something. They said color alone is risky because of colorblind users. Like red/green is the worst combo for that. So you gotta pair it with something else. But arrows instead of just colors? That's smart. The direction gives extra info even if the color doesn't register. Up for good, down for bad. Makes it instantly readable. I'd still test it though. Some people might think arrows mean "move this" instead of "this value changed." Depends on your audience I guess.

harper9148d ago

Honestly, arrows are the way to go here. I've had this exact issue before and swapping from just colors to arrows with colors fixed it completely. Tested with a small group of colorblind users and they all got it instantly. Just make sure you pick an arrow style that's obvious - like a solid up arrow for growth and a down arrow for drops. Don't use those thin lines that could look like a pointer or caret. And yeah, put the arrow before the number, not after, so people's eyes catch the direction first before they read the value.