Business Communication and Character

View Original

Analyzing a Column Chart

A Bloomberg article shows Manhattan resale home prices in a declining column chart. At a glance, the graph shows a clear, fairly steady decline since 2017.

When you mouseover the chart on the website (not here), the date and percentage appear.

Discussion:

  • Assess the chart title, “How Low Can They Go?” Why would the author or copywriter choose this title? How effective is it for the audience of business news readers?

  • Assess the chart format. What works well, and what could be improved?

  • What’s your view of using the mouseover instead of labeling bars. What other choices could work well?