Sometimes, I see a chart that has too much crammed into it, to the point where it becomes unreadable. I’m reminded of the old military slang, “ten pounds of [stuff] in a five pound bag”, referring to an ugly or unmanageable situation.
Here’s an example of what I mean. This chart appeared in the Wall Street Journal a few weeks ago, in an article about Google’s acquisition of Motorola:
Is it a solar system model? A railroad map?
Here are all the types of data this graphic is trying to show at once:
- Market capitalization
- Specific partnerships in the smartphone industry
- General levels of corporate competition with Google
- Market share of smartphones for April-June 2011
- Market share of mobile OS for April-June 2011
- Market share of set-top boxes for January-December 2010
That’s six separate things, which are being conveyed through bubble sizes, colors, connecting lines, icons, dollar figures, and percentages. Some are in different units, or for different time periods. Much of the data aren’t relevant for certain players (for instance, Cisco doesn’t make smartphones).
The first step in sorting out this mess is to put the data into a table. In some cases, a table may be all you need.
| Company |
Market Cap (in Billions) |
Relation to Google |
Partnerships |
Smartphone Market Share |
Mobile OS Market Share |
Set-top Box Market Share |
| Google |
$177.81 |
N/A |
Motorola, HTC, LG, Samsung |
0.0% |
43.4% |
0.0% |
| Motorola |
$11.34 |
Ally |
Google |
2.4% |
0.0% |
13.3% |
| HTC |
$24.48 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
2.6% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
| LG |
$8.70 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
5.7% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
| Samsung |
$106.98 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
16.3% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
| Microsoft |
$211.93 |
Competitor |
Nokia |
0.0% |
1.6% |
0.0% |
| Nokia |
$22.62 |
Competitor |
Microsoft |
22.8% |
23.1% |
0.0% |
| Apple |
$355.03 |
Competitor |
None |
4.6% |
18.2% |
0.0% |
| RIM |
$13.44 |
Competitor |
None |
3.0% |
11.7% |
0.0% |
| HP |
$64.40 |
Competitor |
None |
0.0% |
0.2% |
0.0% |
| Cisco |
$87.52 |
Competitor |
None |
0.0% |
0.0% |
7.8% |
| Others |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
42.6% |
1.8% |
78.9% |
The first thing that becomes apparent is that there is some extraneous information. The chart is ostensibly about the “smartphone universe”, but HP and Cisco have virtually no smartphone or mobile OS market share. Also, what do “set-top boxes” have to do with smartphones, especially since almost 80% of the market is handled by “Others”?
The chart can be pared down like this:
| Company |
Market Cap (in Billions) |
Relation to Google |
Partnerships |
Smartphone Market Share |
Mobile OS Market Share |
| Google |
$177.81 |
N/A |
Motorola, HTC, LG, Samsung |
0.0% |
43.4% |
| Motorola |
$11.34 |
Ally |
Google |
2.4% |
0.0% |
| HTC |
$24.48 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
2.6% |
0.0% |
| LG |
$8.70 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
5.7% |
0.0% |
| Samsung |
$106.98 |
Ally/Competitor |
Google |
16.3% |
0.0% |
| Microsoft |
$211.93 |
Competitor |
Nokia |
0.0% |
1.6% |
| Nokia |
$22.62 |
Competitor |
Microsoft |
22.8% |
23.1% |
| Apple |
$355.03 |
Competitor |
None |
4.6% |
18.2% |
| RIM |
$13.44 |
Competitor |
None |
3.0% |
11.7% |
| Others |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
42.6% |
2.0% |
The article is about the Google-Motorola alliance. So we can add some subtotals to the table:
| Company |
Relation to Google |
Market Cap (in Billions) |
Smartphone Market Share |
Mobile OS Market Share |
| Google |
N/A |
$177.81 |
0.0% |
43.4% |
| Motorola |
Ally |
$11.34 |
2.4% |
0.0% |
| HTC |
Ally/Competitor |
$24.48 |
2.6% |
0.0% |
| LG |
Ally/Competitor |
$8.70 |
5.7% |
0.0% |
| Samsung |
Ally/Competitor |
$106.98 |
16.3% |
0.0% |
| Google Alliance Subtotal: |
|
$329.31 |
27.0% |
43.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
| Microsoft |
Competitor |
$211.93 |
0.0% |
1.6% |
| Nokia |
Competitor |
$22.62 |
22.8% |
23.1% |
| Microsoft Alliance Subtotal: |
|
$234.55 |
22.8% |
24.7% |
|
|
|
|
|
| Apple |
Competitor |
$355.03 |
4.6% |
18.2% |
| RIM |
Competitor |
$13.44 |
3.0% |
11.7% |
| Others |
N/A |
N/A |
47.2% |
20.2% |
Grouping the data provides some ideas for graphs. We’re looking at three different metrics (market capitalization, smartphone market share, and mobile OS market share). A panel chart would allow us to look at the three different metrics side by side, without trying to squeeze them all into a single complex visualization.
From this panel chart, these stories emerge:
- There are three big players in terms of combined market capitalization. Does RIM have the resources to compete?
- Google and its allies lead the pack in smartphone market share, but Microsoft’s deal with Nokia makes them a close second. There are many other small players not shown.
- Google is far ahead in terms of mobile OS market share. Microsoft, Apple, and RIM are fighting to gain ground.
The one thing the chart doesn’t make clear is that the Microsoft/Nokia strength in mobile OS market share is due to Nokia’s Symbian OS, which it is retiring in favor of Windows Phone 7.
The most important thing when designing a visualization is to keep it simple. Bar charts are great for showing one metric; scatterplots can look at the relationship between two metrics. You need to be very careful when trying to show three or more things at once; often, you’ll wind up with a confused mess. When in doubt, show less.
