How to customize a map using Colour Scale and Set Actions in Tableau Software – Skill Pill Video

Colour Scale a Map using Set Actions in Tableau

Any organization who wants to become a data driven company, must take decisions based on data. Data gives us confidence in our future actions, and enough arguments to support them. Our weekly skill pills articles are meant to encourage Tableau end users to explore and analyze the data they have in order to obtain valuable information. In the same way, these articles have the role of offering users more possibilities to explore and understand the data collected so that in the end they can extract the valuable information they need to answer questions such as: what happened, why it happened , what will happen or what can we do next?

Today we will discuss a new functionality found in Tableau Software, namely Color Scale a Map. Companies based around the world, in several regions or cities need centralized information. Data on their activity must be collected and analyzed in one place to draw relevant conclusions. Tableau Software offers users the ability to centralize the volumes of data collected from each workplace of organizations and analyze them together or separately depending on the regions.

How to Colour Scale a Map using Set Actions

Colour Scale feature helps end users to structure business data and information and highlight it according to the region they belong to. In other words, whether we are talking about profit, sales, expenses, or other parameters, all of these are analyzed globally or structured, considering the region from which they come.

The advantage of Colour Scale feature is that it allows users to select multiple locations on the map. For example, using Colour Scale we will be able to explore the data of our organization in the Eastern area of the map on which they are found. Another characteristic of Colour Scale feature is the use of colors. These have the role of highlighting the distribution of our results in the areas where the company operates. Therefore, users will be able to view the most profitable areas on the map, as well as those with lower revenues.

Colour Scale colors the areas on the map according to the analyzed measures and the calculated fields created. The higher their value, the more intense the color will be. Depending on our selection, Colour Scale will highlight and color only the selected areas.

Next, we will use the database offered by Tableau, namely Superstore and we will analyze the map of Europe according to sales using the Colour Scale and Set Actions.

Step 1: Connect to data

→ In Tableau Desktop, connect to Superstore sample data provided by  Tableau.

Step 2: Create the visualization

→ Create a new set called State Set..

→ Create a new field called Colour Selected State

IF [State Set] THEN [Sales] END

→ Double-click on State.

→ Drag Colour Selected State on Color.

→ Create a Change Set Values called Set State.. Enter the Worksheet menu, select Action and click on Add Action

By Eduard Arhire

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