Data visualization, it’s a term we hear a lot in Silicon Valley and in a world where digital technology has been king for the last two decades. Often, it just doesn’t apply to us… or so we think! Data is abundant, but how do we use it? Is it just collected and stored in these huge invisible… shall we say Clouds? Once the term is broken down and the numbers that are of interest to attendees are pulled out, data being visualized can create an amazing event experience before, during, or even after events.
Data visualization has many use cases, it can really change the game in events. Once the data is mined and then visualized it can be used as digestible data that is mapped out. Planning is easier, it can be used as creative inspiration for experiences such as noticing patterns that attendees organically create and applying activity according to natural patterns. The data can easily be transferred from two-dimensional information to a three-dimensional art installation to is representative of the people. There are some great examples of how to tell a story with data that feel natural and applicable by points of interest.
The root intention to create data visualization is to satisfy natural curiosity, a need to have more understanding of why attendees do what they do and how to create more meaningful experiences. Visualizing data allows for a drill down on something that happens naturally and organically and to bring more knowledge and transparency to those natural patterns as opposed to forcing attendees into programming that doesn’t feel organic and expecting them to have meaningful takeaways from forced learning and forced experiences. The visualization of data unlocks more authentic attendee experiences, much in line with the Plans mobile app, born out of a necessity to escape the digital feed and get back to doing things that feel organic and meaningful in real life.