This is a quick, fun and elegant way to make info-graphics in Excel. Learn how to use shape fill technique for charts in MS Excel to create engaging output. You will learn how to make something like this:
How to create such info-graphic charts in Excel?
The process for creating these charts is very simple. I made 8 minute video explaining the process for making info-graphic charts in Excel. Watch it below or read on for step-by-step tutorial.
Step-by-Step tutorial – Making such charts:
Step 1: Setup your data
Let’s say you have the data as shown above. To create the house styled chart, simply add 3 columns. We can keep a constant value for Base and Top series and calculate floors by =Value-Base-Top formula.
Step 2: Create regular column chart
This is simple. Just select the three columns we just calculated and insert a stacked column chart. You will get this:
Step 3: Fill it up with shapes
Now go ahead and import (or draw) shapes for top, floors and bottom part of the house.
Once you have three images / shapes, select each image, press CTRL+C to copy it and select the corresponding chart element and press CTRL+V to fill it up.
You will get this:
Step 4: Stack the shape fill
Whenever you apply shape fill to charts, Excel will automatically stretch the image. But we need to stack it. Select the chart series and go to format options (Ctrl+1).
Here, change the fill option from “Stretch” to “Stack and Scale with” and specify a number that suits your images. For the house example, we can use 100 (as each floor would be same height as the bottom or top floors).
Step 5: There is no step 5. You are done!
That is it. Our chart is ready. Slap an interesting title and caption you are good to go.
More examples:
Here are two more examples of this technique.
Download sample info-graphics in Excel workbook
Please click here to download sample workbook with info-graphic style charts in Excel. You can examine all the steps, data, formulas and charts in the file. Feel free to customize or reuse the concept for your work.
More Excel Charting Tips
If you like this tip, you will love these ideas too.
Do you like shape-fill technique? Share your feedback
Do you like this technique? I love it, but in moderation. Such info-graphic style charts can engage your audience and present data creatively. That said, if you use wrong shapes or symbols, it can quickly become annoying.
What about you? Do you like this idea? Please share your feedback in comments.
13 Responses to “Data Validation using an Unsorted column with Duplicate Entries as a Source List”
Pivot Table will involve manual intervention; hence I prefer to use the 'countif remove duplicate trick' along with 'text sorting formula trick; then using the offset with len to name the final range for validation.
if using the pivot table, set the sort to Ascending, so the list in the validation cell comes back alphabetically.
Hui: Brillant neat idea.
Vipul: I am intrigued by what you are saying. Please is it possible to show us how it can be done, because as u said Hui's method requires user intervention.
Thks to PHD and all
K
Table names dont work directly inside Data validation.
You will have to define a name and point it to the table name and then use the name inside validation
Eg MyClient : Refers to :=Table1[Client]
And then in the list validation say = MyClient
Kieranz,
Pls download the sample here http://cid-e98339d969073094.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/data-validation-unsorted-list-example.xls
Off course there are many other ways of doing the same and integrating the formulae in multiple columns into one.
Pls refer to column FGHI in that file. Cell G4 is where my validation is.
Vipul:
Many thks, will study it latter.
Rgds
K
[...] to chandoo for the idea of getting unique list using Pivot tables. What we do is that create a pivot table [...]
@Vipul:
Thanks, that was awesome! 🙂
@Playercharlie Happy to hear that 🙂
Great contribution, Hui. Solved a problem of many years!
Thanks to you, A LOT
Hi Hui,
Greeting
hope you are doing well.
I'm interested to send you a private vba excel file which i need to show detail of pivot in new workbook instead of showing in same workbook as new sheet.
Please contact me on muhammed.ye@gmail.com
Best Regards