How to Visualize Data With Dot Plot Maker in Google Sheets?

A Dot Plot is one of the most insightful and easy-to-read charts you can use to highlight clusters, trends, and outliers in your business data.

So, you can use this chart to establish the general trends of key metrics and outliers (if any). Besides, this chart is incredibly easy to read and understand, even for less technical audiences.

Popular data visualization tools, such as Google Sheets, lack this chart. This means you need a Dot Plot generator to access the cutting-edge chart.

How?

Actually, you don’t have to do away with Google Sheets because there’s a way to supercharge it with third-party tools. As if that’s not enough, you’ll later discover how to leverage third-party tools to visualize your data with Dot Plot Diagram.

This blog will walk you through getting started with the chart and the recommended Dot Plot Maker to use for your data stories.

You don’t want to miss the rest of the blog.

Table of Contents:

1. What is a Dot Plot?
2. Benefits of a Dot Plot
3. Types of Dot Plot Charts
4. How to Get Started with a Dot Plot Generator
5. How to Create Dot Plot Chart in Google Sheets
6. Dot Plot Chart Example:
7. How to Edit Chart Dot Chart with ChartExpo?

How to Get Started with Dot Plot Makers in Your Data Stories?

Before diving into how to get started with Dot Plot makers: let’s explore why your business needs a data visualization strategy.

So why is Data Visualization Important?

You’ll agree when we say the importance of visual storytelling is more significant than ever as we’re confronted with continuously expanding data volumes.

Research shows that we interpret visual content 60,000 times faster than texts and numbers. Besides, our perceptual processes are more engaged by interactive, visual metaphors than words.

Essentially, our engagement levels shoot through the roof when images are used to convey a point in a story or content.

Charts, graphs, and maps convey information faster than tables. Yes, you read that right. Besides, they’re in-line with an old saying that goes “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

Data visualization saves you time and effort, especially in extracting insights from bulky data. More so, it empowers you to make data-backed strategic decisions. With a sound data visualization strategy, you can easily distill signals from noise without wasting your valuable time.

One of the insightful and easy-to-interpret charts you need to try this 2021 is a Dot Plot.

What is a Dot Plot?

Definition: A Dot Plot (also known as a Strip Plot or Dot Chart) consists of data points plotted as dots on a graph.

Use this chart to uncover critical insights, such as trends and clusters in your business data. The most famous Dot Plot example is the Federal Reserve’s projections for interest rates, published each quarter of the financial year.

A Dot Plot shares great similarities with a histogram. How?

This chart displays the number of data points that fall into each category or value on the axis, thus showing the distribution variables in your data.

Furthermore, a Dot Plot groups vital metrics in your data in dots, which you can label easily. This gives a visual depiction of the data distribution, similar to a histogram or probability distribution function. With this chart, you can easily detect macro insights, such as the central tendency, dispersion, skewness, and data modality.

Dots in this chart are organized along one axis to show the range of key data points with the help of a second axis (which shows the count in each group). These dots (in a Dot Plot maker) can be stacked vertically or horizontally, especially if your goal is to compare crucial metrics.

The difference between a Line Chart and a Dot Plot is that in the latter, dots are not connected via a curve or a line.

Benefits of a Dot Plot

Before we delve into how to get started with a Dot Plot generator, let’s explore the benefits of this chart.

Compared to more traditional charts, such as Bar Graphs, Dot Plots use less ink and space. And this means chances of clutter obscuring key insights are non-existent in this chart.

It gets better.

A Dot Plot provides you with the freedom to work with a non-zero axis, unlike typical charts, such as Columns and Line Charts.

That said, Dot Plot Diagrams are not as familiar as your typical go-to charts and graphs.

This is a concrete reason why you need to give this chart a try before 2021 bows out. Why?

Like we said earlier, A Dot Plot falls in the category of the easiest-to-interpret charts. So you need a Dot Plot maker because Google Sheets lacks this chart.

Keep reading to discover the Dot Plot generator we recommend to our readers and clients.

Types of Dot Plot Charts

This chart comes in 2 key variants, namely:

• Cleveland Dot Plot
• Wilkinson Dot Plot

Let’s check them out in great detail (below):

• Cleveland Dot Plot

Visualization Source: ChartExpo

The Cleveland variant can visualize both continuous and categorical data types. Besides, it shares similarities with a Bar Chart.

But, unlike a Bar Chart which uses length, this chart uses dots’ position to relay insights. This chart is attributed to William S. Cleveland, who was the pioneer of the concept of the Continuous Variables in his book, “Elements of Graphing Data.”

Use a Cleveland Dot Plot if your goal is to track multiple variables because it does not require the axis to start at zero.

To visualize your data with this advanced chart, you need a Dot Plot, which we’ll discuss at great length in the coming section.

You don’t want to miss the coming sections.

• Wilkinson Dot Plot

Visualization Source: ChartExpo

The Dot Plot variant (above) displays data insights just like a histogram.

The birth of this chart is attributed to Leland Wilkinson, a legendary data visualization expert. To visualize your data with the Wilkinson Dot Plot, which we’ll discuss at great length later (in the coming sections).

How to Get Started with a Dot Plot Generator

Google Sheets is one of the most used tools for visualizing data because it’s free and easy to use.

A Dot Plot Chart does not exist in Google Sheets chart library. But, this does not mean you should ditch this freemium data visualization tool. Did you know you can supercharge your Google Sheets with third-party add-ons?

Yes, you can increase the functionality of your tool and access advanced charts, such as a Dot Plot with third-party applications (also known as add-ons).

The add-on we recommend you to use is ChartExpo. Use this tool to supercharge your Google Sheets to create irresistible and highly insightful charts.

So what is ChartExpo?

We recommend this tool ChartExpo because it’s super easy to use.

You don’t need to take programming or coding night-classes just to extract insights from your data. ChartExpo is more of a ‘drag-and-drop tool,’ which means you’ll only need to scroll your mouse and fill in respective metrics and dimensions in your data.

More so, this premium Dot Plot comes with a 7-day free trial period.

ChartExpo empowers you to visualize diverse data types, such as sales and marketing data, annual reports, monthly reports, office productivity data, etc.

The crown jewel benefit of this tool is that it produces charts that are easy to read and interpret. And, it allows you to save charts in the world’s most recognized formats, namely PNG and JPG.

ChartExpo comes loaded with 50-plus charts, including Dot Plot, among others.

How to Create Dot Plot Chart in Google Sheets

To get started with our Dot Plot Generator, follow the easy steps below:

• Open your Google Sheets application.
• Open the worksheet and click the Add-ons menu button.
• Once the ChartExpo-Best Data Visualization Tool drop-down menu shows, click the Open button.
• If you don’t have this add-on installed yet, you can get ChartExpo for Google Sheets add-on. Once it is installed it will appear in your Add-ons or Extension Menu on the top bar.

You may find ChartExpo in Add-on menu.

• Click the Create New Chart button.

• Now you will see list of charts provided by ChartExpo. You can click on Category button on right top.

• You’ll see 6 main categories of spreadsheet charts and graphs. Each category has its own list of charts. Here we will see Dot Plot Maker in General Analysis Charts.

Dot Plot Chart Example:

Let’s go through an example below to get you started with Dot Plots in ChartExpo (our premier Dot Plot generator tool).

We’ll use the table below for our scenario.

Hours of Day	Visitors
9	7
10	10
11	7
12	10
13	9
14	9
15	10
16	7
17	8
18	9
19	7
20	9
21	9

• To visualize your data with a Dot Plot, click the General Analysis Charts button and then scroll down.

• Fill in your metrics and dimensions. In our example, we only have two metrics: hours of the day and visitors count. There’s no dimensional variable in our data.

• Complete the task (above) using the Dot Plot maker by clicking the Create Chart button.

How to Edit Chart Dot Chart with ChartExpo?

• Once you will click on Edit Chat button, pencil (edit) icons will appear on the section which can provide you facility to change the properties.
• To add a grid line in the visitors axis in your Dot Plot, click pen-like icons.
• Once the Axis Left Properties window shows, click the Grid Lines button.

• To add a grid line in the hours of the day axis, follow the same steps as above.
• Remember to click the Apply All button, as shown below.

• To change your chart title using the Dot Plot maker (ChartExpo), follow the simple instructions below:
• Click the Edit button and then click the pen-like icon near the title placeholder.

• Once the Chart Header Top Properties window pops up, click the Line 1 button and fill in the title.
• Then, click the Show button and toggle the switch to the right-hand side.

To change the type of Dot Plot to use in our Dot Plot generator (ChartExpo), follow the simple instructions below:

• Click the Chart Settings button in the top-right section of the ChartExpo user interface (UI).
• Once the Chart Settings window shows up, click the Chart Type button to access the drop-down menu with Cleveland and Wilkinson Dot Plot variants.
• Select the Dot Plot you prefer and click the Save button to protect all changes made to the chart.

• You have an option to export your Dot Plot in JPEG and PNG formats.
• Check out the final Dot Plot Chart (below).

Insights

The number of visitors is exceptionally high during the 10^th, 12^th, and 15^th hours of the day. And, it’s lower during the 9^th, 11^th, 16^th, and 19^th hours of the day.

The Dot Plot generator in ChartExpo is easy to use and produces simple-to-interpret charts for your target audience.

FAQs:

What Is the Difference Between a Dot Plot and a Line Chart?

A Dot Plot and a Line Chart share great similarities because they both use dots to display insights.

But, they also have massive differences. For instance, dots in a Dot Plot are ‘free-standing” and not connected with a line or a graph. Conversely, dots in a Line Chart are interconnected.

What is a Dot Plot used for?

Use a Dot Plot to extract trends insights into your data.

Dot plots are among the category of charts that are amazingly easy to read and understand. Besides, they’re best suited for small to moderate-sized data sets. Use a Dot Plot maker, such as ChartExpo, to access this chart.

Wrap Up

As we said, you can use a Dot Plot to uncover critical insights, such as trends and clusters in your business data. One of the most significant advantages of this chart is it provides you with the freedom to work with a non-zero axis, unlike typical charts, such as Columns and Line Charts.

A Dot Chart comes in 2 key variants, namely:

• Cleveland Dot Plot
• Wilkinson Dot Plot

Visualizing your business data using this chart should never stress you or consume your valuable time.

More so, if you’ve outgrown the basic spreadsheet charts offered by Google Sheets, try out Dot Plot makers, such as ChartExpo.

Why?

ChartExpo is incredibly easy to use and produces amazingly insightful charts. Furthermore, it has over 50-plus advanced charts. You can easily export your Dot Plot into globally recognized formats: JPEG and PNG.

Try the Dot Plot generator today to get unlimited access to high-level insights from your complex and bulky data set.