Area charts in Tableau - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

👤 Your Role: You are a sales analyst at a retail company.

📋 Request: Your manager wants to see how monthly sales revenue changes over the past year to identify trends and seasonal patterns.

📊 Data: You have a dataset with monthly sales revenue for the last 12 months, including columns for Month and Sales Revenue.

🎯 Deliverable: Create an area chart in Tableau that shows monthly sales revenue over time, highlighting trends clearly.

Sample Data

Month	Sales Revenue
Jan	12000
Feb	15000
Mar	13000
Apr	17000
May	16000
Jun	18000
Jul	20000
Aug	22000
Sep	21000
Oct	23000
Nov	25000
Dec	27000

1

Step 1: Open Tableau and connect to the sales data source containing Month and Sales Revenue columns.

No formula needed; just connect the data source.

Expected Result

Data is loaded and visible in Tableau's Data pane.

2

Step 2: Drag the 'Month' field to the Columns shelf to set the horizontal axis.

Columns shelf: Month

Expected Result

Months appear in order along the horizontal axis.

3

Step 3: Drag the 'Sales Revenue' field to the Rows shelf to set the vertical axis.

Rows shelf: Sales Revenue (SUM aggregation)

Expected Result

Vertical axis shows sales revenue values; a line chart appears by default.

4

Step 4: Change the mark type from 'Automatic' or 'Line' to 'Area' in the Marks card.

Marks card: Select 'Area' from the dropdown menu.

Expected Result

The chart changes to an area chart showing filled area under the sales revenue line.

5

Step 5: Format the chart for clarity: add axis titles, adjust colors for good contrast, and ensure month order is chronological.

Use Format pane to add titles and adjust colors; verify Month field is sorted by date order.

Expected Result

Chart is clear, easy to read, with months in correct order and visually appealing colors.

6

Step 6: Add tooltips to show exact sales revenue when hovering over each month.

Ensure Tooltip is enabled and shows SUM(Sales Revenue).

Expected Result

Hovering over the area chart displays the exact sales revenue for that month.

Final Result

Month ->
Jan  Feb  Mar  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec
|     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
|     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
|     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
|     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|  Sales Revenue

Area chart shows sales revenue increasing from Jan to Dec with some fluctuations.

✓Sales revenue generally increases over the year, peaking in December.

✓There is a noticeable dip in March and May compared to surrounding months.

✓The area chart visually highlights the growth trend and seasonal dips clearly.

Bonus Challenge

Add a comparison area chart showing last year's monthly sales revenue alongside this year's data.

Show Hint

Use a dual-axis area chart or create a combined field with Year and Month to differentiate the two years.