Detail level of marks in Tableau - Dashboard Guide

Dashboard Mode - Detail level of marks

Dashboard Goal

Understand how adding detail to marks in Tableau changes the visualization and insights by showing sales data by category and sub-category.

Sample Data

Category	Sub-Category	Region	Sales
Furniture	Chairs	East	200
Furniture	Tables	West	450
Office Supplies	Paper	East	150
Office Supplies	Binders	West	300
Technology	Phones	East	500
Technology	Accessories	West	350

Dashboard Components

• KPI Card: Total Sales
  Formula: SUM([Sales])
  Result: 1950
• Bar Chart 1: Sales by Category
  Detail Level: Category only
  Bars show total sales per category:
  - Furniture: 650
  - Office Supplies: 450
  - Technology: 850
• Bar Chart 2: Sales by Category and Sub-Category
  Detail Level: Category + Sub-Category
  Bars show sales per sub-category:
  - Furniture - Chairs: 200
  - Furniture - Tables: 450
  - Office Supplies - Paper: 150
  - Office Supplies - Binders: 300
  - Technology - Phones: 500
  - Technology - Accessories: 350
• Table: Sales Detail by Region
  Columns: Category, Sub-Category, Region, Sales
  Shows all rows from sample data

Dashboard Layout

+----------------------+-----------------------------+
|      KPI Card        |      Bar Chart 1             |
|  Total Sales: 1950   |  Sales by Category          |
+----------------------+-----------------------------+
|      Bar Chart 2                         | Table |
|  Sales by Category + Sub-Category       | Sales |
|                                        | Detail|
+----------------------------------------+-------+

Interactivity

A filter on Region allows users to select East or West. When a region is selected:

• The KPI Card updates to show total sales for that region.
• Both Bar Charts update to show sales only for the selected region.
• The Sales Detail Table filters to show only rows for the selected region.

Self Check

If you add a filter for Region = East, which components update and what do they show?

• KPI Card: Shows total sales for East region (200 + 150 + 500 = 850).
• Bar Chart 1: Shows sales by category for East:
  - Furniture: 200
  - Office Supplies: 150
  - Technology: 500
• Bar Chart 2: Shows sales by category and sub-category for East:
  - Furniture - Chairs: 200
  - Office Supplies - Paper: 150
  - Technology - Phones: 500
• Sales Detail Table: Shows only rows where Region = East.

Key Result

Dashboard showing total sales and sales breakdown by category and sub-category with detail level control and region filter.