Creating a dashboard in Tableau - Practice Exercises

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ visualization

intermediate

Choosing the Right Chart Type for Sales Data

You have monthly sales data for different product categories. You want to create a dashboard that clearly shows sales trends over time and compares categories. Which chart type should you use?

A A line chart to show sales trends over time for each category.

B A pie chart to show the proportion of sales for each month.

C A scatter plot to show sales amounts against product prices.

D A bar chart showing total sales per product category without time.

💡 Hint

Think about how to show changes over time clearly.

A line chart is best to show trends over time for multiple categories because it connects data points in order and allows easy comparison.

❓ dax_lod_result

intermediate

Calculating Total Sales per Region with Filters

In Tableau, you want to calculate total sales per region but only for the current year. Which calculated field expression will give the correct total sales filtered by the current year?

A SUM(IF YEAR([Order Date]) = YEAR(TODAY()) THEN [Sales] END)

B SUM([Sales]) WHERE YEAR([Order Date]) = YEAR(TODAY())

C IF YEAR([Order Date]) = YEAR(TODAY()) THEN SUM([Sales]) END

D SUM(IF YEAR([Order Date]) = YEAR(TODAY()) THEN [Sales] ELSE 0 END)

💡 Hint

Remember how to use conditional aggregation in Tableau calculated fields.

Option A correctly sums sales only when the order year matches the current year. Option A includes an unnecessary ELSE 0, C tries to sum inside an IF which is incorrect, and D uses invalid WHERE syntax.

❓ data_modeling

advanced

Optimizing Data Source for Dashboard Performance

You have a large dataset with sales, customers, and products tables. Your dashboard is slow to load. What is the best data modeling approach to improve performance in Tableau?

A Import only the sales table and filter data in Tableau dashboard filters.

B Use a star schema with fact and dimension tables and create relationships in Tableau.

C Join all tables into one flat table with all columns before importing.

D Use multiple data sources without any joins or relationships.

💡 Hint

Think about how databases organize data for fast queries.

A star schema separates facts and dimensions, allowing Tableau to query efficiently. Flattening tables (B) can cause redundancy and slow performance. Multiple sources without joins (C) won't combine data properly. Importing only sales (A) loses context.

🎯 Scenario

advanced

Designing a Dashboard for Mobile and Desktop

You need to create a dashboard that works well on both desktop and mobile devices. What is the best design practice to ensure usability on both?

A Design only for desktop and let users zoom or scroll on mobile devices.

B Design a single dashboard with many small charts to fit all data on one screen.

C Create two separate dashboards optimized for desktop and mobile and switch based on device.

D Use large fonts and simple layouts that adapt to screen size with Tableau device designer.

💡 Hint

Think about responsive design and user experience.

Option D uses Tableau's device designer to create adaptable layouts with readable fonts and simple visuals, improving usability on all devices. Option D is possible but doubles work. B causes clutter. D hurts mobile experience.

🔧 Formula Fix

expert

Troubleshooting a Filter Not Applying Correctly

You added a filter on 'Region' to your dashboard, but selecting a region does not update the charts. What is the most likely cause?

A The dashboard has no charts connected to the 'Region' field.

B The data source is missing the 'Region' field in the tables.

C The filter is set to apply to only one worksheet, not the entire dashboard.

D The filter is set to 'Show All Values' instead of 'Only Relevant Values'.

💡 Hint

Check how filters are applied across worksheets in Tableau.

If a filter applies only to one worksheet, other charts won't update. The 'Region' field usually exists (B). Charts usually connect to 'Region' if filtered (A). 'Show All Values' affects dropdown options, not filter effect (D).