Reference lines in Tableau - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

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

📋 Request: Your manager wants a sales dashboard that shows monthly sales with clear markers for average sales and sales targets to quickly identify performance.

📊 Data: You have monthly sales data for the current year, including Month, Sales Amount, and Sales Target columns.

🎯 Deliverable: Create a line chart showing monthly sales with reference lines for average sales and sales target.

Sample Data

Month	Sales Amount	Sales Target
January	12000	15000
February	14000	15000
March	13000	15000
April	16000	15000
May	17000	15000
June	15000	15000
July	18000	15000
August	19000	15000
September	20000	15000
October	21000	15000
November	22000	15000
December	23000	15000

1

Step 1: Connect your Tableau workbook to the sales data source containing Month, Sales Amount, and Sales Target.

No formula needed; just connect the data source.

Expected Result

Data source is connected and visible in Tableau.

2

Step 2: Create a line chart with Month on the Columns shelf and SUM(Sales Amount) on the Rows shelf.

Drag 'Month' to Columns, drag 'Sales Amount' to Rows, and set aggregation to SUM.

Expected Result

Line chart showing total sales for each month.

3

Step 3: Add a reference line for average sales across all months.

Right-click on the Y-axis, select 'Add Reference Line', choose 'Per Table', set value to 'Average' of SUM(Sales Amount), label it 'Average Sales', and set line style to dashed.

Expected Result

A dashed horizontal line appears at the average sales value with label 'Average Sales'.

4

Step 4: Add a reference line for the sales target value.

Right-click on the Y-axis, select 'Add Reference Line', choose 'Per Table', set value to a constant 15000 (the sales target), label it 'Sales Target', and set line style to solid red.

Expected Result

A solid red horizontal line appears at 15000 with label 'Sales Target'.

5

Step 5: Format the chart for clarity: add axis titles, adjust colors, and ensure labels are readable.

Set Y-axis title to 'Sales Amount', X-axis title to 'Month', use distinct colors for the line and reference lines, and increase font size for labels.

Expected Result

Clear, readable line chart with labeled reference lines and axis titles.

Final Result

Month ->

 25000 |                          *
       |                         *
 20000 |                    *    *    <--- Sales Amount line
       |                   *     *
 17500 |-------------------|-----|-------------------  <--- Average Sales (dashed line)
 15000 |===================|=====|-------------------  <--- Sales Target (solid red line)
       |                   |     |
 13000 |           *       |     |
       |          *        |     |
 12000 |     *             |     |
       | Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Legend:
* = Monthly Sales
--- = Average Sales (dashed)
=== = Sales Target (solid red)

✓Monthly sales generally increase over the year.

✓Sales exceeded the target from April onwards.

✓Average sales line helps quickly see which months are above or below average.

Bonus Challenge

Add dynamic reference bands showing sales performance zones: below target, between target and average, and above average.

Show Hint

Use 'Add Reference Band' feature in Tableau with ranges set between sales values and customize colors for each band.