Chapter 8.  Deeper Analysis – Trends, Clustering, Distributions, and Forecasting

Sometimes, quick data visualization needs a slightly deeper analysis. For example, a simple scatterplot can reveal outliers and correlation of values. But often you want to understand the distribution. A simple time series helps you see the rise and fall of a measure over time. But many times you want to see the trend or make predictions of future values.

Tableau enables you to quickly enhance your data visualizations with statistical analysis. Built-in features such as trending, clustering, distributions, and forecasting, allow you to quickly add value to your visual analysis. Additionally, Tableau integrates with R, an extensive statistical platform that opens up endless options for statistical analysis of your data. This chapter will cover the built-in statistical models and analysis.

This chapter will cover the following topics:

• Trending

• Clustering

• Distributions

• Forecasting

We'll take a look at these concepts...