Scatter charts are an important tool in statistics that help to identify a possible relationship between two variables. They are particularly useful in visualizing sales and financial data. If you have data that you want to display on a scatter chart in Excel 2013, this guide will show you how.
First, enter your data into two columns. For example, you could use months as numbers in column A and your sales totals in column B. Select all of your data and click on the Insert tab. Then click the Insert Scatter icon. You will be given a few options to choose from, but for this tutorial, we will use a plain scatter chart.
Once your chart is selected, you will see the Design and Format tabs on the toolbar. You can select a quick layout, such as adding a linear regression line. This line will give you an idea of where the sales are going in the future. You can also add an R-squared correlation coefficient, which tells you how closely your data fits the line. The maximum value for correlation is 1, so if your result is close to 1, there is a good line of fit for your data.
Under Chart Styles, you can change how your chart looks by hovering over different options. On the Format tab, you can change the formatting of different chart elements, such as the color of the trendline. You can also change the type of line to better fit your data. For example, if you have data that looks more exponential than linear, you can change the line to an exponential one.
Aside from formatting options, you can also add comments to your chart. To do this, insert a shape and click the down arrow. Choose the arrow and make a note about any important points. You can also add text boxes to your chart to explain any anomalies or trends.
In conclusion, scatter charts are an important tool in statistics and Excel 2013 makes it easy to create them. With just a few clicks, you can display your data in a way that helps you better understand any relationships that may exist. For more tips and videos on Excel and statistics, visit StatisticsHowTo.com.