Visual components are used in comparison infographics to compare two or more objects, such as ideas or products. They may be a useful tool for assisting individuals in the comprehension of difficult facts and making reasonable choices. By comparing a company’s operations to other businesses’, benchmarking infographics can help find areas for growth. Benchmark graphs illustrate how various groups, like nations or businesses, perform against one another by comparing statistics. For example in the image shown below, benchmark comparisons assist in evaluating the performance and quality of products, goods, and industries as well. As shown below through a series of procedures and tests, you can find out if your system is operating at peak efficiency or whether there are issues that need to be fixed.

Infographics may be used in a variety of ways to display comparisons to a benchmark. Comparison infographics are frequently used by marketers when comparing a competitor’s product against their own. A great way to compare two items directly is by using comparison infographics. Utilizing a range of charts while choosing the appropriate chart and including visual features are some strategies for using infographics to display comparisons to a benchmark. To illustrate how a topic performs when compared to several groups, use a scatter plot with a solid benchmark line, a stacked bar chart, or a pie chart to compare portions of a whole. An infographic may display several kinds of information using a variety of chart formats. A table can be used to arrange information so that readers can look it up, or a numbered list can be used to indicate rank or order. Infographics demonstrate relationships between data, procedures, or individuals through the use of visual components.

Benchmarks in graphs provide a reference point, allowing viewers to quickly assess how data compares to a standard goal or historical average. They help to contextualize values, which highlights trends or performance gaps. By including benchmarks in graphs, data visualizations become more informative, making it easier to interpret progress, identify outliers, and support information assessment at a glance.

The graph below depicts the change over time of air conditioner use within residential buildings. By constructing this informative graphic using bars, the data can easily be assessed even by those who are not adept at data analysis. The topmost bar shows the benchmark for central air, room air, and no air conditioning while the bars below show a breakdown of each category in 10 year increments. The use of stacked row bars and a clearly separated benchmark lend to an organized, easy to read graphic that allows viewers to clearly determine the difference of each category over time. By visiting this article, you can read more about the changes in air conditioner use over time.

The next graph, found below, shows a comparison of countries (with populations over one million) and their replacement fertility rates. While there are only a few markers that have labels attached to them, population size is indicated by the size of the circle used to represent the country. This is not only a visually pleasing detail in this graph, but it is a simple and effective way to offer knowledge to the viewer without overcomplicating the graph. In this graph, the benchmark is displayed in the form of a dashed line with a label. This shows a clear indication of which countries fall above or below the benchmark for replacement fertility rate. Additionally, the coloration of the country markers help to indicate which countries are below the benchmark, even if it appears that they are touching it. To read more about population growth and decline, follow this link.

Another use of a line as a benchmark can be seen below in various graphs used to compare summer minimum temperatures in different cities across the United States. By utilizing vertical solid lines to show boundaries of where outlier temperatures are located, density plots are able to be used to properly display the temperature information for each city. Not only are solid vertical lines used, but temperature data from previous years are displayed as a benchmark to show the difference between summer temperatures in the 1960’s compared to 2020’s. There are additional graphs and information to compare climate change over time at this webpage.

The United States economy and stock market like many other countries is driven by forecasts and hitting those expectations also considered to be benchmarks. In addition, most economies are dependent on how other countries economies are performing as we operate primarily in a global economy where the news and events of one country directly impact other countries. Forecasts act as benchmarks for particular data news such as consumer price index (CPI), producer price index (PPI), job creation numbers and unemployment rate to name a few. This forecasts act as targets and if the news comes in above or below expectations this can create volatility in the markets.

Above is a chart of the unemployment numbers represented as percentages. Each month the forecasts are created by analysis displayed as the gold bar. The actual number is the blue bar. When major news is released it is typically released at 8:30am EST an hour before the New York Stock Exchange opens. This is important as this will influence in what happens in the market that day and how it affects long term trends. A majority of people save for retirement by investing in 401ks, IRAs, and other retirement plans and the numbers being released give you a read on the pulse of the economy. These negative reactions can create downward pressure on the markets and lead to losing money or having diminishing returns on those accounts.

Another way benchmark performances are evaluated is by comparing a particular stock versus an index fund that is similar to the underlying stock. Take a look at the chart below.

The chart above uses line graphs to compare ticker symbol UCB versus the Stoxx 600 Health Care Index. This shows that the shares of UCB has outperformed the index significantly. This largely is because of their release of a drug to treat psoriasis. This is important when managing funds and rotating different investments to receive the highest return possible.

Benchmark analysis is a critical component to not only our economy but the global economy. By being able to accurately evaluate the data it can help make informed decisions. There are different ways to display benchmarks but all are important when understanding the data and how to evaluate it.