Summary

Isabelle Bittar demonstrates how to utilize Power BI's new slicer to enhance the customization and interactivity of a Market Watch dashboard, showcasing advanced features for data visualization.

Abstract

In an article by Isabelle Bittar for KI Data Science, the author delves into the capabilities of Power BI's new slicer, which was released in November 2023. Bittar illustrates the creation of a Market Watch dashboard, emphasizing the slicer's extensive customization options such as adding images, modifying callout shapes, and applying comprehensive formatting. The article provides a step-by-step guide on using the new slicer, from selecting it in the visualizations pane to fine-tuning the final design. Bittar also shares a personal case study, detailing how she leveraged these features to track selected stocks and currencies using data from Investing.com. The slicer's layout, title, font, descriptions, images, and button formatting are meticulously adjusted to match the dashboard's theme, resulting in a dynamic and visually appealing presentation of asset data over various time frames. The article concludes with an invitation for readers to engage with the author and download the report for hands-on experience.

Opinions

The author expresses excitement about the new Power BI slicer's customization options, indicating a strong endorsement of its capabilities.
Bittar believes that the new slicer's features can transform "dull data into something that’s not just informative but also pretty cool to look at," suggesting a positive impact on data presentation and user engagement.
The author encourages readers to experiment with the new slicer features, implying that these tools can be beneficial for both data enthusiasts and those seeking to improve their data visualization skills.
By providing a downloadable report and inviting comments, Bittar shows a commitment to community engagement and continuous learning within the Power BI user base.

How To Use Power BI’s New Slicer: Building a Market Watch Dashboard

Unlocking Enhanced Customization and Interactivity for Dynamic Data Analysis

PBIX file available for download at the end of this article.

Introduction

The new Power BI slicer became available in November 2023 and I tested it out in the following Market Watch section of a dashboard I am working on. I was really excited by all the customization options and wanted to start experimenting.

The big difference with the new slicer (compared to the old one), are all these customization options. Here are some of the highlights from my experimentation. You can:

Add images and descriptions to callout values.
Modify the callout values’ shapes.
Specify the desired layout (number of rows and columns)
Apply all the formatting options of buttons to the slicers (e.g.: specify background, border and font colors to values depending on their State: Default, Hover, Press and Selected).

In this article, I will share how I leveraged these features to build this slicer of the Market Watch dashboard.

Watch List Leveraging Power BI’s New Slicer

Case Study: Market Watch Dashboard

I am developing a dashboard using Investing.com data to track selected stocks and currencies. This ‘Market Watch’ section offers a dynamic view of assets over different time frames (1 week, 1 month, 6 months, 1 year) and detailed asset information. The dashboard integrates two slicers: one for time periods and another for watch list assets, both utilizing the new Power BI slicer.

How to Use Power BI’s New Slicer

Power BI’s new slicer is available on the visualizations pane. You can select it and drag the fields you wish to use (like with the old slicer).

For this slicer, I used the Abbr column from the dimension table Key created in Excel to help navigate the transaction data exported from Investing.Com. You can view the detailed extracts in the folder available for download at the end of this article.

The Image column was generated using public web links to images (with no backgrounds) that represented each asset. To be able to use the image information, it is important that the Data category of this column be Image URL

Changing Data Category to Image URL in Power BI

Here was the starting point of the slicer before applying the different formatting options:

Slicer Starting Point Before Applying Formatting Options

Below are the steps that were taken to achieve the final version of the formatted slicer.

1. Layout Adjustment

I started by setting the slicer to display 6 rows and 1 column.

2. Title Removal

I turned Off the title in the General tab for a cleaner look.

3. Changing the Callout Values’ Font

I changed the callout values’ font style to Segeo UI Semibold and applied size 10.

4. Adding the Callout Values’ Description

I created the following DAX measure called Description that I added to the callout values’ Label. This measure renders each asset’s full name and their description.

Description = SELECTEDVALUE('Key'[Full Name]) & " - " & SELECTEDVALUE('Key'[Description])

To assign in to the callout values’ Label , we first need to turn it On and add it to the Field value.

5. Incorporating Images

Under Image, I added the Image column from the Key table and made the following changes to the available options:

Changed the Image fit to Normal
Changed the Position to Left
Decreased the Image area size to 10%
Decreased the Space between image and callout to 10 px
Switched Off the Ignore padding option

Adding and Formatting Images to Power BI’s New Slicer

6. Formatting the Button Options

Finally, for the slicer to fit the theme of my dashboard, I made these last changes under the Default Stateof the Button tab.

Turned Off the Border
Changed the Fill Color to Black (#000000)

Formatting the Button Options of Power BI’s New Slicer

Conclusion

So, there you have it! Playing around with Power BI’s new slicer has been a game-changer for my Market Watch dashboard. It’s amazing how a few tweaks in formatting can turn dull data into something that’s not just informative but also pretty cool to look at.

Whether you’re a data geek like me or just someone trying to make sense of all those numbers, these new features are a total win. They say the devil is in the details, and in this case, those details are what make your dashboard stand out. So go ahead, give these tricks a try on your own dashboard and watch the magic happen. Happy slicing!

You can download my report with all visuals and formatting as displayed in the cover picture of this article here.

Engage with Me

What are your experiences with Power BI’s new slicer? Do you have tips or challenges to share? Join the conversation in the comments below.

Stay Tuned

Make sure to follow me on Medium to access all my articles on advanced techniques in Power BI visualization.

In the meantime, here are other articles you might enjoy on data visualization in Power BI.

Unlock the Power of Data: Crafting Advanced KPI Cards in Power BI

Transforming Data into Stories: Crafting Visually Engaging and Insightful Dashboards

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