In this video we’ll learn about 3d maps in excel. This oft neglected tool has its uses, though there is actually a good reason for the neglect: it’s not a very powerful tool for data visualization. I know its bad sales copy, but there are far better options out there for visualizing maps. That said, it is available in Excel and Ready to function.
For starters, we have to realize that the 3d map tool in Excel requires addresses as formatted out in Bing Maps by Microsoft. This is something that people used to checking googlemaps or waze for directions will not find intuitive. Without the proper address, 3d maps in Excel will show our locations strewn out throughout the globe. This is double true with locations outside the US and Canada.
To properly format the addresses as 3d maps in Excel require them, we need to search them out in Bing maps. It’s a simple but tedious process of typing in our address into the search bar and manually making sure Bing Maps found the right one. With the correct address, we copy and paste the right address back to Excel. Now we are ready for our map.
3d maps in Excel works pretty much like any pivot table or Power BI component. You have a list of fields and you drop them into areas where they can fill out. Of course, the most basic area is the address area, where you can use longitude, latitude, location or any other set of coordinates or addresses to specify your location. That said, bing map addresses work the best. To specify the size and shape of our “bars” (visualizations) we need to drag our numeric values into them.
The 3d map tool in Excel can also incorporate the time dimension into our visualizations, making them animated. We can show how sales evolved over time through different locations by dragging our date field into the proper area, just like a pivot table. Excel will allow you to play a simple movie where you can see time-based changes. Of course, to get this to work, you need to have your data formatted as a normal table, with every transaction having its date recorded properly.
One of the neatest features 3d maps for excel has is the fact that you can split your map into multiple scenes. If the locations you are trying to showcase are too far apart to fit them in one screen, you can save them into multiple scenes that work the same way as slides in a power point presentation. As you shift through the scenes in your 3d map visualization, Excel will automatically reset the clock to show the time shifts.
This tool is mostly available for office 2016. If you have office 2013, you need to install Power View, or power maps for excel. As I mentioned before, its not very wieldy, and once you get past the initial wow factor, it just becomes a drag. If your audience knows where each of your geographical locations are, you’re better off just skipping out on 3d maps for excel and using vainilla charts.