Here's an interesting one - Google has announced a new data visualization tool to help content creators showcase insights in a new way.
As you can see, the new tool enables you to create a GIF using any data points - Google suggests you can use Google Trends data, but the actual input is manual, so you can use any data you want.
You fill in the relevant fields, select the colors for each point, enter in a title, then press 'Launch Comparisons' and you'll get a sample of your new GIF, like this.
The GIF option provides you with an interesting way to present relevant data - you have to experiment with it a bit to get it exactly how you'd like (note the full title is cut off in the Twitter listing in my example), but it's an interesting option, especially for those looking for new ways to highlight such insights.
As you may have noticed, content creators love to add in Google Trends data to underpin their points - though it can sometimes lead to come misleading stats.
Here's an example (as highlighted by Danny Page in his excellent Medium post on the subject), when the Brexit vote was completed, and the subsequent confusion was in full swing, Google Trends published this tweet:
"What is the EU?" is the second top UK question on the EU since the #EURefResults were officially announced pic.twitter.com/1q4VAX3qcm
- GoogleTrends (@GoogleTrends) June 24, 2016
Which lead to this article in The Washington Post.
But as Page points out, their definition of 'frantic' may not quite be accurate - when you put that increased search volume in context, matched against other trends, you can see that while the volume had increased, it wasn't getting massive attention.
As such, it's important to put the data in context - but when used well, Google Trends can provide some great visualizations and data accompaniments, which is what Google's looking to help boost with their new data tool.
GIFs can also help boost content engagement - on Twitter, for example, Tweets with GIFs generate 6X more engagement than basic text updates.
It's a small addition, sure, but an interesting one - an easy to use data visualization tools which you can use in your content.