Omniscope offers powerful ways to visualise data - and with the introduction of custom measure colouring, you now have precise control over how colours represent data at the measure level inside views.

In this article, we'll explore how to use this feature with a demo dataset, and walk through examples using each colour mode: Fit to data, Fixed and Category.

Example Dataset

For this article, we will use a fictional call centre dataset, where each record represents a call. The dataset includes fields such as:

• Agent name. The name of the agent taking the call.
• Hold Time. The amount of time customers are on hold.
• Call Duration. The total time on the call.
• Customer Satisfaction Rating (CSAT). A score of 1-5, given by the customer at the end of the call.

The dashboard created with this dataset can be viewed here:

https://public.omniscope.me/Public/Call+Center+Analysis/Call+center+dashboard.iox/r/Report/

The data is attached to this article.

Overview

By default, measure colours are determined by the field settings and report styles:

To enable custom measure colouring:

1. Configure the colour measure, as normal.
2. In the measure options, tick Override value colour options.
3. Choose one of the three modes:
   • Fit to data
   • Fixed
   • Category

Fit to data colouring

In this example, we will create a Bar view, split by Hold Time with Sentiment Score (mean) as the measure.

The sentiment score is derived from text analysis of call transcripts and comments, and ranges from 0 (negative) to 100 (positive). 

In the image below we can see that the sentiment decreases as hold time increases - an indication of caller frustration.

Next we will colour bars by Hold Time, to add visual context.

The colour range (blue -> orange) is derived from the report styles. 

We now open the colour measure options and click Override value colour options, select Fit to data and configure:

• Dark green -> Minimum value
• Red -> Maximum value

We could also specify a midpoint colour for smoother gradient transitions. 

The view should update immediately after this change with the new colour scheme. If you are showing a colour key, the changes will also be reflected here.

Fixed colouring

Next, we will switch to the Fixed colour mode. 

Here, we define specific thresholds for visual clarity. After switching, add the following fixed value/colours:

• Green for hold times up to 3 minutes.
• Red for waits of 5 minutes.

Values in between will be smoothly transitioned.

Category colouring

The demonstrate the Category colour mode we will create another Bar view, split by Department.

We want to colour bars based on the average CSAT rating, but using categorical values instead of raw values (1-5). To do this we will add a formula measure and configure the following formula:

IF(
  SUBSET_MEAN([Customer CSAT Rating]) >= 4, "Good",
  SUBSET_MEAN([Customer CSAT Rating]) >= 3, "Neutral",
  "Poor"
)

This formula will group CSAT ratings as:

• Good (4+)
• Neutral (3)
• Poor (below 3)

After configuring the formula, open the colour measure options and tick Override value colour options, then select the Category colour mode and add the following category colours/values:

• Green -> Good
• Yellow -> Neutral
• Red -> Poor

This is a useful measure, so we might want to save this as a named measure, to allow it to be re-used elsewhere in the report. Colour options can be overridden in named measures and measure choices in the same way they can be overridden inside a view.

Pivot view: Relative measure colouring

The Pivot view now supports relative measure colouring, allowing each measure to use it's own colour scale instead of sharing a single gradient.

To demonstrate, add a new Pivot view, pane-y by Department and pane-x by measures. Configure the following measures:

1. Hold Time (mean)
2. Call Duration (mean)
3. CSAT (mean)

Next, add a new Cell colour measure and select (Multi measures: value).

By default, the colouring spans all cells using a shared colour scale. This isn't ideal when showing different measures with different value ranges. Click the Colour gradient type option and select Relative to measure.

Each cell will now be coloured based on the scale in it's associated measure.

You can choose to override the colouring for each measure individually, for example:

• Hold Time -> white to orange
• Call Duration -> white to blue
• CSAT -> white to green

Summary

Custom measure colouring gives you granular control over how data is represented visually inside your views, enhancing clarity and insight.

Explore it in your own reports, and let us know how you get on!