What is a Text Object in Tableau?

Adding a text box to a Tableau dashboard might seem simple, but this basic feature is the key to turning a collection of charts into a clear, understandable story. The Text Object in Tableau allows you to provide context, instructions, and dynamic information that guides your audience through the data. This article will show you what a Text Object is, how to use it, and best practices for making your dashboards more effective.

What Exactly is a Tableau Text Object?

A Text Object is a fundamental dashboard component in Tableau that lets you add static or dynamic text to your visualizations. Think of it as a moveable, formattable text box that isn't tied to any single worksheet. Its purpose is to add layers of information that charts and graphs alone can't provide.

While Tableau has several ways to display text - like worksheet titles, captions, and tooltips - a Text Object offers unique flexibility. Since it's a dashboard "object," you can place it anywhere on your canvas, make it float over other elements, and format it independently. This freedom makes it perfect for a variety of uses:

• Dashboard Titles and Subtitles: Create a polished, main title for your entire dashboard.
• Explanatory Notes: Define complex metrics or explain the methodology behind your data.
• User Instructions: Guide users on how to interact with filters, parameters, or actions.
• Summary Insights: Write a short, narrative summary of the key findings in your dashboard.
• Dynamic Annotations: Display information that updates automatically based on user selections or data refreshes.

Essentially, Text Objects bridge the gap between pure data visualization and a full-fledged report, providing the narrative glue that holds your story together.

How to Add and Format a Text Object in Tableau

Getting started with Text Objects is straightforward. Let's walk through the process of adding, editing, and supercharging your text with dynamic content.

Step 1: Drag and Drop the Text Object

First, navigate to your Tableau dashboard. In the left-hand Dashboard pane, you'll see a section labeled "Objects." This is where you can find all the building blocks for your dashboard, including Horizontal/Vertical containers, Images, Web Pages, and, of course, Text.

To add a text box, simply click on the "Text" object and drag it onto your dashboard canvas. As you drag it, Tableau will show you where it will be placed, allowing you to drop it into a specific section of your dashboard layout.

• Tiled Layout: If your dashboard is tiled (the default), the Text Object will snap into place alongside your other worksheets and containers, resizing them accordingly.
• Floating Layout: You can switch your object to "Floating" either before or after dragging it onto the canvas. This allows you to place the Text Object on top of other dashboard elements, giving you precise control over its position. This is ideal for adding annotations or titles over images or maps.

Step 2: Use the 'Edit Text' Dialog Box

As soon as you drop the Text Object onto your canvas, an "Edit Text" dialog box will appear. This is your primary workspace for writing and formatting your content.

The dialog box includes a toolbar with familiar formatting options:

• Font Controls: Change the font family, size, and color to match your company's branding or your dashboard's style guide.
• Text Styling: Make text bold, italic, or <u>underlined</u> to emphasize key points.
• Alignment: Align your text to the left, center, or right within the object's boundaries.
• Lists: Create simple bulleted or numbered lists for instructions or key takeaways.

Here, you can type your static text, like a title "Quarterly Sales Report" or a helpful note "All sales figures are in USD."

Step 3: Make Your Text Dynamic with the 'Insert' Menu

This is where Text Objects become truly powerful. In the top-right corner of the "Edit Text" box, you'll find an "Insert" dropdown menu. This feature lets you pull dynamic information from your workbook directly into your text box, which will then update automatically.

Some of the most useful options include:

• Sheet Name: Inserts the name of a specific worksheet.
• User Name / Full Name: Personalizes the dashboard by showing the name of the logged-in Tableau Server/Cloud user. For example: "Welcome, <em>&lt,Full Name&gt,</em>".
• Data Source Name: Displays the name of the data source being used.
• Data Update Time: Shows the timestamp of the last data refresh, letting users know how current the information is. A very common use is "Data last refreshed on: <em>&lt,Data Update Time&gt,</em>".
• Parameters: If you are using parameters to allow users to change things like dates or targets, you can display the current parameter value. For instance: "Showing results for fiscal year: <em>&lt,Parameters.FiscalYear&gt,</em>".
• Worksheet Fields: You can pull aggregated values directly from a worksheet on your dashboard into a sentence. This is perfect for creating narrative summaries.

Example of a Dynamic Text Summary:

Imagine you have a worksheet named "KPI Summary" that calculates the total sales for the selected region. You can write a sentence in a Text Object like this:

Current sales for the <,Parameters.RegionSelection>, region are: <,SUM(Sales)>,

If a user changes the region parameter from "West" to "East," the text will automatically update to show "Current sales for the East region are: $550,000" (or whatever the corresponding value is). This creates a highly interactive and informative experience.

Practical Use Cases and Best Practices

Knowing how to add a Text Object is one thing, knowing where and why to use it is what elevates your dashboard design. Here are some effective use cases and tips.

Use Case 1: The Main Dashboard Title and Subtitle

While each worksheet has its own title, a dashboard often needs a single, overarching title. A Text Object is the perfect tool for this. Drag a text object to the top of your dashboard to create a title like "Annual E-commerce Performance Review." You can format it with a large, bold font to make it stand out.

Below the main title, add another (smaller) Text Object for a subtitle that provides immediate context, like "January 1, 2023 - December 31, 2023 | All data from Shopify Admin."

Use Case 2: Explaining How to Use the Dashboard

Never assume your audience knows how to interact with your dashboard. Use Text Objects to provide short, clear instructions.

• "Use the dropdown menu on the right to filter by product category."
• "Click on any state on the map to see its specific sales trends below."
• "Hover over a data point to view detailed tooltip information."

A few seconds of guidance can prevent user frustration and ensure your audience gets the most out of your analysis.

Use Case 3: Creating Narrative KPI Summaries

This is a slightly more advanced but incredibly impactful technique. You can use Text Objects to create dynamic text summaries that sound like a human analyst wrote them.

How to do it:

1. Create a dedicated worksheet that calculates the key metrics you want to display (e.g., Total Sessions, Conversion Rate, YoY Growth). Filter this sheet so it only contains a single row/value for each metric.
2. Drag this worksheet onto your dashboard. You can hide the title and shrink it down so it is effectively invisible.
3. Add a new Text Object.
4. Write out your summary sentences, using the "Insert" menu to pull in the calculated fields from your invisible KPI worksheet.

Your finished text could look something like this:

"This month, our website attracted <,SUM(Sessions)>, visitors and achieved a conversion rate of <,AGG(Conversion Rate)>,%. This represents a <,AGG(YoY Growth)>,% increase in traffic compared to the same period last year."

This transforms your dashboard from a set of charts into a direct, narrative report.

Best Practices for Text Objects

• Keep It Concise: Your dashboard is a visual medium. Use text to clarify, not to write a novel. Keep sentences short and to the point.
• Maintain Visual Consistency: Use a consistent font, size, and color scheme across all your Text Objects. For example, all main titles should look the same, and all instructional text should have another consistent style.
• Use Whitespace: Don't cram text against the edges of your charts. Use padding and containers to give your text room to breathe, which greatly improves readability.
• Think About Placement: Put text where the user will naturally look for it. Titles go at the top, instructions near the filter they correspond to, and notes or definitions at the bottom.

Final Thoughts

Text Objects in Tableau are much more than simple text boxes. They are a versatile tool for adding layers of context, guidance, and dynamic narrative that transforms a dashboard into a powerful communication asset. By mastering how to add, format, and infuse them with dynamic data, you can build dashboards that not only show data but also clearly explain what it means.

Building dashboards that tell a clear story shouldn't require deep technical knowledge. While Tableau offers a lot of power, a lot of time is still spent on manual tasks like formatting text and pulling together multiple data sources. At Graphed , we simplify this entire process by letting you use plain English to build dashboards and tell your data story. Instead of dragging and dropping objects or setting up dynamic fields, you can just ask, "Show me last quarter's revenue and sessions in a dashboard, and add a summary of the key changes." Our AI-powered analyst instantly designs the dashboard and generates the narrative insights for you, all connected to your live data sources.