Case Study - Using Data Analytics to Reverse a Decline in Sales for a Consumer Goods Company
Ranae Peterson • September 3, 2025
Introduction: Sales Were Slipping, But the Cause Was Unclear
A well-established consumer goods company found itself at a crossroads. Despite decades of steady growth, recent months had seen a noticeable decline in revenue and profit. Leadership suspected weakening sales were to blame, but they lacked clear, data-backed insight into why it was happening.
Internal reports offered some signals, but the company’s tools weren’t robust enough to isolate trends, customer patterns, or performance indicators. Without direction, their marketing and sales strategies were stalled. They turned to Brewster Consulting Group to uncover the root cause and build a plan for recovery.
The Challenge: More Questions Than Answers
While the symptoms were obvious, declining sales across nearly all channels, the underlying issue remained elusive. The company couldn’t tell if the problem stemmed from product performance, shifting customer behavior, channel inefficiencies, or market saturation.
Their attempts to solve the issue had become trial and error, adjusting pricing, tweaking promotions, shifting distribution, but none of these efforts moved the needle. Leadership had a growing list of questions, but few meaningful answers.
They needed a partner who could go beyond surface-level reporting and deliver deep analytical clarity.
The Solution: Analytics that Asked the Right Questions
Brewster began the engagement by conducting a comprehensive analysis of historical sales data, segmenting product types, flavors, and distribution channels, including in-store and online purchases. Interestingly, the data showed uniform decline across most product categories and channels, ruling out specific SKUs or sales platforms as the culprit.
Instead of stopping there, Brewster shifted focus to the company’s customer behavior trends, particularly purchasing frequency and lifecycle status.
What emerged was a pivotal insight:
Loyal, long-time customers were not dropping off. In fact, those who had made 10+ purchases over the past two years were increasing their buying volume.
This insight reframed the entire narrative. The problem wasn’t that customers were leaving, it was that new customers weren’t coming in.
Strategic Insight: From Retention to Acquisition Focus
With clarity on the real challenge, customer acquisition rather than retention,
Brewster presented a clear, data-backed strategy.
The company’s marketing efforts had been overly focused on maintaining loyalty and driving repeat purchases. But the data showed that their loyal base was already performing well. The bigger gap was at the top of the funnel, reaching new audiences, converting them, and nurturing early-stage buyers.
Brewster recommended:
- A shift in marketing strategy toward first-purchase incentives and awareness campaigns.
- Development of new customer KPIs, including acquisition cost, conversion rate, and first-to-repeat purchase timeframes.
- Redesigning lifecycle campaigns to guide customers from trial to loyalty.
- Building a segmented customer dashboard to track acquisition metrics by product, region, and campaign source.
With this new insight, leadership reallocated budget from broad retention campaigns to high-impact acquisition channels and created internal targets for customer base growth.
Results: Strategy Shift, Revenue Rebound
Armed with a fresh understanding of their true challenge, the company quickly adapted its marketing, sales, and customer success strategies. The results were almost immediate:
-Marketing ROI increased
as acquisition-focused campaigns attracted more new customers.
-Customer lifetime value
grew, driven by clearer conversion paths and repeat purchase incentives.
-Leadership had real-time visibility into customer metrics, allowing them to act with speed and precision.
-Perhaps most importantly, the team now had confidence in their direction,
with a data-driven plan guiding their next moves.
Conclusion: Real Strategy Starts with the Right Data
This case is a perfect example of how data clarity can transform a company’s trajectory. What started as a vague performance issue turned into a focused, strategic initiative once the root cause was understood.
With Brewster Consulting Group’s support, the consumer goods company stopped guessing and started acting, replacing assumptions with insights, and hope with measurable strategy.
At Brewster Consulting Group, we recognize that managing data can be a daunting task for small and mid-sized enterprises. Allow us to assist you in harnessing the potential of operational intelligence! Reach out to one of our specialists today to refine your data strategy, optimize your processes, and establish solid governance. Ready to cultivate data analysis and propel scalable growth? Your journey begins right here!
Many small businesses are laser-focused on growth, sales, and staying afloat. In that constant hustle, one of the most valuable assets, data , often gets overlooked. Even when businesses “look at the numbers,” that doesn’t always mean they’re collecting the right data, tracking the right KPIs, or translating those insights into actionable strategies. Fractional analytics bridges that gap. It allows small businesses to access experienced data analysts or analytics teams on a part-time or project basis, essentially bringing enterprise-level data expertise without the full-time cost. Think of it as analytics-as-a-service for small business owners who need clarity and insight but can’t justify a full analytics department. The Reality: Why Data Gets Overlooked While most business leaders know data is “important,” it can be hard to see its impact until it’s visualized through dashboards, real-time reporting, or guided by a professional who knows how to turn information into action. Without these tools and expertise, business decisions often rely on gut instinct instead of insight, leading to inefficiencies, missed opportunities, and in some cases, failure. Statistics show that: About 20% of small businesses don’t survive their first year. Nearly 50% fail within five years. Around 65% close within ten years. While the reasons vary, from financial mismanagement to poor planning, many of these challenges stem from a lack of data visibility or poor data management . In other words, the root cause often isn’t just financial; it’s analytical . Real World Analogy Imagine running a restaurant without ever checking what inventory levels, most frequent orders, or best margin products. You might think you’re doing well because the restaurant is busy, but when you do the books, you’re not actually making any money. Now, imagine having a fractional analytics consultant helping you organize and visualize your data. They don’t need to be in the kitchen every day, but when they are, they bring order to chaos, tracking inventory and margin by menu item, predicting staffing needs, and saving costs by cutting waste. That’s what fractional analytics does for your business data. It helps you understand what’s really happening across operations, finance, and customer service so you can make smarter, faster decisions. Common Operational Challenges Solved by Fractional Analytics Here are a few common pain points small businesses face that fractional analytics services can address: Inefficient reporting and manual data entry. Lack of clear KPIs or performance tracking. Inconsistent financial forecasting. Missed revenue opportunities due to incomplete data. Poor inventory or resource management. Lack of clarity around customer behavior and profitability. Benefits of Fractional Analytics for Small Businesses Engaging a fractional analytics provider offers far more than just numbers and dashboards. It’s about empowering smarter decisions without breaking the bank. Cost efficiency: Avoid the high salary and benefits of full-time analytics hire. Speed to impact: Gain immediate access to expertise, no lengthy onboarding or training required. Scalability: Bring in analytics support when you need it and scale it up as you grow. Better decision-making: Replace guesswork with data-driven insights and actionable KPIs. Time savings: Spend less time in spreadsheets and more time growing your business. Long-term cost reduction: Identify duplicate payments, missed invoices, and inefficiencies that quietly drain profit. Fractional analytics also enhances cash flow management and enables business leaders to spot opportunities for optimization, often resulting in measurable growth and sustainability. Why It’s a Make-or-Break Decision Choosing whether to work with a fractional analytics consultant could be the difference between surviving and thriving. Many business owners don’t realize that outsourced analytics is even an option, one that offers flexibility, affordability, and strategic insight without high overhead. The truth is, small business leaders don’t have to do it all alone, nor do they need to rush into hiring a full-time team. Fractional analytics gives them the best of both worlds: the expertise of a senior data strategist and the flexibility of a part-time engagement. Final Thoughts In today’s competitive market, data-driven decision making isn’t optional; it’s essential. Small businesses that embrace fractional analytics gain clarity, confidence, and control over their operations. By investing in the right insights today, they set up the foundation for sustainable growth tomorrow. If your business is ready to move from guessing to growing, now’s the time to explore what fractional analytics services can do for you.
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