Case Study – FMCG Brand

I worked with this Brand as Marketing & Digital Director - they were a fast-growing consumer Brand selling both DTC and through their Wholesale partners

Before I joined:

  • Marketing was fully outsourced to multiple agencies
  • Activity was uncoordinated and poorly managed
  • Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) had dropped significantly
  • Costs were rising while performance declining
  • There was no structured marketing strategy
  • The website was outdated and inefficient

Initial Goals

Three immediate priorities were set:

1. Build an in-house marketing team - to simply take ownership of activity

2. Take control of all marketing activity in house ti enable us to quickly make changes with results

3. Audit the website - conversion was poor, the site was slow and "clunky" and the overall customer journey was poor

Building the Team

The team was developed in phases:

Phase 1 (Immediate needs):

  • Website Manager
  • Digital Marketing Manager

Phase 2 (Core support):

  • Assistant Digital Marketing Manager
  • Graphic Designer
  • Content Manager

Phase 3 (Long-term growth):

  • Social Media Manager
  • PR Manager
  • CRM Manager
  • SEO Manager
  • Marketplace Manager
  • Website support roles

Fixing Marketing Issues

Key problems identified:

  • Agencies were poorly managed
  • No overall strategy or planning
  • Channels operated independently
  • Lack of campaign clarity or structure

Solution

  • Removed all external marketing agencies
  • Brought marketing fully in-house
  • Introduced structured planning across all channels

Key Actions & Results

1. Marketing Planning

A unified marketing plan was introduced, covering:

  • Social media
  • Email
  • Paid advertising
  • PR
  • Website content
  • Offline and B2B activity

Focus:

  • Revenue growth
  • Customer engagement
  • Data-driven decision-making

2. Improved Paid Marketing

  • Took control of paid media budgets
  • Introduced testing (audiences, content, performance)
  • Revised creative assets

Results:

  • ROAS improved significantly
  • Lower cost per acquisition
  • Higher engagement rates

3. Affiliate Marketing Growth

  • Expanded partner network from a small base to over 1,000 partners
  • Restructured commission model to reduce costs

Results:

  • Marketing costs reduced
  • Sales increased substantially
  • Affiliate channel became a key revenue driver

4. Email Marketing Development

  • Grew subscriber database significantly
  • Improved email design and targeting
  • Introduced automated customer journeys

Results:

  • Increased contribution to overall sales
  • Improved email engagement
  • Created AB testing schedule to maintain progress

Key approach:

  • Personalised messaging based on behaviour
  • “Nurture” campaigns to support long purchase journeys

5. Social Media Improvements

Changes included:

  • Planning and structure
  • Moving from product-only posts to lifestyle content
  • Introducing competitions and engagement campaigns
  • Collaborating with influencers
  • Improving brand tone of voice

Outcome:

  • Increased engagement
  • Improved brand awareness
  • Social Media starting to generate sales

6. Website Upgrade

Problem:

  • Website was inefficient and costly
  • Checkout issues were causing Customer Service issues
  • Content across the site was hard to maintain

Solution:

  • Rebuilt the platform with a focus on user experience
  • A platform that was low cost AND easy to manage

Impact:

  • Improved customer journey
  • Higher conversion rates
  • Stronger support for marketing activity
  • Easier for the team to manage and maintain

Overall Results

  • Sales doubled year-on-year#
  • Marketing costs remained stable
  • Significant improvement in marketing efficiency
  • Stronger brand presence and customer engagement

Key Takeaways

  • In-house marketing improved control and performance
  • Structured planning is essential for growth
  • Channels must work together as part of a unified strategy
  • A strong website is critical for converting traffic
  • Data and customer insight drive better decisions