1
“The dashboard should tell us what to do.”
A standard report is a starting point. It cannot know the decision your team owns, the retailer context, the shopper need, or the tradeoff you are trying to resolve.
C8 • Retail Data Mini-Course
You do not need another dashboard.
You need one report that answers the decision.
Learn how to turn a crowded category report into a decision-ready retail snapshot that shows what is changing, where the opportunity may be hiding, and what deserves attention next.
One category
One retailer
One clearer decision
Regular price: $297
Founder access
$97
Get Instant Access | $97
Includes the course example spreadsheet • 14-day guarantee
The real problem
Most brands are not short on data. They are short on decision clarity.
POS reports, distributor files, syndicated dashboards, broker spreadsheets, retailer scorecards, promotion reports, and internal trackers can all be accurate—and still leave the team debating what to do.
The report is not useful because it contains more measures.
It is useful because it helps the team answer one important business question.
Watch the course preview
Stop chasing reports. Start building the view you need.
The course shows how to move beyond a generic topline report by adding the measures, segmentation, filters, and shopper context that help reveal a stronger retail story.
The three beliefs that keep brands inside the maze
More data does not automatically create a better decision.
2
“Every available measure belongs in the analysis.”
Extra measures often create extra debate. Begin with the question, then choose only the data needed to understand it.
3
“The category definition is already correct.”
Provider and retailer taxonomies may not reflect how shoppers compare products. The wrong competitive set can produce a clean report and a weak conclusion.
What you will learn
Turn a generic data export into a decision-ready view.
- Start with the business question—not the report
- Understand what different data sources can and cannot answer
- Choose a relevant retailer, category, and competitive set
- Use consistent 52-, 24/26-, and 12/13-week views
- Add the year-ago measures needed for comparison
- Layer in product attributes and category segmentation
- Use filters to test alternative views of the opportunity
- Translate the pattern into a retailer-ready next question
A practical operating rhythm
Question. Filter. Interpret. Decide.
The course is not about becoming a data scientist. It is about building a repeatable way to use the information you already have.
1. Ask
What decision must this analysis support?
2. Filter
Which retailer, category, segment, item, shopper, and time period matter?
3. Interpret
What changed—and what other context could have influenced it?
4. Decide
What is the next useful action, owner, or question?
What each layer contributes
A report becomes more useful when every source has a job.
Do not ask one data source to answer every question. Use each source for the part of the decision it can support.
Retail and syndicated data
What sold, where, when, and at what rate.
Shopper signals
Needs, behaviors, decision drivers, and context.
Competitive context
Alternatives, category structure, retailer priorities, and market influence.
Decision ownership
What should happen next, who owns it, and how the result will be measured.
Data tells you what happened.
Shopper and competitive context help you understand why.
A clear decision process turns that understanding into action.
The quick win
Build one Decision-Ready Retail Snapshot.
Choose one live question. Use one retailer and one relevant category or segment. Then simplify the report until every column earns its place.
Your first decision-ready report
1. Define the decision
2. Confirm the competitive universe
3. Add the few measures that matter
4. Write the next action
What changes
Move from report review to decision support.
Before
- You jump between dashboards
- The team argues over which number matters
- Category definitions go unchallenged
- Reports describe activity without clarifying impact
- Meetings end with another request for data
After
- The decision determines the analysis
- The competitive set reflects the shopper’s real choices
- Shorter and longer trends are read together
- Filters expose stronger and weaker opportunities
- The report ends with a clear next question or action
How I learned it and earned it
I helped build the reports the industry still relies on.
Early in my career, I developed category-management reports for major CPG companies and retailers. I later built the original SPINS distribution tracker and other reporting tools.
That experience taught me both sides of the problem: templates create consistency, but the canned report is only the starting point. The real value comes from asking a better question, rebuilding the category around the shopper, and turning the analysis into a decision.
Your instructor
Daniel Lohman, CPSA
I have spent decades helping brands, retailers, category teams, brokers, and founders use retail data to see opportunities that a standard ranking report misses.
This course shows you the practical foundation: how to choose the right view, add the right context, use the example spreadsheet, and turn a crowded report into a clearer decision.
Frequently asked questions
Still deciding?
Do I need syndicated data to use this course?
No. The principles can be applied to retailer POS, distributor reports, shipment files, syndicated data, broker reports, and other consistent retail data. The quality of the answer depends on the coverage, accuracy, and limitations of the source you use.
Does the course include a spreadsheet?
The course teaches from an example spreadsheet designed to demonstrate the measures, formulas, segmentation, and filters discussed in the lessons. Confirm that the current download is available inside the course before publishing this page.
Will one report answer every retail question?
No. “The only report you’ll ever need” describes a flexible decision-ready foundation, not a universal answer. Different decisions may require different retailer, shopper, promotion, execution, financial, or competitive inputs.
Do I need advanced Excel skills?
You should be comfortable opening a spreadsheet, reviewing columns, adding basic formulas, and using filters. The course is intended to make the thinking easier, not turn you into a programmer.
What should I analyze first?
Begin with one live decision: a retailer review, distribution opportunity, category question, assortment issue, promotional result, or competitive concern. Then select the smallest useful view that can support that decision.
What is the guarantee?
You have 14 days to review the course. If it does not give you practical ideas you can use to simplify one real retail analysis, email Retail Solved and your purchase will be refunded.
The spreadsheet is not the product
The decision is.
Use one real question, one category view, and one retailer to build a report that helps your team understand what matters—and what should happen next.
Instant access • Regular price $297 • 14-day guarantee
