Sales Data Analysis

The performance of a business is highly impacted by the analysis of its sales data. Sales data analysis provides a clearer picture of the different client categories, aids in developing better value propositions for the customers, tracks the performance of each product in the market, modifies the sales strategy considering the information received, and improves the sales process.

This project explained the Sales Data for XYZ Company in 48 countries, spread across three regions around the world- Australia (5), Europe (32), and North America (11). The project aimed to analyze the sales pattern of 3 different categories of products, highlight factors influencing the number of orders made per product and enumerate the revenue and profits made by the company concerning the locations in which they operate.

The dataset contains the number of orders made from 3 product categories (beverages, food, and pastries) in different locations with their corresponding cost and selling price data over 4 years (2016 to 2019). The analysis was done to understand the business problems, find possible solutions to make informed decisions, and possibly generate forecasting for the company.

This dashboard showed the general overview of the data, then analysis of products based on parameters like profit, revenue, cost, geographical location, etc.

Business Questions Used for the Analysis

• Which are the best and least-selling products?

• Which months of the year record the highest profit?

• What are the revenue and expenses of the sales team according to the product category?

• How does the profit change for each product category from year to year?

• What are the monthly and yearly sales growth?

• How many products are sold and how much profit or loss is generated?

• What is the total revenue and number of orders made over 4 years?

• Which countries record the lowest and highest orders, profit, and cost over 4 years?

• How much revenue does each country generate for the company?

• What region yields the highest profit or highest cost for the business?

Key Insights

• The best-selling products are Apple Juice, BLT Sandwich, Cheese and Pickle Sandwich, Butter Croissant, and Blueberry Muffin in that order. On the other hand, the least-selling products between 2016 and 2019 are Lemon and Ginger tea, Sparkling Water, Tomato Juice, Granola bar, and Yoghurt.

• 2017 recorded a total cost of 19% and a profit of 47%. In 2018, total cost grew by 38% resulting in a 41% decline in profit. By 2019, costs increased by 29%(a 9% reduction when compared to the previous year's). There was a profit increase of 116% in the same year. These observations show that some factors (beyond the scope of the data used in this study) drove costs up in 2018, which the company was able to identify and get under control. Hence, its recovery (yielding a profit of 116%) by the year 2019.

• The top 5 profit-yielding countries are Cardiff, Geneva, Portland, Hamilton, and Auckland in that order, contributing 11.4% of the company's total profit while the bottom 5 profit-yielding countries (contributing 9.6% of total profit) are Katowice, Galway, Sydney, San Diego, and Krakow respectively. Interestingly, the highest profit-making country (Cardiff) and the least profit-making country (Katowice) are both in the European region.

• Revenues and Profits have steadily grown, except for 2018 when losses were incurred. Losses recorded in 2018 for each category were Beverages 44%, Food 37%, and Pastries 41%. The loss is explained by a rapid increase in total cost during the same period. The average cost increased to €1409.68 from the average cost of €1300. Hence, the resultant effect of a sharp decline in profit.

• A total of 3261 (8.15%) of the transactions resulted in a loss. The average cost for the transactions was €1409.68. A drop in average cost to €1105.78 changed the company's position to a profit-making one. A total of 36736 transactions (91.85%), indicate that higher costs on XYZ business operations do not necessarily translate to higher profit.

• Food and Beverage categories incurred the highest costs for the business (>€330,000), and recorded the highest sales (>60,000) in the 48 locations of XYZ’s operation, while the Pastries category was the least sold, and yielded the least profit.

• The 2nd and 4th quarters of each year recorded the highest revenue and profit-generating times of the year. This is consistent over the 4 years in all the locations of operation of the company.

• Europe incurred the highest cost (67%) for the business. North America region had a total cost of about 23%. The least costly region for the business was Australia which contributed about 10% of the total cost. Interestingly, despite incurring the highest cost for the business, Europe remains the leading region in terms of profit generation, yielding almost 67% (€7.6M) of the company's total profits. Next is 23% of total profits (€2.5M) contributed by North America. The least profit-generating region was Australia with a total of €1.2M accounting for the remaining 11% of total profits over the entire 4-year period.