One Year No Beer

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Strategic Mixed-Methods Research and New Value Proposition Case Study

One Year No Beer is a behaviour change platform offering challenges, community and coaching to help people transform their relationship with alcohol.

At A Glance

Role: Strategic Research & Product Consultant (3 months), then Chief Product Officer
Timeframe: 3-month engagement, extended to full-time role
Mandate: Diagnose stalled growth and define a behaviour-led direction
Scope: Proposition, experience, engagement, pricing, LTV, growth model
Methods: Mixed methods (qualitative, quantitative, behavioural, competitive, market)
Outputs: Future-state direction, strategic recommendations, roadmap inputs
Impact: +348% GP · +44% LTV · 40k new users · NPS 80

Note: To honour my commitment to client confidentiality, proprietary metrics and strategic details have been generalised where appropriate. User data has been anonymised. This case study focuses on research methodology, strategic thinking, and business impact.

Leadership and Influence

Focus on expanding the growth frame to unlock sustainable value

Context & Business Challenge

OYNB had built a community of over 250,000 members completing 28, 90 and 365-day alcohol-free challenges.

Despite strong brand affinity, growth had plateaued. Engagement dropped sharply after milestone completions, upsell conversion was low and the value proposition beyond the initial challenge remained unclear.

The stakes: Without clearer long-term pathways, stronger post-challenge engagement and a sustainable retention model, OYNB risked stagnation and growing dependence on acquisition over retention, threatening both customer value and revenue.

Strategic Framing

The initial proposal focused on launching a new product. Research showed this approach would not deliver sustainable growth on its own.

Reframing positioned growth around a behaviour-change ecosystem: a connected product suite designed to support non-linear journeys, meet users where they are, and create value over time.

This shifted growth from a single-product bet to a progression-based model that enabled both retention and new commercial opportunities.

Research Objectives

The research was designed to de-risk critical strategic decisions:

Proposition direction and market fit
Pricing, value tiers and subscription model
Post-challenge pathways and progression
Behaviour change support architecture
Community structure and engagement
Data collection and success metrics
Upsell opportunities and commercial prioritisation
Journey design and messaging strategy

Research Methodology

Methods were selected to de-risk strategic decisions, not just validate solutions

Qual Methods

16 in-depth interviews across user segments (completers, drop-offs, repeat challengers, resetters, non-converters); 8 user testing sessions; journey walkthroughs; concept evaluation.

Quant Methods

Survey (n=100), funnel and conversion analysis, Hotjar behavioural analysis, engagement pattern mapping, community analytics.

Market & Behaviour

Health psychology frameworks, behavioural economics principles, behavioural pattern analysis, persona development, competitive landscape review, adjacent behaviour-change offerings analysis.

Synthesis and Behavioural Mapping

Synthesising behavioural evidence to identify where long-term value could be unlocked.

I synthesised quantitative data, qualitative insight, and market analysis to identify where long-term value could be unlocked.

Integrating behavioural evidence across the user journey clarified the core problems users were solving, and the motivational barriers limiting sustained behaviour change.

Grounded in health psychology and behavioural economics, the synthesis reframed the opportunity beyond a single challenge, surfacing strategic priorities for retention, engagement and progression.

This work influenced business direction and investment decisions, aligned cross-functional teams around evidence, and shifted the organisation toward behaviour-led decision-making.

Evaluating the Solution

Evaluating proposition effectiveness across experience, engagement, and commercial models

A comprehensive evaluation identified structural gaps across journey design, behaviour change support, community engagement and commercial model sustainability.

Analysis included persona development, competitive landscape mapping, subscription model evaluation, engagement pattern analysis, and journey mapping across 12+ critical touchpoints.

This work documented progression gaps, identified strategic positioning opportunities, and revealed commercial model limitations, informing subsequent pricing, revenue strategy and LTV optimisation work.

From Insight to Direction

Translating behavioural insight into strategic direction

Through mixed-methods research, I identified critical gaps in the user journey, engagement model, and value proposition that were limiting long-term retention and growth.

Synthesis revealed opportunities to evolve from a transaction-based model to an integrated ecosystem approach.

This strategic reframe provided a clear future-state direction, aligning leadership and cross-functional teams around priorities for product evolution, community structure, and the commercial model.

Impact

Strategic Direction

Proposition Evolution: Evolved from challenge-led to integrated behaviour change ecosystem
Experience Architecture: Introduced structured pathways and accountability framework
Growth Model: Expanded to portfolio model with cyclical engagement

Business Outcomes

Gross profit ↑ 348%
Lifetime value ↑ 44%
40,000 new users via Live Life Better platform
NPS 80
Redesigned journeys increased coaching uptake by 15%
Web app delivered within 5 months