Podcast Summary: DTC Podcast – Ep 566

What to Fix First: Growth Metrics Every 7-Figure Brand Needs to Track with Sarah Carusona
Release Date: December 8, 2025
Host: Eric Dyck (DTC Newsletter and Podcast)
Guest: Sarah Carusona (Founder, BA Commerce)

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Sarah Carusona, a seasoned growth operator and founder of BA Commerce. The discussion centers on how high 7-figure brands should prioritize tracking key growth metrics, optimize their teams and marketing channels, and avoid common pitfalls in the direct-to-consumer (DTC) ecommerce landscape. Drawing from her own consultancy experience, Sarah shares practical frameworks, candid advice, and tactical strategies for brands looking to scale effectively.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Sarah’s Entrepreneurial Journey & Philosophy

• Sarah’s career transition to consultancy was organic, not pre-defined:
  • She advises experimenting with different offers and roles before fully committing to a business model.
  • "I highly recommend it. I love working for myself and being able to do your own things." [03:01]
• First consulting client came through DTC’s network.
• Emphasizes designing services around actual client pain points.

2. The BA Commerce “Growth Operator” Model

• Sarah’s team integrates deeply with client organizations, effectively filling the “Head of Growth” role in a flexible way:
  • Growth operators are hand-trained by Sarah, acting both as execution specialists and strategic contributors.
  • BA Commerce offers a unique 30-day opt-out and non-restrictive hiring transition for talent.
  • "It’s really just a way for us to be able to fully insert ourselves in the brand and for them to solve the need of needing kind of a head of growth who can also get into execution." [07:43]
• Approach involves mapping org charts, repositioning talent, and taking full responsibility for results ("statement of work is basically: grow your brand").

3. Metrics That Matter & How to Track Them

• Key first step: review the brand’s P&L to understand expenses and profitability.
• Determine the allowable customer acquisition cost based on business model (supplements might allow a loss on first purchase, apparel needs immediate profitability).
• Dissect targets by channel mix (Meta, Google, TikTok, Amazon).
• Layer in LTV (3, 6, 9, 12 month) and identify flows that promote repurchase.
• Focus: “What are the five things we can do to fix MER if it’s not on target? Higher AOV, better conversion, creative swings, etc.” [10:22]
• Ongoing tracking through a “growth hub” model.

4. The Changing Role of Creative on Paid Social

• Sarah warns against high volumes of near-identical ad iterations:
  • "We are getting so many ads and they all look the same… we’re wasting a ton of money on these little tiny differences. We need to be making bigger swings." [00:00 & 12:20]
• Advocates for big, strategic creative swings over minor tweaks.

5. Audience Segmentation & Persona-Driven Creative

• With platforms like Meta’s Andromeda/ASC, the focus is now “creative as targeting.”
• "Once you start to see scale with a certain message or offer… how do you then create new Persona campaigns and ads around a net new person?" [13:24]
• Importance of understanding the ‘why’ behind each persona to build effective tunnels and landing pages.

6. Creator Content, Influencer Strategy & Partnerships

• Sarah is bullish on creator-led content for paid social:
  • Found that creator/influencer content often vastly outperforms UGC ads or statics.
  • She deploys a tiered influencer/affiliate structure:
    • Tier 1: Affiliates with promo codes and commissions.
    • Tier 2: Top creators get % of ad spend or revenue instead of flat fees.
    • Tier 3: Full partnerships, co-branded content.
  • "Double down on creators if that’s what’s working." [14:34]

7. The Importance & Challenge of Organic Content

• Organic is crucial but often difficult, especially if founders are not naturally content creators.
• Example: FrostBuddy (Brock) is a model for founder-led organic engines.
• "If it doesn’t come natural to the founder… trying to hire someone to help script, film, etc, is a very challenging position to hire." [17:20]

8. Account Structure on Meta for Large Spenders

• Sarah likes consolidated campaign structures (CBO/ASC) segmented by offer or persona.
• Testing still matters; prefers CBO testing with minimum spend constraints rather than ABO “money pits”:
  • "My strong opinion on testing campaigns is to not do a flat out ABO... I typically do a CBO testing campaign." [19:15]

9. Avoiding Common Growth Pitfalls

• Don’t spread resources too thin; stay laser-focused on core growth levers (Meta/content, organic, email/SMS, marketing calendar).
• Avoid chasing every tool or tactic, especially with lean teams.
• "Be really, really hyper focused on their strategy... Hyper focus on those things." [20:25 & 00:29]

10. Retention and the Growth Operator’s Full Scope

• Growth = acquisition + retention + conversion—team must own all three for true results.
• "A true head of growth or growth operator should be able to understand the full picture for the business." [21:57]

11. Product Quality as a Prerequisite

• No amount of marketing can overcome a mediocre product:
  • "I will not work with a client where I don’t think the product’s good, to be honest." [23:19]
  • Teams need a genuine story, point of differentiation.

12. Attribution & Proving Incrementality

• Sarah uses a blend of last/first-click models, organic ratio forecasting, and common sense.
• Strong fan of North Beam’s “clicks + modeled views” approach for assigning value up the funnel.
• "I still to this day use a last click or first click model... and then every other data point you have… plus common sense." [24:39]

13. AI in Workflow: Limits and Opportunities

• AI is essential for administrative tasks and data analysis, which increases team speed/efficiency.
• Draws the line at AI-generated UGC or fully AI-written thought-leadership content.
  • "I haven't gotten into AI with fake UGC yet… I'll use it for inspo… but I think there's a level of quality and personality that I don't think I can capture." [27:00]
• Recommends mastering AI to increase productivity and stay competitive.

Notable Quotes

• On wasted ad spend:

  "We are getting so many ads and they all look the same. There's little tiny differences and then we're spending money on all of them and we're wasting a ton of money on these little tiny differences. We need to be making bigger swings."
  — Sarah Carusona [00:00, 12:20]

• On creative as new targeting:

  "We've been saying for since iOS 14.5 that creative is the new targeting... It’s not going to be a button, color change... it’s going to be something in that ad speaking to something in the person."
  — Eric Dyck [13:45]

• On influencer partnerships:

  "Double down on creators if that’s what’s working... I want us to continue to use influencers but I want us to use them in a smart way that also helps drive our paid."
  — Sarah Carusona [14:34]

• On product-first growth:

  "I will not work with a client where I don't think the product's good, to be honest ... You have to have the right product… and a story to sell."
  — Sarah Carusona [23:19]

• On leveraging AI:

  "The speed of which we can do data analysis now has quadrupled because of AI... Figure out how you can produce three times what a normal person can do, and then use AI as much as you can."
  — Sarah Carusona [28:44]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Sarah’s background & entrepreneurship: [01:12] – [04:09]
• Designing the BA Commerce model: [04:22] – [08:41]
• Key metrics & growth dashboards: [08:53] – [11:12]
• The importance of creative swings: [12:20] – [14:10]
• Influencer/creator strategy: [14:34] – [16:54]
• Organic strategies & founder involvement: [17:20] – [18:26]
• Meta account structures: [18:39] – [20:15]
• Focus & common brand mistakes: [20:25] – [21:43]
• Retention as part of growth: [21:57] – [22:54]
• Product quality imperative: [23:19] – [24:26]
• Attribution and measurement: [24:39] – [26:52]
• AI's role and boundaries: [27:00] – [28:44]

Conclusion

This episode delivers a highly actionable and honest look into what it takes for a 7-figure DTC brand to not just grow, but to do so efficiently, profitably, and sustainably. Sarah Carusona distills years of expertise into tactical advice: focus on what matters, build teams that live in your business, measure the right things, and never lose sight of product quality and founder-driven vision. For those seeking to drive real DTC growth now, this episode is a must-listen (or a must-read).

To connect with Sarah Carusona:

• LinkedIn/X: Sarah Carusona
• Website: ba-commerce.com

For more actionable insights, subscribe to the DTC Newsletter at directtoconsumer.co