What is it?
Maximum % ACV (also commonly shortened to Max ACV) measures a brand or item’s maximum distribution in a market (like a retailer or channel) over a period of time. This number will represent a percent presence in the market between 0% and 100%.
Why is it important?
This number gives you a quick gut check on how widely a brand or item is distributed, similar to the percent of stores selling, but since it weights for store volume, it is a more nuanced benchmark that accounts for volume. A good rule of thumb is to use % of stores selling when breadth of adoption or how many doors you are in, and Maximum % ACV when talking about depth of opportunity.
What are some examples?
If a brand or item has a Maximum % ACV of 50%, then you can say that at some point during the time period, the brand or item was present in about half of the marketplace. A Max % ACV of 99% or 100% would mean that the brand or item was present in all of the marketplace. Max % ACV is best used for timeframes of 4 weeks or less.