Beyond the Vanity: What Matters in Marketing?

Too often, we tend to obsess over vanity metrics. You know, those numbers that look impressive on paper but don’t necessarily translate into real business impact. Think of follower counts (hello, mother) (hello, mother’s Pilates friends) or the amount of impressions your content receives. Sure, those provide a general sense of reach, but they don’t paint the full picture of your marketing effectiveness. But... What does?

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Metrics that mean something

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To measure success more correctly, you should shift your focus towards valuable KPIs. What drives real engagement, business growth, and most importantly, trust. After all, effective marketing isn’t just about broadcasting messages left and right; it’s about telling compelling stories that engage your audience. The best metric to check if your efforts are paying off? The accelerated sales cycle: people contacting you first, saying they’ve already heard of you, or that they were referred to you. That’s ideal!  

Obviously, you need to make an effort yourself as well – and continuously refine your approach based on what works. So, what can you do and where to begin to measure the right performance indicators? Start with these essential steps for your website:

1. Goals: If you set clear and achievable objectives, you’ll get a better understanding if you’re making progress or not. Looking to boost brand awareness, drive conversions, or shorten your sales cycle? Then be specific in your targets so you can check against them.
   

2. Tools: The results of your actions are trackable via platform insights and analytics dashboards. They provide valuable information about your target audience and how they interact with your content. Find out which keywords drive traffic to your site, and where adjustments are needed. Our favourite (free) tools: Google Analytics & Google Search Console.
   

3. Action: Data without action is just a collection of numbers. The real power lies in using the insights from your tools to refine your strategy, experiment with different formats, and continuously improve wherever necessary for better results. Try to check things at least once a month and you should be good!

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For your social media platforms, the same rules apply. Most platforms provide (lots of free) insights in your followers, and tell you, performance-wise, which content or which posts work(ed) best for your brand the past year. Try to remember that marketing is a continuous effort and that algorithms have a tendency to change. Best to remain flexible and patient. Very patient.

Lastly, do not forget about your SEO and SEA. Not sure how they work? We’ll explain!

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SEO & SEA: A dynamic duo

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What’s the difference between these two key strategies? Well:

• SEA (Search Engine Advertising): AKA the sprint. We’re talking paid ads that immediately push your website to the top of search results, ensuring quick visibility.

• SEO (Search Engine Optimisation): AKA the marathon. It’s a long-term strategy focused on organic growth through high-quality content, keyword optimisation in your copy, and strong website structure (through headers, and such).

Think of SEA as the shortcut to instant exposure, while SEO lays the foundation for sustainable, lasting success. A balanced marketing strategy leverages both: go for quick wins from SEA while steadily building credibility with SEO.

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Conclusion: Don’t go chasing waterfalls numbers

Contrary to the clichés, (performance) marketing isn’t about chasing numbers: it’s about creating impact. By focusing on meaningful engagement, making data-driven decisions, and balancing short-term wins with long-term strategy, you’ll set yourself up for success. What’s more: consistency in analysing the right metrics will help refine your marketing strategy and guarantee you're building real relationships, not just an illusion of popularity.

So, the next time you’re getting lost in a sea of marketing data, ask yourself:  
Are you tracking what truly matters?

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