This is a question we typically get from prospects. People who are already doing the work, posting, emailing, showing up, but have no real framework for knowing whether any of it is hitting the mark or not.
What we find, more often than not, is that the marketing is doing more than people realise. They’re just not measuring the right things, so the results are happening without anyone noticing.
Why it’s easy to feel like nothing is working
We live in a world of instant gratification. You post something at 9am and by lunchtime, you’re checking to see if it’s got likes. There are three likes, two of which are from your parents. You feel deflated and wonder why you bother.
But here’s what that three-like post doesn’t tell you: the prospective client who saw it, thought “huh, that’s interesting”, and added you to their mental shortlist. The referral partner who learnt something about you that they didn’t know. The past client who was reminded you exist right just before they have an opportunity to refer someone your way.
The mistake is measuring marketing on the wrong timeline and measuring the wrong things. Think about how you make decisions about who you hire. You don’t see one LinkedIn post and hand over your credit card. You watch. You build a picture over time. Your audience is doing exactly the same thing with you.
Marketing isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme… it’s more like planting a garden. And the businesses who are patient and consistent in tending their garden are the ones who see it pay off.
The signals worth paying attention to
So if social media metrics aren’t the full story, what should you actually be tracking? For our Crisp clients, here are the signals that tell us something real is happening:
1. You’re showing up in Google when it matters
Search engines are essentially trying to answer one question: who is the most relevant, credible person on the internet for what this person just searched for? And one of the main ways they figure that out is by looking at your content. The articles you publish, the words on your website, the questions you answer — all of it feeds into how Google decides whether to put you in front of someone or not.
So when you’re consistently creating content that speaks to your ideal client’s problems, questions and goals, you’re not just building an audience. You’re also telling search engines exactly who you are and who you serve. That relevance builds over time, which is why businesses that show up consistently tend to keep climbing in search results while those that stop drop off.
A good way to get a feel for where you currently stand is to Google a problem your ideal client might search for, and your location.
Crispy Tip
One important tip: do it in incognito mode. Search engines personalise results based on your browsing history, so a regular search will show you a more flattering picture than what a stranger actually sees.
Do you show up towards the top of search results? If the answer is yes, your content is doing its job. If there are gaps, that’s actually a really useful starting point. A thin search result usually points to one of two things: either you need more content that speaks directly to your ideal client’s problems, or the content exists, but it’s not optimised well enough for search engines to surface it. Either way, it’s fixable, and knowing the problem is half the battle.
2. Your website is getting traffic from the right people
Website numbers on their own don’t tell you much. What matters is whether the people landing on your site are actually your ideal clients. This is where Google Analytics and Google Search Console are worth their weight in gold.
If you haven’t heard of these tools:
Google Analytics tracks what’s happening on your website — who’s visiting, how they found you, and what they do once they arrive. Think of it as a window into whether your marketing is pulling in the right crowd.
Google Search Console, on the other hand, shows you how your website is performing in Google search itself. Which search terms are people typing in before they land on your site, which of your pages are showing up in results, and how often people are actually clicking through.
Where Analytics tells you what happens on your site, Search Console tells you what happens before people get there. This is a powerful combination of tools, when you know how to use them!
And the good news is that both tools are free.
How can I add Google Analytics and Google Search Console to my website?
To get started, Google Analytics requires a small piece of code installed on your website, and Search Console just needs you to verify that you own it – the quickest way to do that is by connecting it through your Analytics account if you already have that set up.
What data should I be looking at?
Not sure if either is installed? Your web developer can check in about two minutes, or drop us a DM – helping clients get this sorted is something we do all the time.
Once you’re in there, here are three things worth looking at regularly:
- Which channels are sending people to you? This is where social media’s real value shows up, and it’s not in the likes. Someone can read your LinkedIn post without reacting to it, click through to your website and eventually, book a call. That journey is invisible on social media but shows up clearly in Google Analytics. If however, your ideal clients are on LinkedIn but your posting on that platform isn’t driving traffic, it’s probably time to consider why that is, and experiment with a different approach.
- What search terms are bringing people in? Head into Google Search Console and look at the queries people are typing before they land on your site. If you’re a financial adviser who works primarily with small business owners, seeing terms like “financial adviser for small business owners” showing up is a strong signal that you’re attracting the right searches. If the terms look off, it’s a useful prompt to revisit the language on your key pages.
- Are visitors taking the next step? Are people booking a consultation, downloading your freebie, or filling in your contact form? If the right people are landing on your site and then acting on it, your marketing funnel is working exactly as it should. If you’re getting visitors but they’re not converting to enquiries, it may be time for a website refresh.
3. Your leads are arriving warmer
Pay attention to how new clients and referrals show up to their first conversation. Are they saying things like “I’ve been following you for a while” or “I saw that thing you posted about X”? Are referrals arriving already knowing what you do and who you help, rather than needing a full orientation?
When this happens, it’s usually because the person has done their homework, and your marketing content has been doing its job in the background, long before that person picked up the phone.
And for every person who mentions it, there are dozens more who saw the same post, read the same article, or scrolled past your profile and mentally filed you away for later. When they’re ready, or when someone they know needs exactly what you do, you’ll be the first name that comes to mind.
That’s the iceberg effect of marketing. The bit you can see is just the start of it.
So how do you know if your marketing is actually working?
Firstly, stop measuring your success in Social Media likes and follower counts. They’re the most visible metrics, but that doesn’t mean that they’re the most important ones.
Many of the businesses we work with that are growing through marketing aren’t the ones with the most engagement on their posts. They’re the ones paying attention to whether they’re showing up in search engines, whether the right people are landing on their website, and whether their leads are arriving already warm.
Those are the metrics worth obsessing over. And when you start tracking them, you’ll probably find that more is growing in your garden than you realised.
(And if you’d like help working through all of this measurement-y stuff, that’s exactly what our Marketing Kickstarter is for ✌️)