July 2026
When focusing on marketing, it's easy to measure your engagement and the number of likes and so on and then wonder why the phone hasn't rung or you have no new clients.
I hear this often.
The metrics seem to be working, your follower numbers are climbing, likes are ticking over and your posts may be 'doing well'. Meanwhile your sales pipeline looks exactly like it did six months ago.
The metrics and the conversion do not relate to each other.
A vanity metric is any number that makes you feel good, but it doesn't drive sales or revenue.
Follower count is the obvious one, but impressions and reach fall into the same trap just as easily.
Try this test on any metric you're reporting on:
Does it move when revenue moves?
Could you explain a change in it in one sentence?
Would you do something differently tomorrow because of it?
If the answer to all three is no, it's decoration and not driving your business.
A few signs you're optimising for the wrong thing:
Reporting is all platform stats but it doesn't lead to enquiries or conversions
Nobody can say which channel your last three customers came from
Engagement gets celebrated even when it's the same twenty people liking every post
None of this means followers or reach are worthless, they help to build your brand and they're often an early signal of interest, the problem is treating them as the destination rather than a part of the journey.
That's exactly what Business Insights is built to give you: a clear read on what's actually working, so you're not guessing.
If your dashboard looks impressive but you can't quite say why it matters, take a look at Business Insights by Mkt Lab.
Are You Feeling Overwhelmed as a Business Owner?
Speaking with business owners, I find many feel overwhelmed with business elements that are outside of their core service or offering, for example sales, marketing, accounting and so on.
Working longer hours when you're already overloaded isn't the answer.
It's stepping back, working out what you can delegate and using the tools available to make life easier.
Here are a few things I do to manage my workload, and can help you with too:
Get AI to add recurring events straight into your calendar. I use Claude but other options are available.
Prepare a monthly newsletter with AI. Review it and ensure it sounds like you. Then review which content performs best and optimise content and ideas.
Get really clear on your ideal customer, so you know which leads are worth following up. Not all leads are equal!
Set three core business goals each year and put your resources into working towards them without getting distracted onto side projects.
Decide which metrics matter for your business, then track them regularly and know what they mean and how they move the needle towards your goals.
If any of those sound like relief from overwhelm, get in touch. I can help you with marketing and business organisation, strategy and planning.
Lucy Brook FCIM is the founder of Mkt Lab, a marketing strategy consultancy working with UK SME founders, MDs, and marketing leads. With 20+ years of experience across commercial, education, and not-for-profit sectors, she helps ambitious small businesses build the marketing clarity they need to grow with confidence.