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According to Gartner, the average company spends 9.1% of its revenue on marketing. But for channels where attribution is tricky, it can be hard to tell if you’re getting a worthwhile return. You might also wonder if you could get similar results yourself after watching a relevant YouTube Short or two.
Do marketers actually know what they’re doing? Or are they just lucky? If they really had the magic touch, surely they’d all be millionaires, right?
Let’s dig a little deeper into this.
The role of luck
There’s no denying that luck can play a part in marketing. Sometimes a campaign goes viral for reasons no one can predict. A trend can catch fire out of nowhere.
But it’s not just about being in the right place at the right time. Marketing is about being ready for those moments. The more marketers experiment, take risks, and stay ahead of trends, the better their chances of success.
There are many factors that make a campaign take off:
- Relevance to the target audience
- Placement – targeting, keyword ranking, platform, etc.
- Appearance and professionalism e.g. good visuals or correct grammar
- Persuasiveness
- Novelty and virality
How can you measure performance?
If marketing were purely down to luck, then every marketer would be gambling. But any good marketer will provide regular reports detailing how their work has affected your KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and, where possible, showing the ROI (Return on Investment).
Don’t assume that your marketer knows what they’re doing, whether they’re in-house, freelance or part of an agency. Every business owner should understand the key metrics that determine success for their company and keep track of the marketing’s performance.
Are some marketing channels more legit than others?
Marketing activities like PPC (pay-per-click advertising) and CRO (Conversion Rate Optimisation) offer clear results. You can see that you made £6,400 in revenue from a £2,000 ad spend with a £1,200 management fee. Or that twice as many users filled in the contact form on a specific landing page after CRO activity.
But the success of other marketing activities can seem more dubious.
How do you measure brand awareness? Why does it take so long for SEO to work? Are you not just annoying potential customers with all these marketing emails? Let’s look closer at some specific channels.
Does content marketing work?
Content marketing has been a buzzword for years. Blogs, videos, and infographics take a long time to create, and sometimes it can feel like you’re just throwing them out into the void.
But if it seems your content marketing isn’t working, there might be a reason:
- It takes 3-6 months for content to rank well on search engines. Your content might not be getting much organic traffic yet.
- Relevant, valuable content performs well. Generic, AI-generated content does not. If your marketer is putting quantity over quality, this activity won’t work.
- Content marketing offers value beyond conversions. You may be failing to appreciate the effect it’s having on driving traffic to your site, nurturing your leads or developing thought leadership.
Content helps build trust with consumers. It gives a brand a voice and a way to connect. But it’s not always an easy win. You need to use content marketers who provide value to your audience and give them enough time to build up their performance.
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A year ago I thought content marketing was a waste of time. I thought it took too long to see the ROI and it wasn’t scalable.I was wrong. We saw great results as soon as we started publishing content for ourselves and for our clients.
Here is how we did it… pic.twitter.com/GkaAJohpzG
— Lucas Huizinga (@lucashuizinga) January 20, 2021
Does Social Media Marketing Work?
Social media is a powerhouse for marketing. Everyone’s on it. Brands can connect with audiences in ways they never could before. But does it actually lead to sales?
If you do it well, yes.
But organic social media marketing is a long-term strategy. It’s about making new prospects aware of you, entertaining and informing them, and drawing them into your community—so that when they need your product or service, you’ll be the first thought in their mind.
Is it worth having a link in your bio? Yes. But don’t judge the performance of your social media on clicks. If your marketer is building up engagement (views, likes, comments, shares), you’re very likely to see a good return on your investment. It just won’t be obvious from a quick scan of your analytics where the growth came from.
Does Email Marketing Work?
Email marketing might seem outdated in a world dominated by social media. Intrusive, even. But it’s still a powerful tool – if done right. The key is personalisation. Consumers don’t want to be spammed with irrelevant messages. They want content tailored to them.
Email campaigns with good targeting and engaging content can drive incredible results. Forbes found that the average ROI of email among professional marketers is 36:1!
Many businesses choose to do email marketing themselves. Everyone can write an email, right? But to get the best results—and avoid putting anyone off—you need a thorough knowledge of the latest segmentation and email content techniques.
Conclusion
So, do marketers really know what they’re doing? Our verdict: the good ones do. It’s not about having all the answers or a guaranteed formula for success. Look for experienced marketers who can demonstrate their performance and keep your business moving forward.
They don’t all become millionaires—but they definitely help brands make money.
If you’re looking for marketers who provide tangible value and help you achieve your goals, our team at Digivate is here to help. Book a free, no-strings-attached chat with our specialists.
Article by
Nicholas Turner
