Marketing Beyond Vanity Metrics: Proving Real Value in the Age of AI

A Boardroom Reality Check

Let me take you back to my very first board meeting at a new company - new role, new culture, and definitely new to navigating a room where I wasn’t even part of the Senior Leadership Team. There was a lot of buzz that I should feel privileged to be included, but also not to expect any actual dialogue. Apparently, this CEO’s way of running meetings was more about top-down directives than discussion.

All went according to script - until it was time for my marketing slides. I walked everyone through the findings of my initial marketing audit, and mapped out a 3-, 6-, and 12-month plan. Then the CEO stopped me and asked:

“Why aren’t we measuring LinkedIn likes?”

He went on about how many followers he had on LinkedIn, citing that as a key indicator of his personal influence. But I wasn’t convinced. So I gently pushed back: “How many of those followers do you actually know? How many do you trust enough to meet face-to-face? Most importantly, how many of them would really buy from us?”

That single question sparked a lively (and yes, slightly heated) debate about vanity metrics - the kind of numbers that sound good but don’t necessarily translate into real, tangible results. I explained how a ‘like’ on LinkedIn means next to nothing if we can’t connect it to genuine interest or intent to purchase. Instead, I proposed a framework that tracked sentiment and engagement across every relevant channel. The goal? Focus on the actual humans who may become paying customers, and deliver personalised, meaningful experiences that solve their problems.

This conversation was a massive eye-opener for the board - and a validation for me. It was proof that marketing isn’t about accumulating empty stats; it’s about finding ways to connect, resonate, and drive real-world outcomes.

Sound Familiar?

• “Our latest campaign is performing 50% better than the previous one!”

• “We delivered 500% growth in leads this quarter!”

Those stats pop up in pitch decks everywhere. But what does “50% better” mean if your baseline campaign was already losing money? Growing leads by 500% feels like an achievement, but how many turn into revenue-generating customers? Increasingly, CFOs and CEOs are getting wise to these fluffy numbers - and they want to see that marketing spends are actually feeding the sales pipeline and long-term brand equity.

The Real Value of Marketing: Beyond Vanity Metrics

Most marketers I know regularly report on impressive-sounding stats: X% more leads, Y% higher open rate. But dig a little deeper, and you might discover that those metrics are compared to past campaigns with dismal performance - or not linked to revenue in any discernible way.

Why does this keep happening? A big part of the issue is what we measure and why we measure it. Engagement metrics - likes, impressions, ad clicks - have their uses, but leadership cares about impact on the bottom line: Did you generate high-quality leads that convert? Did you boost sales or build strong brand loyalty? This disconnect is exactly why marketing often ends up on the budget-chopping block.

Connecting to Business Outcomes

Let’s be clear: vanity metrics have value within context. They can show whether your content is resonating at an early stage. But the problem arises when they’re the only numbers being reported, or when the business can’t see how they tie to actual results.

Ultimately, what does the C-suite really want?

• High-quality MQLs: With strong MQL-to-SQL conversion rates

• Revenue ROI: If we spend £X on marketing, what does that do for revenue?

• Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): Prioritising long-term relationships over one-time clicks

It’s not that companies don’t believe in marketing; they just want to spend on what clearly benefits the business now and in the future. Showing real outcomes - even if they’re modest compared to headline-grabbing stats - helps build credibility and trust across the organisation.

Why Brand Still Matters

A strict obsession with immediate performance metrics often overlooks brand health, which is the backbone of sustainable growth. Tony Miller, Chair of the DMA, warns that failing to strike a balance between brand and performance means losing your edge in differentiation and innovation. Peter Field’s research also shows that “dull ads” are far less effective at growing market share than engaging, emotionally charged ones.

In B2B especially, brand identity feeds buyer trust and partnership potential. The best marketing strategies fuse brand-building and performance - it’s never been an either-or scenario.

The Challenge of Measurement

Shifting from “vanity” to more substantial metrics isn’t always simple. In a global survey of marketing directors:

• 43% struggled to tie marketing performance across the full funnel - from initial awareness through closed deals.

• 43% felt they couldn’t bridge the gap between lead generation and what happens after a lead is captured.

• 37% cited a lack of collaboration between marketing, sales, and other internal teams.

Another report found over 189 measurement methods in the industry, many focusing on short-term or fluffy delivery metrics. It’s no surprise that confusion (and scepticism) runs rampant.

Toward a Better System: Connecting Metrics to Outcomes

We don’t have to ditch every metric overnight. Many of them do serve an internal purpose, so long as they’re tied to genuine business goals. Here’s how:

1. Track MQL-to-SQL Conversion: Don’t obsess over total MQL volume; keep an eye on how many leads actually move deeper down the funnel.

2. Reverse-Engineer Marketing Targets: Collaborate with sales and finance to set revenue-based goals. If the company wants £Y from a campaign, how much marketing investment is realistically needed?

3. Consider Zero-Click & Brand Uplift: As AI-driven “answer engines” reduce direct clicks, brand uplift (via tools like Google’s Brand Lift) can help gauge recognition and sentiment.

This is less about making promises and more about setting a coherent narrative. If you’re aiming for a 30% pipeline increase, align that to specific brand-building ads and demand-gen campaigns. Show how it ties directly to revenue forecasts.

The “Pod” Approach to Collaboration

Some organisations embrace a pod model - cross-functional teams from sales, marketing, product, compliance, and legal, all focused on one target audience or vertical. Yes, it can feel messy at first. But the point is to remove silos and bring fresh perspectives to the marketing table:

• Increased Visibility: Everyone sees how marketing drives pipeline.

• Shared Accountability: No finger-pointing if leads aren’t converting; the pod owns success or failure together.

• Quick Iteration: Need to pivot messaging or budget? In a pod, those adjustments happen much faster.

It’s not about marketing by committee. It’s about harnessing multiple viewpoints and data streams so the customer ends up with a solution that truly meets their needs, not just the marketing department’s idea of what might work.

Marketing Technology & AI: A Double-Edged Sword

From ChatGPT to advanced data analytics, AI-driven marketing tools are exploding onto the scene. They can:

• Automate audience targeting and budget optimisation

• Generate rough drafts of campaign copy

• Predictively score leads to surface the most promising prospects

But technology alone isn’t enough. Machines don’t replace brand strategy, creative ingenuity, or authentic human-to-human marketing. As AI morphs search engines into “answer engines” and zero-click attribution becomes the new reality, brand recognition and trust will matter more than ever in B2B.

Humanising Your Metrics and Storytelling

“Let me tell you a story...” is still the most compelling way to bring your data to life. Instead of rattling off numbers to the CFO, connect those numbers to:

• Customer Journeys & Outcomes: How you helped real clients cut costs, scale faster, or protect their data

• ROI Benchmarks: Where your campaigns actually accelerated pipeline or enhanced retention

Ditch meaningless marketing jargon. Stick to the real, the tangible, and the human stories behind the data.

Looking Ahead: A Unified Marketing Vocabulary

As AI weaves itself deeper into the fabric of marketing, fresh metrics will crop up - particularly around brand uplift, sentiment tracking, and zero-click. Resist the urge to invent new buzzwords for every iteration. If anything, we need fewer, clearer metrics that everyone understands.

The age of vanity metrics is ending. Today’s marketing success demands transparent measurement, brand stewardship, and departmental collaboration. Teams that sync their marketing plans with the company’s core business objectives - from near-term revenue to long-term brand loyalty - won’t just dodge budget cuts, they’ll become growth engines.

Final Word

At its core, marketing is a strategic lever for sustainable growth - not just a place for “creative spending.” Prove that by linking your metrics to revenue, brand building, and customer satisfaction. Embrace AI where it makes sense, but never lose sight of the human element. That’s how “nice-to-have” budgets evolve into “must-invest” pillars of the business.

This post is part of my ongoing Marketing Human series, aimed at reconnecting data-driven marketing with the real people behind the clicks. If your boardroom has ever debated the merits of LinkedIn likes, or if you’re trying to move beyond vanity metrics, this conversation is for you. Let’s keep it going - share your own experiences or questions, and let’s reinvent what it means to do marketing the human way.