Vanity Metrics Don’t Grow Businesses; Insight Does
It’s easy to feel like marketing is working when the numbers look good. More likes. More views. More followers.
But if those numbers aren’t turning into clicks, inquiries, bookings, or sales, they’re not growth, they’re noise.
The truth is simple: vanity metrics don’t grow businesses. Insight does.
I’m Kassandra, founder of Her Marketing Collective Agency. With over seven years of marketing experience supporting everyone from multi-million-dollar companies to local service providers and online businesses in Ottawa, I’ve seen the same pattern repeat across industries:
Businesses don’t stall because they lack effort.
They stall because they lack clarity.
And clarity comes from the right kind of reporting.
What are vanity metrics?
Vanity metrics are numbers that can look impressive but don’t necessarily reflect business outcomes. Examples include:
likes and reactions
views and impressions
follower count
reach without conversion
They can be helpful context, but they don’t answer the most important questions, like:
What’s driving real leads?
What content is influencing purchases?
What’s causing people to click, save, book, or inquire?
What should we do next month to improve results?
If you’re not tracking the right information, you’re essentially marketing on guesswork.
Monthly reporting vs. Competitor & market research reporting
One of the biggest gaps we see in small business marketing is that reporting is either too basic (“your reach went up”) or too overwhelming (“here are 30 charts”), and neither approach helps you make decisions confidently.
That’s why we talk about reporting in two clear categories:
1) Monthly Report: “The Crystal Ball”
A monthly marketing report is your performance review. It helps you understand what happened in the last 30 days and what to do next.
A strong monthly report should clarify:
which content performed best (and why)
what didn’t work (and what to stop)
what to repeat, improve, or test next month
how your audience is behaving (clicks, saves, website traffic, inquiries)
how content connects to business goals
In other words: it turns your marketing activity into a clear plan.
2) Competitor & Market Research Report: “The Secret Sauce”
Competitor and market research is about positioning. It shows you what’s happening in your industry and where opportunities exist.
A strong competitor and market research report should help you see:
what competitors are doing consistently
what’s working in your market (messaging, offers, content angles)
where gaps exist that you can own
how to stand out instead of blending in
emerging opportunities based on customer demand and trends
This is where strategy gets sharper, because you stop guessing what will work and start building based on real-world signals.
Why businesses need both
A monthly report helps you optimize based on your data.
A competitor and market report helps you optimize based on your market.
Together, they answer the two most important growth questions:
What is working inside our business right now?
What is working around us, and how do we compete strategically?
Because here’s the problem: you can have strong content, but if your strategy is out of date or your positioning is unclear, you’ll still struggle to convert attention into revenue.
And if you don’t understand what drives results, you can’t scale it.
You can’t scale what you don’t understand
If you don’t know what’s driving:
website clicks
inquiries and DMs
email signups
bookings and purchases
…then growth becomes random. Some months feel great. Some months feel quiet. And you’re left wondering what changed.
Most of the time, what changed is simply the inputs, the content type, the topic, the offer, the message, or the timing. Reporting helps you identify those patterns so you can repeat what works.
A practical action step you can do today
Look back at your last 30 days of marketing and answer this:
What content generated the most saves, clicks, or inquiries, and did you do more of it?
If the answer is “no,” you’ve just found your opportunity.
Growth isn’t always about doing more. Often, it’s about doing more of what works and stopping what doesn’t.
Insight-based marketing support (for businesses that want real results)
If you want marketing that’s guided by clear insights, not guesses, reporting and research can become one of the most valuable tools in your strategy.
Whether you’re improving your content plan, refining your offers, or trying to increase leads and sales, the right reporting helps you make decisions with confidence and build momentum month after month.
At Her Marketing Collective, we help businesses turn data into direction, so your marketing becomes measurable, repeatable, and easier to scale.
