Building a Marketing Foundation from Scratch

Kait’s First 90 Days

Kait just started as the first marketing leader at a mid-sized SaaS company. The team has never focused on marketing metrics before, and there’s no structure to measure impact.

Kait’s excited but knows the road ahead involves setting up processes, getting buy-in, and translating marketing’s value into business outcomes.

Here’s Kait’s journey, broken into scenarios, each layered with practical playbook steps to help her succeed.


Setting the Foundation—What Matters Most?

Kait’s first meeting with the CEO starts with this question:
CEO: “How do we know if marketing is actually working?”
Kait: “Great question! Let’s define what success looks like. What business outcomes do we want marketing to support—revenue, customer retention, market share?”

Start by asking:

  • What does success look like for the company?
  • What are the key handoffs between marketing and sales?
  • Which metrics will the leadership team care about most?

Then try:

  • Simplify the focus by picking one or two metrics that align with business goals, like pipeline contribution or lead quality.
  • Create a basic dashboard with website visits, form submissions, and campaign reach.

Kait’s takeaway: “The CEO wants to see pipeline impact. I’ll start tracking leads generated and their contribution to sales.”

Pro Tip: Don’t overcomplicate it. Start small and scale.


Making Attribution Simple

Kait wants to show how marketing impacts the buyer’s journey but knows attribution is tricky.

Kait (to herself): “How do I track which marketing efforts are working when there are so many touchpoints?”

Start by asking:

  • How do customers engage before they talk to sales?
  • Which campaigns or channels bring in the most traffic?
  • Can marketing and sales agree on key milestones to measure?

Then try:

  • Use first-touch attribution to measure where buyers first interacted with your brand (e.g., ads, blogs).
  • Layer on multi-touch attribution to track how various touchpoints (emails, events, ads) influenced the deal.
  • Add unique QR codes or URLs to events, flyers, or promotional items to track engagement.

A simple way to measure:

  • Set up a form field on your website: “How did you hear about us?”
  • Compare Google Analytics (GA4) or Microsoft Clarity data to campaign activity to spot correlations.

Pro Tip: Perfect attribution doesn’t exist. Focus on trends, not absolutes.


Proving ROI to the CFO

Kait’s first big campaign drove traffic and leads, but now the CFO asks, “What’s the actual ROI?”

CFO: “How do we know this campaign helped the business?”
Kait: “Let me show you how we turned traffic into dollars.”

Start by asking:

  • How many of these leads turned into sales opportunities?
  • What’s the average deal size and close rate for these opportunities?
  • How do these results compare to our cost per lead (CPL) and customer acquisition cost (CAC)?

Then try:

  • Present metrics like pipeline contribution: “This campaign added $3M to the pipeline, with $750K closed so far.”
  • Highlight efficiency: “We achieved a 4:1 ROI, reducing CAC by 15%.”
  • Add a human story: “Customer A upgraded after seeing this campaign.”

A simple way to measure:

  • Calculate ROI: (Revenue Generated – Campaign Cost) ÷ Campaign Cost.

Pro Tip: Pair hard numbers with stories for maximum impact.


Tackling Offline Impact

The sales team tells Kait that promotional items and trade shows are critical, but she struggles to measure their value.

Sales Lead: “How do we know our flyers and events are worth it?”
Kait: “Let’s track what we can and use smart proxies for the rest.”

Start by asking:

  • What’s the simplest way to track engagement from events or promo items?
  • How does offline activity drive digital behaviour (e.g., website visits)?

Then try:

  • Add QR codes or unique landing pages to promotional materials to track activity.
  • Analyze website traffic spikes during or after events.
  • Use optional surveys at events: “What made you visit today?”

A simple way to measure:

  • Compare lead or traffic data before, during, and after offline activities.

Pro Tip: Combine offline insights with digital tracking to show a fuller picture.


Gaining Buy-In Without Being Asked

Kait notices that no one is asking for marketing metrics yet, but she knows presenting data proactively will build trust.

Kait (to herself): “How can I deliver value before they expect it?”

Start by asking:

  • What are leadership’s biggest concerns: growth, retention, and efficiency?
  • How can I link early marketing wins to those goals?

Then try:

  • Share small wins like: “Our new campaign drove 20% more leads this quarter.”
  • Set expectations early: “Here’s how I plan to track marketing’s contribution over time.”

A simple way to measure:

  • Present a quick overview of high-level metrics (e.g., lead growth, campaign ROI) tied to business outcomes.

Pro Tip: Being proactive builds credibility. Leaders love surprises that come with numbers.


Kait’s First Wins

In just 90 days, Kait:

  1. Aligned metrics with business goals.
  2. Tracked and measured key campaign outcomes.
  3. Built trust with leadership by connecting marketing to revenue and growth.

Her approach wasn’t perfect, but it was practical. Kait didn’t just start tracking metrics—she started changing how the company thinks about marketing’s role.

finally. Connecting the Dots With Storytelling

Kait’s journey as a marketing leader shows us something fundamental: metrics and campaigns are important, but storytelling is what transforms marketing activity into meaningful business outcomes.

The best marketers don’t just present numbers.
They connect the dots.

Kait didn’t stop at tracking clicks or impressions. She built a narrative that tied marketing efforts to revenue growth, pipeline contribution, and customer value. Her secret? Pairing hard data with relatable stories.

When Kait reported that a campaign added $3M to the pipeline, she didn’t stop there. She added context: “This campaign helped us gain ground on Competitor X in Segment A, and it drove Customer A to upgrade after seeing our message.”

That’s the magic of storytelling. It bridges the gap between data and decisions, making marketing’s value undeniable.

Storytelling also helps marketers overcome challenges like attribution gaps or offline activities. Kait used creative proxies like QR codes and landing pages to measure engagement and tied it back to digital outcomes. She didn’t aim for perfection; she focused on progress.

The takeaway? Metrics matter, but the story you build around them is what earns trust, drives action, and proves marketing’s role as a growth engine. When you align your narrative with financial outcomes, you elevate marketing from “just another department” to an indispensable part of the business strategy.

So, as you reflect on your marketing efforts, ask yourself:

  • What story am I telling with my data?
  • How can I connect marketing activity to what the CEO, CFO, or sales team cares about most?

Remember, storytelling isn’t just a creative tool. It’s your most powerful weapon for building credibility and driving meaningful impact.


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