Why Small Businesses Need to Measure Marketing Returns

In a recent LinkedIn post, Neil Patel discusses how small businesses can mistake a measurement problem for a marketing problem. This article reports on Patel’s post and examines his emphasis on comparing customer acquisition costs with customer spending.

“Most businesses don’t have a marketing problem. They have a measuring problem.”

Patel grounds that argument in a figure he attributes to Constant Contact’s 2025 report: only 18% of small business owners feel very confident in their marketing results. The post does not detail the report’s methodology, but Patel uses the statistic to highlight a gap between marketing activity and confidence in its outcomes.

Putting two customer numbers side by side

According to Patel, businesses should know what it costs to acquire a new customer and how much that customer spends over a year. The comparison offers a basic way to assess whether marketing is bringing in customers at a sustainable cost. Patel writes:

“Know what a new customer costs you. Know what that customer spends in a year.”

The measure is straightforward, but applying it requires businesses to track acquisition costs and connect them to customer purchases. That can involve several marketing channels and repeat transactions, so the figures are most useful when businesses define what they include and use a consistent time period.

From activity to evidence

Patel argues that if acquisition costs exceed a customer’s annual spending, the business may be relying on guesswork. He puts the point sharply: “you’re not marketing. You’re guessing.” In context, the line serves as a warning about making decisions without knowing whether customer revenue is keeping pace with the cost of attracting customers.

The comparison is a starting point rather than a complete account of marketing performance. A customer may spend more in later years, and the post’s one-year measure does not account for other costs of serving that customer. Still, Patel’s central point is that businesses need measurable figures before they can judge whether a campaign is working or decide what to change.

A practical question for small businesses

Patel’s post turns marketing evaluation into two questions: What does it cost to win a customer, and what does that customer spend? His framing encourages small business owners to base marketing decisions on tracked results rather than impressions or activity alone. The post offers no universal benchmark, but it presents a clear first step: establish the numbers and compare them.