Measuring the Real Impact of Sales and Marketing ROI
- Ray lang
- Feb 24
- 4 min read
Updated: Feb 25
Pt.5 Beyond the Funnel: Sales vs. Marketing | The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Why Most Businesses Get ROI Wrong
Marketing and sales are not expenses—they are investments. Yet, most businesses don’t know how to measure their actual Sales and Marketing ROI. Instead, they throw money at marketing agencies, ads, and campaigns without understanding if these efforts are truly profitable.
Here’s the truth: No matter how good or bad your marketing is, you’re still getting leads. The real question is, are those leads turning into paying customers? If your marketing ROI is terrible, ditch your agency and find a team that delivers. But if your sales performance is failing, no amount of marketing can fix that—you need sales performance improvement.
Over the last few years, the lines between sales and marketing have been blurred, largely due to bad and unqualified marketers who don’t truly understand their craft. The reality is, sales and marketing are on the same team—or at least they should be. Without marketing, there are no sales—marketing tells people who you are, why you should be trusted, and what you offer. Without sales, you don’t have a business! It’s as simple as that.
So, let’s stop the BS of playing piggy in the middle between these two crucial functions. Marketing deserves a seat at the big table, but they shouldn’t control the entire narrative. At the same time, sales leaders need to check their egos—when sales and marketing work together, it’s like a golden goose.
We know this first-hand. We’ve worked with some truly amazing marketers, and we’ve worked with some terrible ones too. The challenge? Knowing how to spot the difference.
If you don’t measure ROI correctly, you're literally throwing money down the toilet... wake up!
The Real Formula for Measuring Sales & Marketing ROI
Many businesses track marketing ROI in isolation, but true ROI must connect marketing and sales.
The Traditional (But Incomplete) Marketing ROI Formula
✔ (Revenue from Marketing – Marketing Costs) ÷ Marketing Costs x 100
The Problem: This only tracks marketing-generated revenue, ignoring sales execution.
The Correct Revenue-Driven ROI Formula
✔ ((Total Revenue from New Customers – Total Sales & Marketing Costs) ÷ Total Sales & Marketing Costs) x 100
Why This Works: It includes both sales & marketing investments, showing true business impact.
You spend £50,000 on marketing & sales improvements.
You generate £300,000 in new revenue.
ROI = ((£300,000 - £50,000) ÷ £50,000) x 100 = 500% ROI.
🚀 This is the only way to track if marketing & sales efforts are actually driving profit.
The Key Metrics That Define Real ROI
Most businesses track the wrong numbers—they focus on clicks, impressions, and lead volume instead of revenue-driving KPIs.
📌 Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Total Sales & Marketing Spend ÷ Total New Customers Acquired
Why It Matters:
✔ Shows how much it costs to acquire a new customer.
✔ Helps compare paid vs. organic strategies.
CAC should be low enough to maintain strong profitability.
📌 Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)
(Average Purchase Value x Purchase Frequency x Customer Lifespan)
Why It Matters:
✔ LTV should be 3-5x higher than CAC for a business to be sustainable.
✔ Helps businesses determine how much they can afford to invest in marketing & sales.
If CAC = £300, and LTV = £1,500, your ratio is 5:1 (healthy).
If CAC = £500, and LTV = £600, your ratio is 1.2:1 (unsustainable).
If your CAC is too high compared to LTV, you have a marketing or sales efficiency problem.
The Common ROI Mistakes That Cost Businesses Millions
🚨 Tracking the Wrong Metrics
❌ Social media followers, website visits, and ad clicks don’t equal revenue.
✔ Focus on lead conversion, sales performance, and actual revenue impact.
🚨 Not Aligning Marketing & Sales Data
❌ Marketing tracks leads, but doesn’t follow them through the sales funnel.
✔ Sales & marketing should track shared KPIs together (LTV, CAC, Win Rate).
🚨 Ignoring Customer Retention in ROI Calculations
❌ Many businesses only track first-time purchases.
✔ Loyal customers generate 5-7x more revenue than one-time buyers.
🚨 Not Testing and Iterating
❌ Many companies spend months on underperforming campaigns without adjusting.
✔ Weekly data reviews help pivot and increase ROI in real time.
Why ROI Measurement is Critical for Business Growth
🚨 Accountability Check: Marketing & Sales Leaders, Wake Up!
If your marketing isn’t delivering results, hit pause and reassess. A great marketer will support this—they know that testing, adapting, and refining strategy is how you get real outcomes. But if your marketing team or agency resists scrutiny, that’s a red flag.
Take the pill and cut them loose!
On the other hand, if your campaigns are performing well but you’re not closing them, it’s time to face the truth. Throwing more money at marketing won’t fix a broken sales engine.
You need to step up, own the problem, and fix it fast!
✔ Stop tracking vanity metrics—focus on what actually makes you money.
✔ Sales and marketing must align—if they’re not working together, you’re wasting budget.
✔ Conversions matter more than lead volume—more leads won’t save a weak sales process.
The smartest businesses don’t throw money at problems—they invest in strategies that drive real, measurable growth. If your marketing ROI is a disaster, ditch the dead weight. If your sales team can’t convert, stop blaming marketing and start improving your sales process.
Who can help with that? SalDevo.
We help businesses fix sales performance, optimise conversions, and stop wasting money on bad marketing.
💡 Let’s be clear—we don’t think all marketers are bad.
We work with some truly brilliant marketers as strategic partners who know their craft, get real results, and have earned our trust. The key is knowing how to separate the good from the bad, and ensuring marketing and sales work as a single powerhouse for real business growth.
📌 What’s Next?Now that we’ve covered how to measure real ROI, the next section will focus on sales improvement strategies—where businesses should concentrate their efforts for maximum growth.
🚀 Stay tuned.
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