Ever been told that impressions, clicks, or traffic don’t matter? That they’re just “vanity metrics”?

Brendan Hufford, founder of Growth Sprints, would disagree. In fact, he ran the numbers and discovered LinkedIn impressions weren’t vanity at all – they were a leading indicator of revenue.

If you’ve been trying to earn your seat at the table while being dismissed for measuring the “wrong thing,” this one’s for you. 

In this edition:

• LinkedIn is a revenue channel (if you know what to look for)
• Related resource: Are you exploring the right story with your data?
• Coming soon: Live discussion on metrics in a zero-click world
• ICYMI: Last chance for early access to Predictable Scale
• This week’s silo-smashing GTM reads

🎙️ LinkedIn is a revenue channel (if you know what to look for)

For years, marketers have been dismissed for focusing on “vanity metrics.”

Page views, impressions, likes, and followers have all been dismissed as shallow indicators that don’t matter. 

To be fair, marketers created this problem. As Brendan explains:

“I think a lot of marketers don’t get the seat at the table that they deserve because they’re so worried about marketing metrics and they’re not thinking about business metrics.”

That’s led to a conclusion that these metrics just don’t matter.

But what if that assumption is wrong?

Brendan Hufford, founder of Growth Sprints, decided to test it for himself. 

From SEO to LinkedIn: testing the signals

First, Brendan pulled data from across multiple sources:

• LinkedIn for impressions and engagement
• Google Analytics + Google Search Console for web traffic
• ConvertKit for newsletter growth and engagement
• Nutshell CRM for leads, pipeline, and closed-won revenue

Then he started lining them up side by side in spreadsheets, looking for patterns. That’s when he saw something striking:

“The impressions came first, and the revenue came after, but they trended exactly together. There’s a strong correlation.”

LinkedIn impressions weren’t just noise. They were a leading indicator of pipeline and revenue.

Why correlation is more useful than causation

Brendan argues that in modern B2B, there’s no such thing as airtight attribution or a straight line through the funnel. 

Sales cycles stretch 12-18 months. (Which means that marketing cycles are even longer – something nobody seems to talk about!).

With dozens of channels and touchpoints, trying to prove exact causation is unrealistic, which is why Brendan is such a fan of correlation over causation. 

When impressions rise and revenue consistently follows, that’s a signal worth paying attention to. It may not satisfy the purists, but it gives GTM leaders something far more valuable: confidence to invest.

Applying the same lens across channels

The beauty of Brendan’s framework is that it doesn’t stop at LinkedIn. He shares how it just as easily translates to other channels, e.g.

• SEO: Are you ranking for terms that lead to revenue, or ones that just drive empty clicks?
• Email: Do subscribers who open more newsletters eventually become customers? If yes, maybe frequency should increase.
• Brand campaigns: Does strong awareness shorten the sales cycle? If so, it’s not vanity – it’s efficiency.
• Events and gifting: Do accounts that engage with these touchpoints close faster? Higher? More often?

The key is the same: find correlations between activity-level metrics and business outcomes, then double down where the signals are strong.

For GTM execs under pressure from CFOs, boards, and investors, this mindset reframes the conversation. Instead of defending impressions and clicks, you can show how they connect to pipeline and revenue – and use data to make smarter bets.

Get the full playbook for more GTM secrets

Brendan goes into more detail that’s worth checking out:

• How he approaches risk-taking without jeopardizing his entire business
• Why “Content IP” is the most important element most teams are missing

🛠️ Are you exploring the right story with your data?

Vanity metrics in isolation don’t tell the right story. 

With over 130 integration sources to choose from, Databox lets you pull all your data into one place – so you can start to explore the bigger story.

👉 Learn more →

📚 ICYMI: Get on the waitlist for a brand-new strategy-building course

Predictable Scale is CEO Pete Caputa’s brand new (and free!) self-paced course, coming in October. You'll learn how to:

• Develop an effective strategy
• Turn that strategy into a practical plan
• Align your team
• Leverage data to predict your growth and exceed your targets

👉 Join the waitlist now

🚀 Live DBUG discussion: September 25

Over 250 GTM leaders shared their thoughts on dark social, attribution reporting, and GTM team alignment on metrics that matter.

Join Pete Caputa and a circle of experts for a 60-minute live session unpacking our survey findings.

• Discover which metrics best predict pipeline in a zero-click landscape
• Share your attribution successes (and failures)
• Walk away with practical ideas for tracking dark-funnel impact

👉 Save your spot

🤝 This Week’s Silo-Smashing GTM Reads

Share with a colleague and tear down those walls! 

• What is Content IP? (Brendan Hufford, Growth Sprints)
• Brand vs Demand in the Age of AI (Carilu Dietrich) 
• What’s the Most Effective Content Strategy in 2025? (Andy Crestodina)

👀  Coming soon!

We’re back with more Go-To-Market expert insights next time – featuring Kathleen Booth, SVP of Marketing at Pavilion. Kathleen pulls from her own insights plus those of Pavilion’s massive GTM leader community to share how smart leaders are staying agile in a particularly volatile market.

📣 How'd we do?