Sport treats review as part of the game: play, review, adjust, go again. Marketing rarely does, even though the equivalent footage already exists in website traffic, email opens and clicks, comments, DMs, reviews, and post saves and shares. The same three phases apply, training is planning and review, game day is execution and launch, post-game is assessing what resonated and what fell flat which makes reviewing marketing a habit rather than a one-off audit.
Believe it or not, marketing and sport have more in common than we think. In small business, we’re often focused on doing the thing, posting, emailing, launching. But the better question is… what’s actually working… and am I reviewing it?
Smarter marketing isn’t about doing more. It’s about informing decisions by looking at what’s working, what’s not, and where to focus next. The idea of “reviewing your marketing tapes” comes straight from sport. It’s how performance improves, you pause, look back, adjust, and make the next best play. That perspective shift is exactly why we created The Marketing Review Room, to show small business owners how to review your marketing in a simple, practical way, using the information they already have.
In sport, reviewing performance isn’t optional. It’s just part of how the game works.
You play.
You review.
You adjust.
You go again.
From club level to elite teams, no one just keeps playing and hopes it works out. And yet… that’s exactly how most small businesses approach marketing. Most of the small business owners and marketers I work with are constantly in motion:
- Posting on social
- Sending emails
- Creating offers
- Running ads
- Trying to do all the things
But when I ask, “How’s it all performing?” or “Did that work?” The answer is usually along the lines of “I don’t know what I’m supposed to be looking at to work that out.” And this is more common than you think. If you’re thinking, yep, that’s me… You’re not alone.
let’s focus in on sports for a sec
Every weekend growing up, in winter, I’d play netball. Week in, week out, rain or shine. We’d give it everything we had, and afterward? We got feedback. Sometimes wanted… sometimes shouted from the sidelines (thanks Mum 😅). But always there. Then we’d train during the week. Not just running the drills and sprints, at training, we were constantly reviewing. We talked about what worked, what didn’t, and what we’d try differently next time. Because sporting teams, and athletes at any level, whether it be at professional or local club level, don’t just play the game, they analyse it. They watch the tapes. They review every move. They adjust their strategy and approach.
So let me ask you, are you doing the same with your marketing? Because your marketing has a review room too, the question is, are you watching it?
Now, let’s look at your marketing for a sec. You’ve got access to so much more data and information than you realise, it’s everywhere! And I want you to think about it like this. Your marketing data (info) is your very own version of game footage:
- Website traffic
- Email opens and clicks
- Comments, DMs, reviews
- Post saves and shares
- Conversations with your audience
These are real signals showing you what’s working, what’s not, and where the opportunities are. So many small business owners and marketing specialists aren’t looking, not because they don’t care, but because it feels… hard, overwhelming, confusing. And I’ve been there, as a marketer, 10 years ago, before moving into the analytics space. I’d jump into Google Analytics and jump straight out. Overwhelm, confusion, all the feels. No time to work it out, and the idea I’d come back to ‘that’ later.
Confusing. Boring. “Not my thing.” These are all the stories we tell ourselves around data. Google Analytics, I’m looking at you 👀. The question I hear the most is simply, “How do I get started?” Usually accompanied by, “What should I be looking at?”
So, what if you stopped guessing?
Imagine knowing what content has your audience taking the action to visit your website, and then helping them to take that next step to sign up for your email list, or book a call, or purchase that product. Imagine spotting when (and why) people leave your site. Or when they stick around, and what they look at.
Imagine knowing your marketing was actually… working. Because it was built on, and informed by real insights, not just hope.
Let’s simplify it.
In sport, it looks like this:
Training = Your planning and review phases. This is where you analyse past campaigns, gather insights, and refine your approach.
Game Day = The execution and launch phase. You implement your strategies, test new ideas, and engage with your audience.
Post-Game = Review & refine. Assessing the results. What resonated? What fell flat? Where can you improve?
Stop guessing. Start reviewing. And start using the information you already have. You’re already doing a lot. But understanding what’s actually working comes from looking at the data you have at your fingertips, not just by doing more, putting more out there, and hoping for the best. You’ve got insight. You’ve got tools. You just need a way to bring it together.
So how do you get started?
If you’re thinking, I’m ready to start knowing what’s working, and not working in my marketing, so I can be more focused, and efficient then I’d love see you in The Marketing Review Room, our 4-week online program that simply gets you started in reviewing your own marketing tapes.
