Stop throwing money at the wall to see what sticks
Look, I get it. You’re running a business in Brisbane, and you’re being told a thousand different things. You need to be on TikTok. You need Google Ads. You need to post on Facebook three times a day.
But here’s the reality: most of that is rubbish.
If you don’t know exactly how a customer goes from seeing an ad to putting money in your bank account, you’re flying blind. You’re basically standing on the Story Bridge throwing twenty-dollar notes into the river and hoping a boat catches them.
Today, we’re talking about tracking the path your customers take. In the marketing world, people call this "conversion path analysis." I call it "knowing where your bloody money is going."
What is a customer path, anyway?
Think about the last time you hired a tradie or bought something expensive. You didn’t just wake up, see one ad, and click 'buy' instantly.
It usually looks like this: 1. You see a Facebook ad while scrolling at night. 2. Three days later, you search for the business name on Google. 3. You click a link, look at their reviews, and leave. 4. A week later, you get an email or see another ad, and finally, you pick up the phone and call them.
That whole journey is the "path." If you only look at the last thing the customer did (the phone call), you might think your Facebook ad didn't work. So you turn it off. Then, suddenly, your phone stops ringing.
This is why seeing where sales come from is the most important thing you can do for your marketing. If you don't understand the journey, you'll kill the very thing that's making you money.
The big lie: "Last-Click" is enough
Most basic tracking tools are lazy. They give all the credit to the very last thing someone clicked.
Imagine a footy game. The halfback does all the work, beats five players, and passes it to the winger who walks it over the line. If you only tracked who scored the try, you'd think the halfback was useless.
In business, your Facebook ads are often the halfback. They do the heavy lifting by introducing people to your brand. Your Google search listing is the winger who finishes the job.
If you only look at the "last click," you'll end up firing your best players. We’ve seen clients cut their marketing budget in half because they thought certain ads weren't "working," only to see their entire business dry up a month later.
Don't fall for it. You need to see the whole story.
Why your website is a leaky bucket
You can spend a fortune on the best ads in the world, but if your website is rubbish, it won’t matter.
I’m not talking about it looking pretty. I’m talking about whether it actually works. Does it load fast? Can someone find your phone number in two seconds? Does the contact form actually send you an email, or does it vanish into a black hole?
If your path to a sale involves a broken form, you're burning cash. We talk about this a lot because website forms cost sales more often than business owners realise. If a customer has to work hard to give you money, they’ll go to the bloke down the road instead.
How to actually track this stuff without losing your mind
You don’t need a degree in data science. You just need to know what to look for. Here is how we break it down for our clients at Local Marketing Group.
1. The "Awareness" Stage (The Handshake)
This is the first time they see you. Maybe it’s a sponsored post or a video. At this stage, they aren't ready to buy. They’re just checking you out.What to track: Are people actually watching the video? Are they clicking through to your site?
2. The "Interest" Stage (The Chat)
Now they know who you are. They might visit your "About Us" page or look at your previous work. They’re looking for proof that you aren't a cowboy.What to track: Which pages are they looking at? Do they stay for 10 seconds or 2 minutes?
3. The "Decision" Stage (The Quote)
This is where the magic happens. They’re looking at your pricing, your contact page, or your booking calendar.What to track: How many people get to this page but don't call? If 100 people look at your quote page and only 1 calls, you have a problem with your message, not your ads.
4. The "Action" Stage (The Money)
They call. They book. They buy.What to track: Where did they originally come from?
Stop chasing vanity numbers
I’m going to be blunt: I don’t care how many 'likes' your last photo got. Likes don't pay the power bill. Comments don't buy you a new work ute.
Too many agencies will send you a report full of big numbers—impressions, reach, engagement. It’s all smoke and mirrors to hide the fact they aren't making you money.
Focus on numbers that pay bills. How many leads did you get? What was the cost per lead? How many of those turned into actual jobs?
If an agency can't tell you how many phone calls their ads generated last month, fire them. Seriously.
The "Time to Buy" Factor
One thing most people forget is that some customers take a long time to decide.
If you’re a plumber and someone has a burst pipe, their "path" is about 30 seconds long. They search, they click, they call.
If you’re a kitchen renovator, that path might be six months long. They’ll look at your Instagram, browse your gallery, read your blogs, and talk to their spouse before they ever reach out.
If you expect a kitchen renovation lead to come from one single Facebook click, you’re dreaming. You need to stay in front of them over those six months. This is why having your own list is so powerful. You stop paying Mark Zuckerberg to talk to the same person over and over again.
Practical steps you can take today
You don't need to spend $10k on software to start doing this better. Start here:
1. Ask every caller: "How did you hear about us?" It’s old school, but it works. If they say "Google," ask if it was an ad or just the map. 2. Check your site on your phone. Not your fancy office computer. Your phone. While you're walking. Is it easy to click the call button? If not, fix it. 3. Look at your Google Business Profile. Most local sales happen here. Are people clicking the 'Call' button or the 'Website' button? 4. Set up basic tracking. Make sure you have a way to see when someone fills out a form. It sounds basic, but you'd be surprised how many businesses don't have this set up properly.
My honest take on the cost
Doing this properly takes time. You can do the basics yourself for free, but if you want to see the full path—exactly which ad led to which phone call—you’re going to need some proper tools and someone who knows how to set them up.
Expect to pay a decent agency a few hundred a month just for the tracking and reporting side of things. It sounds like an extra expense, but it actually saves you thousands because you stop spending money on ads that are doing absolutely nothing.
Summary: What should you do now?
Marketing isn't a mystery. It's just a sequence of events. Someone sees you, someone likes you, someone trusts you, someone buys from you.
If you can't see those steps, you can't improve them. Stop looking at your total sales as one big lump and start looking at the journey.
If you want to stop guessing and start seeing exactly which ads are making you money, we can help you sort the wheat from the chaff.
Drop us a line at Local Marketing Group. We’ll have a chat about your business, look at what you’re doing now, and tell you straight if you’re wasting your cash. No jargon, no fluff. Just more sales.