Marketing teams have never had more data, but that hasn’t made reporting easier. In fact, it’s made misalignment more common. While marketers talk about CTRs, impressions, engagement rates, and keyword rankings, leaders care about revenue, efficiency, customer value, and growth. That gap is where marketing loses influence. To build credibility and justify continued investment, in-house… Continue reading Aligning Marketing Metrics with Business Goals: A Reporting Framework for In-House Teams
Author: Neil Welsh
Neil Welsh founded Silverback Strategies in 2007 with one goal: build the agency he always wished had had when he was a Marketing Director. Back then, he was stuck working with agencies that talked in clicks and impressions while he was focused on revenue. The disconnect cost time, money, and trust -- and he knew there had to be a better way. Today, Neil leads one of the most respected digital performance agencies in the country. Under his leadership, Silverback has been named an Ad Age Best Place to Work, Inc. Best Workplace, and Washington Post Top Workplace. He's been recognized as a DIGIDAY Top Boss and continues to champion a culture of speed, accountability, and real business impact. Beyond the agency, Neil is a Programming Leader for the YPO Digital Campus and will soon serve as Assistant Learning Officer of the YPO Marketing Network, helping top executives stay sharp in a fast-moving digital landscape. Before building marketing strategies, Neil sold used cars--a crash course in human behavior, persuasion, and grit. He still thinks about going back one day a month just for fun.
Where SEO Ends and Paid Media Begins: How Both Channels Work Together
For years, SEO and paid media have been treated as separate operations, run by different teams with different goals, KPIs, and timelines. But today’s digital landscape doesn’t reward silos. It rewards integration. Your customers don’t experience your brand in channels. They experience a journey. Whether they first see your brand through organic search, a Google… Continue reading Where SEO Ends and Paid Media Begins: How Both Channels Work Together
Why Your Competitor Analysis Is Missing the Mark
Every marketing team has heard some version of the same directive: “Keep an eye on what the competition is doing.” But without a clear framework, competitor research quickly becomes noise. Teams obsess over keywords, mimic ad copy, or chase fleeting SERP gains. These reactive decisions pile up to dilute your positioning and confuse your audience.… Continue reading Why Your Competitor Analysis Is Missing the Mark
Last Click Addiction: How We Fucked Up Marketing
Let’s start here:We fucked up. Not just us. The entire performance marketing industry. We let ad platforms define success. We optimized conversions, not the P&L. We built media plans on flawed data, patted ourselves on the back, and called it performance. And it worked. Until it didn’t. The Setup: Performance Marketing’s Dirty Secret On paper,… Continue reading Last Click Addiction: How We Fucked Up Marketing
There’s War in Your C Suite, And Growth Is The Casualty
The CEO wants growth. The CFO wants proof. The CMO wants credit. What do they get instead?Confusion, conflicting dashboards, and a standing meeting that feels more like group therapy. Sound familiar?Welcome to the marketing mess at mid-sized companies. Measurement Theater Let’s stop pretending. You’re measuring marketing the wrong way, and you know it. It’s not… Continue reading There’s War in Your C Suite, And Growth Is The Casualty
How ChatGPT Is Reshaping the Way People Search. And What Marketers Should Do About It
A new study from OpenAI analyzed over 1.5 million ChatGPT conversations between May 2024 and June 2025.