What Melbourne Businesses Told Us About Their Marketing in 2025
Part of the SAAR Media’s 2025 Business Insight Series
Most business owners tell us they are doing plenty of marketing, yet they still feel unsure about what is working. This confusion appears even in growing companies. As a marketing agency in Melbourne that companies turn to for straight advice, we wanted to clear up the confusion many owners face. That is why, in early 2025, we launched an internal review using our Digital Marketing Scorecard to gather real data from local businesses.
We created the scorecard to help owners spot gaps, understand where money slips through the cracks, and compare their results with others. At the same time, it allowed us to gather real data across many industries. This mix of insights helped us map out the state of digital marketing in Australia during 2025.
Why We Built the Scorecard
We wanted to answer one important question.
Are businesses using the right marketing methods to support steady growth?
Many depend on referrals, and some spend thousands on ads without clean tracking. Others test new tools without a system that brings everything together. Because of this, we needed a simple way to measure marketing health across a wide range of businesses.
The scorecard gave us that tool. Owners could complete it in under three minutes with no complex terms. You can see the current version here: Free Marketing Scorecard
How the Scorecard Worked
The campaign ran from April to October 2025. During that period, businesses completed the scorecard. A large share was based in Victoria, including many Melbourne operators.
We collected responses across three important areas:
Sales Pipeline
We asked about:
- How leads are generated
- How conversions are measured
- What reporting is used
- How leads are qualified
These answers helped us see the funnel’s strength from first contact to final sale.
As external support, research from HubSpot shows that 44% of companies do not track their lead-to-close rate.
Automation and AI
We measured:
- Level of automation
- CRM usage
- AI adoption
- Frequency of use
To support these findings, McKinsey reports that businesses that use automation achieve higher speed and consistency across marketing tasks.
Retargeting
We asked:
- Whether they retarget website visitors
- What % of the budget goes to retargeting
- How confident do they feel in their strategy
As a backup, WordStream notes that retargeting can increase conversion rates by up to 150% for warm audiences.
Every answer was scored, and each business received a custom breakdown.
How We Processed the Data
We scored the answers based on strength. For example:
- Consistent lead flow scored higher than referral-only flow
- Weekly reporting scored higher than basic analytics
- Full automation scored higher than manual follow-up
- Active retargeting scored higher than interest without action
We then created:
- Sales Pipeline Score out of 10
- Automation and AI Score out of 10
- Retargeting Score out of 10
- Overall Score out of 10
Each business was placed into one of five categories:
- Foundation
- Emerging
- Performing
- Advanced
- Elite
This made comparisons simple and fair.
Initial Key Findings From the 2025 Data
We’re wrapping up the full report, but the early results have already made a few patterns stand out.
Lead Generation Is Unsteady
More than half of the respondents rely on referrals or inconsistent lead flow. This matches global research from Gartner, which states that unpredictable lead volume is one of the top concerns for small business marketers.
Tracking Needs Improvement
About one in three respondents does not track performance at all. Many look only at clicks or impressions instead of real outcomes. According to Forbes, data-driven marketing leads to stronger ROI, yet many businesses still avoid deeper tracking.
Automation Is Underused
Most respondents use little automation. They follow up manually and use AI only for simple tasks. Statista reports that only 27% of marketers use automation extensively, which supports what this dataset shows.
Retargeting Is the Largest Missed Step
This was the weakest pillar. Even when ad budgets were high, retargeting was often ignored. Since retargeting delivers strong returns, the lack of use points to lost revenue.
What This Means for Melbourne Businesses
As a marketing agency in Melbourne that businesses often work with, these insights reflect our daily experience. Solid systems lift performance. Weak tracking, poor automation, or no retargeting make growth harder than it needs to be.
Good systems reduce:
- Wasted ad spend
- Missed warm leads
- Slow follow-up
- Revenue swings
Businesses that fix these parts usually grow faster without increasing their ad budgets.
The Purpose Behind the Campaign
We built this scorecard to help owners understand their marketing without long audits and to gain clear national insights. The results now guide how we build strategies for clients and how we help new leads understand their gaps.
Our research gives a clear view of the areas where most businesses lose money, as well as the steps that deliver the quickest improvements.
How SAAR® Media Can Support You
If you want help from a marketing agency in Melbourne that companies trust for honest and practical digital marketing, SAAR® Media is here to guide you. We focus on improving:
- Sales pipelines
- Tracking systems
- Retargeting
- Automation
- Reporting
- Paid Ads on Google and Meta
You can take the free scorecard here or book a call through our site to review your results.
Conclusion
The 2025 research campaign gave us a clear look at how Australian businesses approach digital marketing. Many owners work hard but lack the systems that create steady growth. Once these systems are set up, results improve quickly. If you want support from a marketing agency Melbourne businesses rely on to build clear and effective digital strategies, SAAR Media can guide you through the next steps.