September 2025
Written by
Abbie Mason
E-commerce
Marketing strategy
Product launch
Tech
Marketing and Maths: Connection That Drives Performance
Marketing is no longer just an art. It’s a science driven by numbers, ratios, and rate-based results.
From email campaigns to ad funnels, every element of your marketing activity hinges on mathematical logic — and the smartest brands are the ones who know how to read the data.
At the centre of it all is one thing: rate.
Click-through rate. Conversion rate. Retention rate. Open rate. These are more than buzzwords — they are the heartbeat of your brand’s performance.
What Is Rate in Marketing and Why It Matters
In digital marketing, rate metrics show how efficiently your content, ads, or communications are performing. These percentages reflect human behaviour — how many people engage, take action, or return. Without them, you’re flying blind.
Click Through Rate Measures Attention
Click-through rate (CTR) = (Clicks ÷ Impressions) × 100
CTR tells you how many people actually clicked on your ad, email, or post after seeing it. A low CTR could signal poor creative, weak headlines, or the wrong audience. A high CTR? You’ve nailed relevance and interest.
See Google’s CTR benchmarks for different industries to find out what good looks like.
Conversion Rate Reflects User Action
Conversion rate (CVR) = (Conversions ÷ Clicks) × 100
This is your bottom-line metric. It shows how many people who clicked on your content actually went on to convert — whether that means making a purchase, booking a table, or signing up.
According to Shopify, average ecommerce conversion rates sit around 2.5%, but smart design, clearer CTAs, and optimised checkout flows can double that.
Email Open and Click Rates Reveal Engagement
Your email marketing lives or dies by open rate and click rate:
Open rate = (Opens ÷ Emails Sent) × 100
Click rate = (Clicks ÷ Emails Delivered) × 100
Subject lines, segmentation, and timing all influence these numbers. Without solid engagement, your email list is just data without value.
Check Mailchimp’s benchmarks to compare open and click rates across sectors.
Customer Retention Rate Shows Loyalty
Retention rate = ((E – N) ÷ S) × 100
Where:
E = Customers at end of period
N = New customers acquired
S = Customers at start of period
This formula measures how many customers are sticking around. A high retention rate signals strong loyalty, good product-market fit, and effective CRM — and it often predicts long-term profitability.
Read Klaviyo’s take on retention to see why it’s more valuable than acquisition.
Why Marketing Rates Directly Impact Revenue
These metrics aren’t just nice-to-have. They drive your return on investment and determine the efficiency of your marketing spend.
Higher CTR means cheaper traffic on Meta and Google
Better CVR leads to lower cost per acquisition
Strong retention boosts customer lifetime value
High open rates lift your email revenue per send
Use this ROI calculator from HubSpot to visualise how small rate improvements lead to major returns.
How Maths Strengthens Creative Campaigns
At La La Communications, we pair maths with creative to create content that doesn’t just look good — it works.
We use performance data to:
Test different creative formats on Meta’s Advantage+
Refine messaging based on audience CTR and bounce rate
Adjust email strategies by tracking open rate decay
Restructure landing pages based on conversion patterns
Marketing that performs is always part instinct, part evidence. The best campaigns are built from both.
Forecasting and Predictive Marketing Models
When you understand your numbers, you can predict what’s next.
Forecast revenue based on current CVR and site traffic
Estimate email performance from open and click rate history
Map paid ad budgets using your historical ROAS
Triple Whale, Google’s Performance Planner, and Funnel.io can help brands make smarter, forecast-led marketing decisions.
Data Driven Marketing Powers Smarter Strategy
This is the future of marketing: deeply creative, ruthlessly calculated, and always measurable. When you understand rate-based thinking, every decision — from design to distribution — becomes more strategic. The numbers don’t lie. They tell you what’s working, what’s not, and where the biggest opportunities lie. At La La Communications, we make it our job to translate data into action.