If you’ve felt like you’re doing more marketing and getting not much back lately, you’re not imagining it. In our State of Small Biz report, a third of business owners said their revenue and leads were the same in 2025 as 2024, and a quarter said they were down. Meanwhile, in Nadine Nethery’s State of the Customer report, 68% of business owners said they’re frustrated by a lack of sales.
So I hosted a live conversation to compare notes—because small business reality and customer behavior aren’t separate stories. They’re the same story from two angles.
Here’s what stood out (and what to do with it if you’d like marketing to feel less like yelling into a leaf blower).
1) You’re not competing for attention. You’re competing for trust.
I asked a somewhat obvious (and definitely frustrating) question: What are we actually competing for right now with our customers? And Nadine’s take was trust wins because “AI slop is everywhere,” and customers don’t know what’s real anymore.
That’s an important realization because competing for attention is very different from how you can win someone’s trust as a small business owner. And Nadine said the trust signals customers are leaning on right now are:
- Previous experiences with a brand (this was a huge decision driver)
- Shared values (over half of people are looking for this)
- Transparency (no tricksy scarcity, no fake timers, no “ONLY 2 SPOTS LEFT” when you have 700)
- Testimonials + reviews (roughly a third need them to feel safe)
Translation: your marketing can’t just be louder. It has to be clearer, more honest, and more helpful faster.
Want to take an action based on this? Pick one of your offers and add a new section (or two) to the sales page where you talk about:
- Who it’s for / who it’s not for
- What’s included (and what isn’t)
- How long it typically takes to see results
- What someone should do first to get a quick win
2) Burnout isn’t only “doing too much.” It’s doing too much that doesn’t help the buyer decide.
Here’s the combo punch Nadine and I talked about because it showed up in both the State of Small Biz and State of the Customer reports:
- 81% of small business owners reported some form of burnout (and our survey went out in September, so cool)
- Only 20% rated their marketing as very or extremely effective
- Nadine’s report showed 23% are frustrated by lack of engagement
So I asked her to share her thoughts. Are we burnt out because we’re doing too much or because we’re doing the wrong things over and over?
Her answer: both, and the fix is the same. Because customers are time-poor too. If your marketing makes them work hard to understand:
- what you do
- who it’s for
- what to do next
...they’re going to scroll away, even if you’re brilliant.
Want to take an action based on this? Reduce decision fatigue for your customers with a 3-line “path” everywhere you show up (bio, website, pinned post, email footer)
- What you help with
- Who it's for
- What to do next
Example: “I help [who] do [result] without [pain]. Here’s how: [method]. Start here: [link].”
3) Data isn’t boring. It’s a cheat code for confidence.
One of my favorite stats from the State of Small Biz report: Small business owners who track their marketing numbers and use them to make decisions were 2.8x more likely to rate their marketing as effective.
Nadine saw the same pattern from the customer experience side: the more you understand what’s working (lifetime value, churn, conversions, engagement), the more confident you get—and the less you waste time on marketing that drains you.
Want to take an action based on this? Here is your sign to start tracking some numbers already! Just pick something(s) simple:
- Email open rate
- Number of leads
- Leads by source
- Average customer value
4) The “new audience” dopamine hit is real, and it’s costing you.
Nadine said something that made me laugh and wince at the same time: there’s a dopamine link to new followers, new subscribers, new leads. And yes—new eyeballs matter. But if you treat new people like hot potatoes afterthey opt in (or buy once), they’ll do the most logical thing: unsubscribe, stop following you, and buy from someone else.
The wild part: Nadine found that 60% of business owners would choose acquisition over retention if they could only pick one. But retention is where your marketing starts feeling less exhausting.
Want to take an action based on this? Create one “repeat buyer” nudge:
- a post-purchase email with next steps and a fast win
- a “what to do next” offer suggestion
- a check-in email 14 days after purchase
- a referral prompt after someone gets results
5) Automation is still rare—which is why everyone feels like they’re running on fumes.
Nadine’s State of the Customer report showed:
- Only 4% are using AI in customer-supporting processes
- 58% use either no automation or only basic “here’s your lead magnet” emails
- A lot of people are doing everything manually while also wondering why they’re tired
This is the part where I’ll say the quiet thing out loud: If your business brings in leads but nothing guides them anywhere, you’re basically filling a bucket with a hole in it.
Want to take an action based on this? Automate one “helpful handoff”:
- When someone opts in → they get a “Start here” email + the #1 next step
- When someone buys → they get onboarding + what success looks like
- When someone finishes → they get “Here’s what to do next”
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6) How to use AI without turning into beige internet oatmeal
We talked about the real tension: AI can save time. But it can also make your brand sound like it’s wearing a name tag that says, “HELLO I AM GENERIC.”
Nadine’s rule of thumb: use AI to free up time so you can connect more deeply—not to replace the human part of your business. She also shared a great example: using a chatbot to help members navigate a portal (find lessons, locate resources), but not to replace the actual relationship or support.
Want to take an action based on this? Use AI for:
- generating content ideas
- drafting outlines
- summarizing customer feedback
- tagging/support triage
- first drafts you heavily rewrite
Don’t use AI for:
- your final “voice” (you should always be revising any draft AI gives you)
- your opinions
- your lived examples
- the part where you actually sound like a person
Because if it reads like it could belong to anyone, it belongs to no one.
7) Creativity still matters. You just need guardrails so it doesn’t run your calendar.
Nadine and I also got into the “I do my best work when I’m inspired” talk. Because, here’s the thing: inspiration is awesome. But if inspiration is the only plan, marketing becomes a weekly negotiation with your own brain.
Nadine’s approach was simple and smart:
- keep an ideas list
- don’t act immediately
- slot ideas into a bigger plan
- sanity-check with data + goals
- trash the ones that don’t fit (respectfully, with love)
Want to take an action based on this? Make a 3-question filter for every shiny idea:
- Does my audience actually want this?
- Does it connect to an offer or goal this quarter?
- Can I execute it without derailing everything else?
If it fails two out of three, it goes back on the shelf.
What this all means for marketing a small business in 2026
If marketing has felt harder lately, it’s because:
- people trust less
- attention is more expensive
- buyers are overwhelmed
- and “posting more” doesn’t fix any of that
The way forward looks like:
- earn trust with clarity + proof
- reduce friction in how people decide
- track a few numbers so you stop guessing
- put real effort into the people already in your world
- automate the helpful parts so you’re not doing everything manually
And if you want a simple north star to keep on your desk: Marketing isn’t just how people find you. It’s how people experience you.
Download Enji's State of Small Biz report.
Download Nadine's State of the Customer report.
