Marketing Performance and Influencer Marketing: With an ROI focus for measurable success

Imagine your CEO asking you, “How many products did we sell through the Instagram video?” Can you answer this question? If not, then you're doing classic influencer marketing - but not performance marketing with measurable ROI.

The truth is: influencer marketing has evolved from a “nice-to-have” to a performance channel. The industry will reach a volume of 32.55 billion US dollars in 2025 (1). While many brands focus on reach, successful companies have changed their focus: on customer acquisition costs, influencer marketing ROI and real conversions.

This article shows you how to correctly measure marketing performance in Influencer Marketing, which key performance indicators count and how you can master expectation management with ROI Calculators.

You can watch the full story behind this success in detail: In our YouTube video with Fabienne from Upway we talk about the entire journey - from the first pitch presentation to successful scaling. Fabienne provides honest insights into challenges, lessons learned and concrete numbers on marketing performance.

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Follower numbers look impressive. But do they correlate with your sales? Mostly not. This is the difference between classic Influencer Marketing and performance marketing with clear performance goals.

Classic influencer campaigns focus on reach and likes. Instead, performance marketing measures customer acquisition cost, cost per session, conversion rate and return on investment - the really important key performance indicators for marketing performance.

Fabian, Marketing Manager at Upway, puts it in a nutshell: “We don’t do marketing because we think it’s nice to have, but everything we do has to be measurable.”

The Influencer Marketing ROI numbers speak for themselves: companies earn an average of $6.50 for every dollar they invest in influencer marketing. The best campaigns even achieve an ROI of 20:1 (2). 27 percent of marketers say influencer marketing offers the highest return on investment - more than SEO or social media (3).

When Fabienne started at Upway, the e-bike startup faced typical challenges: ambitious performance goals, a higher budget, but an unsuccessful TV campaign. “We had spent a lot of money on TV. Without success,” remembers Fabienne.

The product? Refurbished e-bikes for over 1,000 euros. Upway needed a performance marketing partner who didn't come with pretty posters, but with data, key performance indicators and a focus on marketing performance.

“We heard a lot of pitch offers, probably ten, and were disappointed,” says Fabienne. The problem? Most agencies told nice stories instead of specifically showing what the Influencer Marketing ROI looks like.

The difference at Ad Specialist: "You were the only one who took this approach. Numbers, figures and facts. You came straight with Excel sheets and insights."

The breakthrough with performance marketing

The first influencer campaign was courageous: Felix von der Laden, budget over 10,000 euros. The video was not lifestyle content, but rather Felix in the Porsche Taycan authentically talking about e-bikes - a new approach for the brand.

“Everyone here said: ‘Hey, what’s that?’ Nobody thought such a funny guy would talk about our e-bikes,” remembers Fabienne. But the marketing performance spoke for itself: “I looked at Shopify every day – it was very successful.”

The main metric was clear: customer acquisition cost. “The main KPI is the customer acquisition cost, i.e. how much we pay per bike,” explains Fabienne. The successes in performance marketing: The target CAC was achieved in the first year. In the second year, the target was reduced by 40 to 50 percent - but still achieved.

Influencer Marketing became the strongest performance channel - more successful than TV, print and podcasts. An impressive example of measurable Influencer Marketing ROI and achieved performance goals.

To measure marketing performance, you need to track the right key performance indicators. The most important factors for your influencer marketing strategy are creator selection with engagement and target group fit, budget allocation, content format and timing.

Calculate customer acquisition cost

The CAC is calculated by dividing marketing costs by the number of new customers (4). For influencer campaigns: CAC = Budget / Conversions. A ratio of customer lifetime value to CAC of 3:1 (5) is considered ideal. This means: A customer should generate three times more value than it costs to acquire - an important indicator of marketing performance.

Cost per session and conversion rate

This metric shows how much it costs to bring a user to your website. Upway tracks this key figure in parallel: “We also look at how much a session costs.” The conversion rate then shows how many visitors become customers - crucial for your Influencer Marketing ROI.

Return on investment for marketing performance

The ROI shows the sales-to-cost ratio and is the central key figure for marketing performance. An ROI of 6:1 means: For every euro you generate 6 euros in sales - a solid return on investment for influencer campaigns.

Brand awareness as a long-term performance indicator

This indicator shows how Influencer Marketing strengthens your brand: "We look at how our brand awareness changes. We analyze who is searching for Upway." These insights into organic growth are important for long-term performance goals.

Tracking methods for marketing performance

The best key performance indicators are of no use without correct tracking. UTM parameters enable precise tracking for influencer campaigns. Creator-specific promo codes show direct conversions. The Meta-Pixel tracks user journeys across social media channels. Multi-touch attribution helps evaluate the contribution of each platform (6) – essential for marketing performance.

Before you invest budget in Influencer Marketing, you need a forecast. Your CFO wants to know what return on investment he can expect. Realistic forecasts are important for performance goals.

The forecast method for influencer marketing ROI

Here is a practical example of a ROI Calculator:

Conservative scenario:

• Budget: €50,000, reach: 200k views
• Conversion rate: 0.2% = 400 conversions, shopping cart value: €1,500
• Result: €600,000 sales, CAC €125, ROI 12:1

Optimistic scenario:

• Budget: €50,000, reach: 250k views
• Conversion rate: 0.3% = 750 conversions, shopping cart value: €1,500
• Result: €1,125,000 sales, CAC €67, ROI 22.5:1

Plan internally with the conservative scenario for your forecast as you work towards optimal marketing performance.

Creative excellence as a performance factor

An authentic creator can increase performance three to five times and massively improve your influencer marketing ROI. The Felix video shows: “If I had given this storytelling up, I wouldn’t have gotten approval,” admits Fabienne. But this creative freedom was the success factor for marketing performance.

Learnings and optimization across multiple campaigns

Season 1 is about testing and initial learnings for your Influencer Marketing strategy. The goal: achieve CAC and set benchmarks. The reality: A lot of trial and error with influencer campaigns.

In season 2, optimization follows with a CAC reduction of 30 to 40 percent. "This year we have the learnings from last year. We have excluded a lot of things that didn't work," explains Fabienne. This continuous optimization improves your return on investment.

Stefan, CEO of Upway, “wasn’t convinced at first.” What convinced him? Excel sheets with clear key performance indicators and predicted ROI. How to convince stakeholders with marketing performance: Speak their language with CAC and return on investment. Show benchmark data like the average influencer marketing ROI of 6.50:1. Start with a test budget of 10 to 20 percent. Set clear performance goals.

Agency selection for performance marketing

Red Flags: “We are rockstars” statements with no substance, no ROI data, focus on vanity metrics. Green flags for successful cooperation: “You were the only one with stark figures and facts,” describes Fabienne. Further indicators: Transparent ROI data, clear key performance indicators, understanding of your company and flexible collaboration for optimal marketing performance.

German consumers want real insights for better marketing performance. "In Germany you have to work with authenticity. The German customer is enlightened and wants to know exactly what he is buying."

Best practices for marketing performance: Transparent explanation, authentic creators using products and storytelling about creator identity. What didn't improve performance: lifestyle approach, strict brand guidelines without freedom.

The balance for optimal success

Must-haves for your influencer marketing strategy: mention the product name, mention benefits and call-to-action for better conversions. Nice-to-haves are flexible: wording, branding and format.

"We have a few key facts that need to be mentioned. But otherwise, do your thing with it, because that's how authentic content is created," explains Fabienne - an important strategy for marketing performance.

Upway's success in performance marketing is based on a clear approach that you can adapt. “We had to think about our marketing strategy because we had a significantly higher budget,” explains Fabienne. The approach: Don't put everything on one card, but test strategically.

Phase 1: Laying the foundations: Upway defined clear performance goals from the start: “The main KPI is the customer acquisition cost.” At the same time, a multi-channel test was planned with influencer marketing, TV, print and podcasts - to find out which channel brings the best success. What was important was: “Everything we do must be measurable.”

Phase 2: Find a partner with a focus on numbers: When searching for an agency, Upway relied on hard facts: “You came straight with Excel sheets,” says Fabienne, describing the crucial difference. No pretty presentations, but concrete ROI forecasts and performance benchmarks from past campaigns. The collaboration started with courageous but calculated tests like Felix von der Laden for over 10,000 euros.

Phase 3: Daily tracking and quick learnings: Success came through consistent analysis: “I looked at what was going on in Shopify every day.” This daily measurement of success enabled rapid optimization. Anything that didn't work (like the podcast testing) was stopped. What worked (like authentic creator collaborations) scaled. "This year we have the learnings from last year. We have excluded a lot of things that didn't work."

The result after two seasons: Influencer Marketing became the strongest performing channel with a CAC reduction of 40 to 50 percent - because Upway was data-driven and gave creators creative freedom.

Critical don’ts of influencer marketing

Don’t adopt international strategies one-on-one – that damages marketing performance. Don’t just pay attention to reach – engagement and target group fit count more for ROI. Don't limit creators because strict guidelines kill authenticity and performance. Don’t give up too early – learning takes time. Don't start without tracking for precise measurement of success.

63% of marketers plan to use AI in influencer campaigns for improved marketing performance (7). Micro-influencers are booked ten times more often (8). Why? Better engagement and often better Influencer Marketing ROI through lower CACs.

60% believe short-form videos provide the best ROI (9). The most effective videos on TikTok and Instagram are between 20 and 40 seconds long for optimal marketing performance. TikTok has an 18% engagement rate, higher than other social media channels (10).

Influencer Marketing has become the essential performance channel. The numbers: $32 billion market volume, average ROI of 6.50:1 and increasing adoption across all industries.

Success in marketing performance requires clear key performance indicators with CAC and return on investment instead of vanity metrics. Realistic forecasts with conservative plus optimistic scenarios. Data-driven strategy with a focus on marketing performance. Creative freedom for creators, because authenticity beats guidelines when it comes to Influencer Marketing ROI. Continuous optimization with learnings from successes and challenges. And patience, because marketing performance results take two to three seasons.

The Upway story shows: Measurable return on investment is possible. A company that was skeptical has scaled influencer marketing into the strongest performance channel. From TV flop to success. From doubts to measurable marketing performance.

The key to successful performance goals? As Fabienne says: "You have to try it. I would recommend brands, test on a budget, have someone on board who knows their stuff."

You now have the know-how about marketing performance in Influencer Marketing. You understand the most important key performance indicators. You know the method for ROI calculation. Now it's about one thing: starting with measurable marketing performance.

And if you need support – from strategy to creator selection to tracking and analysis – let’s talk. Ad Specialist has taken Upway from skeptic to performance champion with measurable Influencer Marketing ROI. With a data-driven approach and a clear focus on marketing performance: measurable successes instead of nice stories.

Because in the end what counts for your marketing performance is: How many products did you sell through the video?

(1) Influencer Marketing Hub (2025): Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2025. URL: https://sociallyin.com/influencer-marketing-statistics/

(2) House of Marketers (2024): Influencer Marketing Stats – Data-Driven Insights. URL: https://houseofmarketers.com/influencer-marketing-stats/

(3) House of Marketers (2024): Influencer Marketing Stats. Comparison of marketing channels ROI. URL: https://houseofmarketers.com/influencer-marketing-stats/

(4) HubSpot (2023): Customer Acquisition Cost: How to Calculate CAC. URL: https://blog.hubspot.de/sales/customer-acquisition-cost

(5) TractionWise (2023): Customer Acquisition Cost. LTV:CAC ratio. URL: https://tractionwise.com/customer-acquisition-costs-berechnen/

(6) Ad Specialist (2025): Social media KPIs and tracking of influencer marketing. URL: https://www.adspecialist.de/social-media-kpis-und-tracking-von-influencer-marketing-in-2025/

(7) ClearVoice (2025): Influencer Marketing Statistics: 30 Must-See Stats for 2025. URL: https://www.clearvoice.com/resources/influencer-marketing-statistics/

(8) DemandSage (2025): 30+ Influencer Marketing Statistics Of 2025. URL: https://www.demandsage.com/influencer-marketing-stats/

(9) DemandSage (2025): 30+ Influencer Marketing Statistics Of 2025. Video ROI. URL: https://www.demandsage.com/influencer-marketing-stats/

(10) Sixth City Marketing (2025): 80+ Influencer Marketing Statistics for 2025. URL: https://www.sixthcitymarketing.com/influencer-marketing-statistics/