How you answer "What's marketing's contribution to revenue?" determines whether marketing gets treated as a strategic function or a cost center. The instinct is to claim as much as possible. That instinct is the problem.

Every marketing team has a version of this meeting: the numbers are presented, leadership nods, and then someone asks "So is it working?" The silence is the tell. Most marketing reports track activity, not outcomes.

There's no shortage of marketing advice out there. Most of it is written for people who approve the work. This newsletter is for people who do it.