How Much Should a Small Business Spend on Marketing

Most small businesses should spend between 5 and 10 percent of their revenue on marketing, with newer businesses and those in competitive markets spending toward the higher end to establish a presence.

The percentage matters less than whether the spend is going somewhere measurable. A business that spends 3 percent well will out-perform a business that spends 12 percent on things that cannot be tracked.

Set the Budget From Revenue, Not Guesswork

Take your annual revenue, decide on a percentage you can sustain, and divide it across the year. A business doing $200,000 a year spending 7 percent has roughly $1,166 a month to work with. That is enough to maintain a professional presence and run modest advertising.

Where the Money Produces the Best Return

For most small businesses, the highest-return spend is: a professional website that converts, consistent social media management, and a small, well-targeted advertising budget. Trying to do everything at once with a small budget produces weak results everywhere.

What to Avoid

Avoid spreading a small budget across five channels. Avoid advertising before your website and social presence are ready to receive the traffic. And avoid any spend you cannot measure, because marketing you cannot measure is marketing you cannot improve.

Edynamics helps businesses put their marketing budget where it produces a return. WhatsApp us to talk through your numbers.