Picking a percentage
You'll see all sorts of "rules" quoted for how much of revenue to spend on marketing. I don't treat any of them as a standard, because the right number depends on your situation far more than on an average:
| Spend a bit more when | Spend a bit less when |
|---|---|
| You're new and nobody knows you yet | You're already booked out most weeks |
| Competitors are visibly advertising and winning | Most work comes from referrals and repeat customers |
| A customer is worth a lot over time | Margins are thin and cash is tight |
| You're launching a new service or location | You can't take on more customers right now |
A sensible approach: pick a number you can sustain for at least three months, measure what it brings in, then raise or lower it.
Why the split goes in this order
The calculator fills buckets in priority order, because each layer makes the next one cheaper:
- One-time setup. A website that converts and a complete Google Business Profile. Pay once, keep using them.
- Foundation, up to about $149 a month. Website care, Google posts and a steady review habit, roughly what my Growth plan covers.
- Local visibility. Local SEO or content, which builds free traffic over months.
- Ads. Google or Facebook ads for speed. Ads work far better once steps 1–3 are in place, because the people they bring in land somewhere convincing.
A starting point, not a rule. A restaurant launching a new menu might put more into ads this month. A law firm might put more into local SEO and content. Move the money to wherever your customers actually are. My Small business marketing budget guide goes deeper.