Small Business Marketing Budget: How Much to Spend and Where to Invest

Marketing budget planning made simple. Here's what works.

Budget Benchmarks

SBA Recommendation 7-8% of revenue for established businesses.

Growth Mode 12-20% for new businesses or aggressive growth.

B2B vs B2C B2B typically spends less (2-5%), B2C more.

Breaking Down the Mix

Website (Foundation) One-time investment: $3,000-10,000

SEO (Long-term) Monthly: $500-2,000

Paid Advertising (Immediate) Monthly: Variable based on goals

Social Media (Brand Building) Monthly: $0-1,000 + time

Email Marketing (Retention) Monthly: $50-300 for platform

Allocation by Business Type

Service Businesses - 60% local SEO - 30% website - 10% paid

E-commerce - 40% SEO - 30% paid - 20% email - 10% social

Getting Maximum ROI

1. Website first (your foundation)
2. Local SEO (long-term)
3. Paid ads (immediate leads)
4. Test before scaling

**Where to spend first?** Professional website and Google Business Profile optimization. These are foundational.