Set the goal in customers
Decide how many new customers you want each month. That number is the target; the budget is what it takes to hit it.
Multiply by what a customer costs
Use your real cost to get a customer from the ROI guide. Ten customers at $200 each is a $2,000 month. No history yet? Start small and measure before you scale.
Check it against what you can carry
Pick a number where a slow month will not hurt you. Marketing that forces a cash crunch costs more than it makes.
Pay for the things you own first
A website that works, a complete Google Business Profile and an email list keep bringing customers after you stop paying for them. Ads stop the day the money does.
Split basics from tests
Keep the basics steady every month, then put a smaller test budget on ads or new ideas. Move money toward what brings customers and away from what does not.
Straight answers
Common questions about marketing budgets.
Is there a rule like "spend a percentage of revenue"?
You will see percentage rules of thumb everywhere. They are a starting point at best. A business that knows what a customer is worth can spend with a reason instead of a guess.
Should I cut marketing when sales are slow?
Cut what is not bringing customers, and keep what is. A slow month is often when the customers you did not reach went to a competitor who kept showing up.
Do I need paid ads?
Not always. Many local businesses grow on a strong website, Google Business Profile, reviews and email first. Ads are a way to speed things up once those basics work.
What does it cost to have someone else do it?
My prices are published: Website Care $199/mo, Local SEO $1,250/mo, email marketing $1,500/mo and Meta ads management $1,000/mo plus ad spend. Every option is on the pricing page.
Don’t know your cost per customer yet? Start with how to tell if your marketing is paying for itself, then see every price on the pricing page.
The Marketing Audit · free
Send me your website. I’ll tell you what I’d fix first.
A written review of your website, how you show up on Google and in AI answers, your email and your ads, with the fixes in order of what makes you money first. Yours to keep, whether or not you hire me. The prices are public, so you already know what the work costs.
jeff@sheltonstrategies.com · Weatherford, Texas