How to Divide a Monthly Online Marketing Budget

From web pages and SEO to pay-per-click, social media marketing, local SEO, blog posting, press releases, video marketing and reputation management, dividing a monthly online marketing budget is crucial to keep all these spinning wheels…well…spinning. As you plan your business' marketing budget, your key questions may encompass:

• How much should be spent on marketing?
• What are the best tactics/channels to invest in?
• What does digital marketing actually cost?
• What percentage of my marketing budget should be allocated for each tactic/channel?

In this article, we want to help you discover that "sweet spot" - the budget that nets you the maximum return on your investment - while assisting you with dividing up the costs of those marketing efforts. Put simply, your business' marketing budget should be a means to effectively serve your marketing goals and ultimately grow your company - whatever the size of your operations.

Before we break down the individual marketing tactics mentioned above (SEO, blogs, press releases, etc.) and analyze their budgeting schemes, let's look at some general statistics that are important in this arena. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) suggests that businesses invest seven- to eight-percent of gross revenue for advertising and marketing if they are generating under $5 million per year in sales (assuming a net profit margin in the 10- to 12-percent range).

Now, consider this: Business-to-business (B2B) organizations typically invest six- to seven-percent of revenue in marketing, while business-to-consumer (B2C) outlets invest seven- to nine-percent of revenue in marketing. And, businesses bringing in under $25 million per year in revenue ordinarily spend more than 10-percent on marketing, on average.

Seems too simple of an equation, right? Well, while these are formidable general guidelines, we caution that how you spend is of greater importance than how much you spend on your online marketing.

Understanding the Various Marketing Channels to Invest In

New Web Pages - Web pages have always been a portal to provide general information about your business or products but investing in additional types of web pages definitely makes sense in this day and age. These can include content created using the "WYSIWYG Editor," linking to another website or document, displaying syndicated content from an RSS feed, and more.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) - Just about any online marketing agency will tell you we're in a "golden age" of SEO, wherein tons of potential search visibility, approachability and the elimination of "dirty" techniques that competitors might have used in the past to displace a fellow businessperson all reign supreme. Search engines are only going to get more effective at evaluating factors such as content quality and user experience, so don't miss out on this marketing investment opportunity.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click) - As a form of digital advertising in which the advertiser pays to have a business listed at the top or in the sidebar of search engine results pages (SERPs), pay-per-click allows you to bid for ad placement on specific keywords so that ads show up in paid results.

Social Media Marketing - Over the past few years, a dizzying number of companies, including small businesses, have invested a larger percentage of their marketing budgets into social media - and for good reason. Social media is all the rage and will continue to be for some time; utilizing these platforms provides a free and simple channel for surveying and testing public opinion while acting as a customer service and support network. It also helps with SEO, which is a primary reason many companies are investing in social media as a marketing tactic.

Local SEO - A leading challenge many business owners face is attracting clientele within their own marketplace, and it's a known fact that businesses grow from their local region before building over time. Local SEO services are now an essential element within complete digital marketing strategies because they're highly targeted, timely, mobile-connected, connected with Google My Business, offer an excellent return on investment, and more.

Blog Posting - Blogs have the potential to earn some serious revenue, with the popularity of sites like Flippa continuing to rise and offer companies investment opportunities with regard to their web properties.

Press Releases - The key to using press releases effectively is to focus them on newsworthy events in this digital age. The reasons why press releases still matter and should be invested in include the fact that they grab attention, build search engine traffic, reach thousands, earn respect, present clear facts, add visual interest, and create additional content.

Video Marketing - Marketing through video works and is one of the most powerful ways to engage and convert viewers into paying customers. What's more, video ensures social media success, is good for SEO because search engines love video content, significantly increases time-on-page numbers by viewers, offers up to three times more links on average to pages with video, and brings two- to three-hundred-percent more unique site visits.

Reputation Management - The reasons why a company should invest in good online reputation management include lack of visibility, not enough traffic to the website, website redesign, business expansion, new employee hires, and investigating well-known competitors.

One of the best ways to ensure your marketing money is being well-spent is to create a smart marketing budget. Indeed, following a well-defined plan will help ensure you're spending your marketing funds wisely and appropriately.

About the Author

Craig Corbel is the Vice President of Marketing at Solution Web Designs, a leading SEO, online marketing agency, and Long Island Website Designers serving small and mid-sized companies nationwide.