Plug in three numbers. Get back a defensible marketing budget for next month, a 4-bucket channel split, and the payback target that tells you when a campaign is officially working. Built for owners tired of underspending out of fear or overspending out of FOMO.
Last quarter was tight, so this quarter they pull back. Last week a competitor's ad showed up in the feed, so they panic-boost a post. Neither is a budget — it's a mood.
The good news: there's a defensible range for marketing spend based on revenue, margin, growth goal, and stage. Not a magic number — a conservative-to-aggressive band you can land inside and explain to your partner, your bookkeeper, or yourself.
Run the math. Hit your number. Then go back to running the business.
Be honest, not optimistic. The calculator only works if the inputs are real. Use trailing-90-day revenue, not your best month.
The mix shifts based on stage. A brand-new shop leans hard on Acquisition; a mature business tilts toward Retention. Dollar amounts update with your spend.
SEO, Google Business Profile, email list, evergreen content. The stuff that pays you back for years.
Paid ads, lead gen, cold outreach. Direct-response engines that need active management.
Post-purchase flows, loyalty, win-back campaigns. Highest ROI dollar in any mature business.
New channel tests, sponsorships, partnerships. Bets that don't have to pay back this month — but might.
Aim for marketing spend to come back inside this window. That's your kill-or-keep number for every campaign and channel. Don't keep paying for something that hasn't crossed it.
No black box. The calculator runs a base percentage from your growth goal, adjusts up or down for stage and margin, and lands in an "honest" mid-band that matches what well-run small businesses actually spend.
Stage adjustment: "Just Starting" adds 2 points (early traction needs more fuel). "$1M+" subtracts 1 point (mature ops should be more efficient).
Margin adjustment: Under 30% margin subtracts 2 points (you can't outspend bad math). Over 70% margin adds 1 point (you can reinvest harder).
The "honest" number the calculator returns is the midpoint of the adjusted band. The conservative end and aggressive end give you a sane range to flex inside.
Four industries, four ways to read your number. The math is the same; the channels you spend it on aren't.
The calculator is only as honest as your inputs and your discipline. Avoid these and the math works.
One blockbuster July doesn't mean your business does July numbers every month. Use trailing 90-day average. Honest input, honest output. Optimistic input, blown budget by Q4.
Top-line revenue lies. A $40K-revenue product business at 18% margin can't spend like a $40K-revenue service business at 70%. Use real margin after cost of goods or delivery — the calculator handles the rest.
This number is for variable marketing dollars — the spend you could pause next month if you had to. Don't fold a marketing manager's salary or your HubSpot bill in here. Track those separately as fixed costs.
The payback number is the whole point. Every campaign you run should be answerable to it. If you don't know whether your spend came back inside the window, you don't have a budget — you have a wishlist.
Marketing returns are volatile by week and stable by month. Don't pull money out of a bucket because last Thursday was bad. Decide the split at the start, hold the line for 30 days, then adjust based on actual results.
"Spend up to $X" is the upper bound of what's defensible. If you're new to spending or new to a channel, start at the conservative end. Spend isn't a competition — return on spend is.
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