With the rise in online marketing, this question has become more common, how much you should allocate to your web marketing plan? Well, the answer is quite tough and it varies according to the business needs and aims. However, the principles for an effective budget plan for any type of business are more or less same.
In this article, we bring to you some of the most valid questions that can help you identify what your marketing budget should be.
What’s your Business Experience? : Marketing budget is directly dependent on your business experience. It will depend on how much time you have spent in the business and where you currently stand.
Normally a fresh business is still finding its feet and thinking out what works and what doesn’t. You are in the initial process of setting up systems and serving your first clients. It doesn’t give you enough time for online marketing and you are not completely in position for it yet. Therefore, you might not allocate any budget for online marketing at the moment. However, it is good to plan it as your future goals.
Who are Your Customers? : You should know your customers well. The fact that you might be selling to another business or a client directly affects your marketing budget. According to a research B2B allocate about 6% of their budget for marketing whereas B2C spare considerably larger amount for the same purpose.
It is understandable to allocate more budget for consumer marketing because it is a potential network enhancer for you business. Selling to another business is more of a targeted approach.
What’s your Online Presence? : This is a crucial question to answer. Firstly, if you don’t have a website and you are starting from scratch, there are other expenses such as website setup and designing. Only then you can give a thought to online marketing. It will require more money than when you already have a website.
Once you have done the difficult part of setting up the website, things will get easier for you financially.
What Percentage of your Revenue should be Spent on Online Marketing?
For smaller businesses, the percentage share for online marketing is higher than other marketing strategies, the reason being that it allows businesses with a better chance of gaining popularity at lower costs. For bigger companies, the percentage for online marketing can be lower because they can afford to invest in printed and hardcopy marketing as well.
The best way to go about your business especially if you have a lower budget is to invest in online marketing and seeking for free options too such as social media marketing.
What areas of Online Marketing should you Spend On?
There are quite a few aspects of online marketing. Here are some of them you should be investing in:
- Website improvement
- Social Media Marketing
- Press releases online
- YouTube marketing
- Business blogs
- And many others