Getting your marketing budget right
When our CMOs work within startups, one of the most common things we hear is: “We need to set a marketing budget, but don’t know where to start.” Too often, the budget becomes a rear-view mirror exercise (what was spent last year) or a guessing game (what feels affordable). Done properly, though, your marketing budget isn’t just an overhead, it’s a powerful, strategic driver for growth.
It may feel like something of a dark art, but here are my top tips for setting a marketing budget that delivers on your plans and makes every pound count.
1. Start with goals, not numbers
A classic trap is to decide how much you want to spend and then scramble to make your activity fit. Instead, start with considering what your business goals are: more leads, higher conversion, entering new markets, building brand awareness?
Think what role marketing will play in achieving those goals, what campaigns you need to run, and what investment they require. The most effective budgets are built from the ground up, estimating what it will cost to deliver results, rather than slicing off what feels affordable.
2. Treat your budget as an investment tied to outcomes
Marketing spend should never be vague or reactive, it should be tied to measurable outcomes. Cost per lead, conversion rates, and customer acquisition cost all tell you where your money is working (or not).
One of The Marketing Centre’s clients, for example, was spending heavily on Google Ads without tracking results. Once robust measurement was introduced, they identified wasted spend and saved more than £100,000.
Set clear expectations: some activity, such as brand building, content creation, and thought leadership, yields long-term returns; while others, like promotions and paid social, deliver immediate traction. A balanced split of, for example, 60/40 between long-term and short-term, helps ensure you’re building future growth while generating results today.
3. Prioritise what will move the needle most
When funds are limited, you can’t do everything. Focus on the highest-impact, lowest-effort items first. Two frameworks are particularly useful:
- Impact-vs-effort matrix: plot potential initiatives by the impact they could deliver versus the effort or resource they require. Prioritise those in the high-impact/low-effort quadrant
- Strategy waterfall: break business goals into marketing strategies, then map tactics under each. Ensure every tactic clearly connects back to a goal, rather than being a “nice-to-have”
Invest in knowing your customer: what problem they are trying to solve, why they choose you, and where they spend time? Even simple research with current clients can yield insights that dramatically sharpen your messaging and targeting.
4. Map your spend, benchmark, and adjust
Many startups are flying blind, spending on tools, staff, and channels without a clear view of where the money is going. The first step is to map every marketing cost – ad spend, creative/design, salaries, tools, overheads. Without this, you risk being surprised by cost per lead or overpaying in channels that aren’t performing.
Benchmarks can help you sanity-check your spend. For many B2B businesses, a useful rule of thumb is 2–5% of turnover on marketing. If you’re significantly below or above, ask why. Is your strategy lean, or are you neglecting something important?
Finally, continuously monitor results. What works today may shift tomorrow. Be ready to reallocate budget to the activities performing best. Marketing isn’t “set and forget.”
5. Leverage low-cost, smart tools
A limited budget doesn’t mean limited impact. There are plenty of free or affordable tools to boost efficiency. Canva, simple video editors, and platforms with basic automation or CRM functionality can stretch your spend further.
AI tools can also help speed up content development, briefing, and research. But be deliberate and don’t chase shiny tech at the expense of strategy.
Final thought
Getting your marketing budget right requires discipline, clarity, and a mindset of continuous optimisation. Start with what you want to achieve, work out what it will cost, monitor closely what delivers, adjust as you learn, and always remember that every pound spent should earn its keep.
If you align your spend to your goals, prioritise high-impact work, and stay alert to what’s working (and what isn’t), your budget won’t be a burden, it’ll become one of your biggest allies on the growth journey.
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