Marketing Economics

How much of your revenue should go to marketing?

The honest answer depends on what stage your business is in. Here are the real numbers.

The benchmark ranges

Three stages, three budgets.

01
Steady state: 5 to 8%
You’re holding ground. Phone rings consistently, you’re booked 4 to 6 weeks out, you’re not chasing a new market.
02
Growth mode: 8 to 12%
You want more crews, more trucks, more revenue next year than this year. You’re actively buying market share.
03
Aggressive growth or new market: 12 to 15%
New city, new service line, new domain with no SEO equity. You’re paying to exist on the map.

The math, on a real business

A $1.2M tree service spending 7% = $84k a year.

That’s $7,000 per month across everything: agency fee, ad spend, software, content, GBP tools. Not just ads. The full marketing line on your P&L.

If you’re a $400k operation, 7% is $2,300 per month. If you’re a $3M operation, 7% is $17,500. Same percentage, very different programs.

The trap

Cutting marketing in slow months digs the hole deeper.

Slow month, revenue is down, the instinct is to cut. But the slow month is exactly when your pipeline needs feeding. Cut now and the next 60 to 90 days get worse, not better. Marketing has lag. So does silence.

Hold the line. Adjust the mix if you need to, but don’t kill the spend the month you can least afford to disappear.

The bottom line

Under 5% means you’re starving the engine. Over 15% means you’re not closing.

Pick a number tied to your stage. Then defend it, especially when it hurts.