A Smarter Way to Spend Marketing Dollars

One of the biggest mistakes small businesses make with marketing is either putting all of their budget into the same channels year after year—or spreading themselves too thin trying every new tactic at once.

The sweet spot is somewhere in the middle.

A simple way to think about your marketing budget is to split it 70/30:

• 70% goes toward the marketing channels you already know work

• 30% goes toward testing new ideas and opportunities

This approach allows you to keep generating results now while also setting yourself up for future growth.

Spend 70% on What’s Already Working

Your “70%” should go toward the channels that consistently bring in customers, leads, or sales.

For your business, that might be:

• Google Ads

• Meta: Facebook or Instagram

• LinkedIn

• Email marketing

• Local events

• SEO

• Referrals

These are the channels you’ve already tested and know deliver results. They’re your reliable, proven foundation.

For example, if Instagram and email consistently drive new business for you, most of your budget should continue to go there. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel every year.

Too often, businesses abandon what’s working because they get distracted by the newest platform or trend. But if a channel is performing, keep investing in it.

Use 30% to Test What’s Next

The other 30% of your budget is where you give yourself permission to experiment.

This is the place to try:

• A new social platform

• AI or LLM optimization

• Video content

• Influencer partnerships

• Direct mail

• A new ad strategy

• Sponsorships or events

• New lead magnets or email sequences

The key is that these channels are still being tested. You don’t know yet if they’ll work, and that’s okay.

The goal of your 30% budget isn’t immediate perfection—it’s learning.

Maybe you’ve heard that short-form video is working for businesses like yours. Instead of shifting your entire budget, use a small portion to test it. Give it time. See what resonates. Then decide whether it deserves more investment.

Don’t Build Your Plan on Assumptions

One of the fastest ways to waste money is to build your annual marketing plan around channels you’ve never tested.

Just because a new platform is trending doesn’t mean it will work for your audience.

At the same time, don’t give up on new channels too quickly. A lot of businesses try something once, don’t see instant results, and move on.

But experimental channels need time.

Your proven channels have had months—or even years—to develop. It’s not realistic to expect a brand-new tactic to perform just as well in the first month.

Think Short-Term and Long-Term

The 70/30 approach helps you balance what your business needs today with what it might need tomorrow.

The 70% keeps leads and sales coming in now.The 30% helps you discover the next opportunity before you desperately need it.

Because the best time to test a new marketing channel is before your current one stops working.

You don’t need a huge marketing budget to use this strategy.

Even if you only have $1000 a month to spend:

• Put $700 toward the channels that are already working

• Use $300 to test something new

It’s a simple way to make smarter marketing decisions, avoid shiny-object syndrome, and keep your business growing in a sustainable way.

The goal isn’t to do every marketing tactic. It’s to do the right ones—and leave a little room to discover what’s next. BAM!