For any business looking to grow and succeed, marketing tends to be a significant investment. The U.S. Small Business Administration recommends an annual revenue spend of 7% to 8%, and some industry commentators recommend a marketing spend of up to 20%.

We get asked the marketing budget question a lot.

It’s understandable.

Did you know that about 3.4 billion customers in every market are on social media? Think about the world's population of 7.7 billion and envision the number of buyers you lose if your business lacks a strong social media presence (assuming of course, your business is based upon volume).

Thanks to COVID, online shopping is taking the world by storm. So, businesses focusing on their brick-and-mortar setups are missing out on the unmatched benefits of digital marketing. As more and more brands are strengthening their digital presence, more customers are preferring to buy on the internet.

Some years ago one of our clients, a prominent facial plastic surgeon, told me a story about one of his patients. She had a precancerous mole on her face that needed removal. After an initial consult, the patient scheduled the outpatient procedure that took less than 10 minutes to perform. The surgeon’s bill? Around $10,000. The patient complained to the surgeon that her bill was excessive – he was charging $1,000 a minute! Our client’s response was golden: “Madam, while it is true that the procedure to remove your mole only took 10 minutes, the …

Not long ago I stumbled on a little farm stand which is extremely well known here in the south. It’s not exactly a farm stand - more like a farm “boutique store” full of locally sourced meat, produce and their very famous tomato pies. I had heard great things about this farm stand. People would drive for 50 or more miles just to buy their home-made pies. So when I finally made it through their front door, I had high expectations. Boy was I wrong. I could barely get through the front door due to all the “stuff” that was crammed inside the store. Between 7 ft high book shelves, piles of knick knacks and rows of freezers, the place reminded me much more of a garage sale meets appliance clearance store. It was overwhelming.