How much should I spend on marketing?
Take the leads you need and what a paid lead costs you, and get the monthly budget, the gap against what you spend now, and how much more of the map would save.
Not sure? Work it out from your revenue goal.
Not sure? Work out your cost per lead.
a month to buy the leads you need
That's 77 paid leads at $60 each. The other 41 come from your Maps listing.
10% more of your leads from the map saves about $720 a month.
$2,320 a month more than you spend now. The cheapest way to close a gap is to show up in more places on the map, where nobody pays per click.
Your numbers stay in your browser.
How it's calculated
leads to buy = leads you need × (1 − share from your Maps listing)
budget = leads to buy × what a paid lead costs
difference = budget − what you spend now
With your numbers: 118 × 65% = 77 leads to buy. 77 × $60 = $4,620 a month. $4,620 − $2,300 = +$2,320.
The three calculators work together:1. Leads you need2. What a lead costs3. Your budget
Every place on the map is budget you don't spend
Leads from your Google Maps listing don't cost per click, so they come off your budget first. The more places you're top 3, the less you need to buy. The free scan shows where you're missing.
Top 3 · 17 4–10 · 20 11–20 · 21 Not there · 23
Why start from leads, not a percentage
"Spend a set share of revenue on marketing" is easy to say, but it doesn't know how many jobs you need, what you win or what a lead costs you. Two businesses with the same revenue can need very different budgets.
This calculator starts from the leads you need and what they cost, so the number it gives you is one you can check: count the leads each month and see if the spend bought them.
Three calculators, one answer
1. The leads calculator turns your revenue goal into leads a month. 2. The cost per lead calculator works out what a paid lead costs you. 3. This page multiplies the two and shows the gap against what you spend now. Each one passes your numbers to the next.
Know where every lead comes from
These sums are only as good as your lead count. We set up tracking on your website and Google profile so every call tap and form is counted by source, and the numbers show up next to your map.
How Am I found? helps
See the gaps
Every Sunday we search Google Maps from 81 places around you and show where you're top 3 and who beats you where you're not.
Fix what moves you
A short fix list in plain English, quick wins first: categories, reviews, photos, posts.
Spend where it counts
Where you already own the map, you can turn ads down there and spend where you can't.
Plans from $75 a month per location. Start with the free scan.
Questions
How much should a small business spend on marketing?
Enough to buy the leads you need at the price you actually pay for them. Rules of thumb based on a share of revenue are a starting point, but they don't know your close rate or cost per lead. This calculator starts from those instead.
How do I work out my marketing budget?
Work out how many leads you need from your revenue goal, then what a paid lead costs you. Budget = leads you need to buy × cost per paid lead. Leads from your Google Maps listing come off first, because they don't cost per click.
Why does my Google Maps ranking change my budget?
Every lead that finds you on the map is one you don't have to buy through ads. Moving into Google's top 3 in more places around you lowers the budget you need for the same number of leads.
What if my budget is far higher than I can spend?
There are four levers: more leads from the map, a lower cost per lead, a better close rate or bigger jobs. Move the sliders here and on the leads calculator to see which one closes the gap fastest.