How to Start a Marketing Budget that Works

So you've set up your company, you're experts at what you do, you are the best in your industry, you're a cut above the rest. You know it. But how about the rest of the world?

The phrase, "build it and they will come" doesn't really apply anymore, particularly in the information super highway that plays host to millions upon millions of websites.

Allocating marketing spend should not be as difficult as getting your tooth pulled. It should be equated to buying stocks and bonds. It is risky but when managed properly it will bring in the returns you seek.

You want people to know your company and your business - that much you know. Now take it a step further and start planning your marketing budget. You will have to start with the bare necessities:

• Branding. First you will have to establish company brand and image. This is necessary to start off. It's like courting - difficult to win a girl (or guy) over if she (or he) doesn't see you or hear from you. So you will have to allocate this expense (rather sizable in the first few months, this will most likely be 20-30% of your marketing spend).

• Growth. Next, use marketing to help you grow your business. The more you are out there, tapping the right markets and creating networks, the more your client pool will expand. It will be beneficial if you incorporate expenses in marketing that will give you the extra mile. Eventually you'll have to start thinking about economies of scale and how they can play into your budget maintenance once you've established your position in the market place.

• Follow-through. Marketing is useless if you don't have what it takes to back it up. By proportion (assuming the marketing campaign is effective), the size of the marketing efforts should equate to the influx of potential clients you may have. So make sure there is adequate correspondence between outgoing spend, incoming clients and fulfillment capacity.

*Important Note*

If you find this article too long or boring, forget everything BUT this: Marketing pays for itself. If your marketing is NOT paying for itself and returning profit then it is NOT working.