What to spend the 10% on?

10% of your business’s turnover; that’s a pretty decent marketing budget.

Many marketers agree with professor Mark Ritson on this. But, what do you spend the 10% on?

Well, since 2013, Peter Field and Les Binet have been suggesting to spend all of that 10% on The Long and the Short of It.

1. The Long being brand building. Everything you do to cultivate a strong brand that your potential clients can recall, recognize, and trust.
   
2. The Short being sales activation. Everything you do to drive conversion, sell your services, and generate revenue.

Many companies focus on performance marketing, i.e. the Short. And thus, that’s where most of their 10% is going.

Yet, the Long may be way more important. The Long (i.e. strong brand) can drive the Short (i.e. sales), but not the other way around.

This may especially be true for professional service firms. Where not many clients are in market at any given time, the buyer journey is a long and complex one, and many stakeholders are involved in the purchasing decision.

However, there’s something else…

When Field and Binet published their findings more than a decade ago, they mainly referred to advertising.

But, there’s more to marketing than advertising. Right!?

What about…

1. Client experience & retention – Everything you do to keep existing clients happy and on board.
   
   The way you deliver your services for example. Are you delivering services in the same way you did more than a decade ago? Or are you using new technologies to deliver your services in a more effective, efficient, and enjoyable way?
   
   Or what about asking clients for feedback? And then actually using that feedback to improve your solutions.  
   
2. Research & insights – Everything you do to better understand the market and the best way to reach potential clients.
   
   Measuring the effectiveness of your marketing activities. And then using these insights to improve your efforts and the return on your investment.
   
   But also, monitoring trends, analyzing market sentiment, and researching the competition.
   
3. Innovation & experimentation – Everything you do to stay ahead of the curve and relevant in a rapidly changing market.
   
   Think of testing new channels and emerging technologies.
   
4. Training & development – Everything you do to make sure that your marketers, business developers, and subject matter experts are skilled in marketing and business development.
   
   Hiring an adviser to develop a go-to-market strategy for example. And working with them in executing the strategy. 

So, what should you spend your marketing budget on?

Brand building, client experience & retention, research & insights, innovation & experimentation, training & development, and… that ad that says “Click here to buy our solution now!”

Hope this helps!

Thank you for reading MBD Boost #028, sent to marketers and business developers on January 28, 2025.