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When it comes to marketing, many businesses wonder: how much should I invest? Our advice: set aside at least 5% of your revenue for marketing. This percentage applies to B2B companies, including search engine marketing for SMEs. B2C can easily set aside 10%.
You can invest more, or less, but watch out for the pitfalls of spending too little or too much.Â
Investing 10% of your revenue in marketing is a proven strategy.
If your business spends less, you often miss growth opportunities. Of course, if you only want to keep what you have, you can work with less. But growth needs a solid foundation and that means a healthy marketing budget matters.
On the other hand, we advise against spending more than 20% of your revenue on marketing.
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That is often unsustainable and can put a financial strain on your business. Our experience shows that businesses achieve the best results with an investment of around 10%. This balance helps you grow without putting unnecessary pressure on your budget.
Budget constraints remain a major challenge, just like the year before.
Even at large companies in Europe and North America, 56% of marketing leaders said in 2026 that their budget falls short of their strategy (Gartner, 401 marketing leaders). Yet a smaller budget is no reason to settle for less growth.
Creativity can be your biggest asset, even on a small budget.
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Take Tony’s Chocolonely, a relatively small chocolate maker from Amsterdam. While big brands like Milka and Nestlé invest millions in advertising campaigns, Tony’s managed to make a huge impact with a limited marketing pot.
Through storytelling, transparency about “slave-free” cocoa and unique packaging – you can, for example, make an eye-catching sticker with your logo or message for a small amount – the brand has grown its market share considerably, without needing pricey TV commercials.
A strong example from the past is VanMoof, the innovative e-bike maker. While big brands like Gazelle deployed huge marketing budgets, VanMoof managed to steal traffic with smart, creative campaigns.
They also used striking storytelling and minimalist ads to position their bikes as design products.
VanMoof shows that with a limited budget and innovative ideas, you can compete and even dominate markets.
Beautiful proof that creativity matters more than deep pockets.Â
Smaller budgets can even be an advantage.
They force you to think sharper, work more efficiently and be more creative. See these limits as opportunities to stand out, rather than obstacles.
Your customers' buying behaviour has changed drastically. Where the process used to be simple and linear, it has now become a complex maze. I'll explain how you can make sense of this change.
When I started in sales more than 15 years ago and marketing was added fairly quickly, the process was pretty simple.
People saw an ad or found you via SEO and bought straight away. Today there are countless channels and touchpoints your customers experience. While some of your visitors may still convert directly, most follow a far more complex path.
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Your customers come into contact with your brand via social media, get distracted, see a remarketing ad, visit your website, hold off on buying and sign up for your newsletter instead.
Only weeks or months later do they decide to buy. Perhaps after an email that reminds them, or simply because you come back to mind through another touchpoint.
Today, search behaviour is spread across countless platforms.
Google alone, by its own account, processes well over 5 trillion searches a year, which is well over 13.7 billion a day (March 2025). On top of that, people search every day on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and even in the Apple App Store (!).
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This underlines how important it is to be visible on multiple platforms.
Make a point of publishing your content on different channels to attract diverse audiences. Make sure you have a recognisable and consistent look. Creating a personalised avatar for your profiles can help with this. This is especially true when you work with a small budget.
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This is especially true when you work with a small budget. Reuse your content smartly so it works on multiple platforms. Think, for example, of short videos for Google, TikTok or YouTube.
Videos that appear at the top of Google get clicked more often than text search results or paid ads.
Not sure where to start? No problem.
Trial and error helps you discover which channels and content formats work best. A certain post might perform well on LinkedIn, but less so on Instagram. By experimenting, you quickly learn what works and can refine your strategy.‍
One of my most important lessons: always keep an eye on your ROI.
As a business, you spend most of your time on organic social media, while the biggest revenue often comes from SEO and paid ads. Make sure your time and resources are aligned with the channels that actually generate your revenue.
Although being listed by Google doesn't directly cost money, SEO is far from free. It takes time, research and strategy. How do you get the most out of SEO with limited resources?
I'll give you a clear, step-by-step approach.
Finding the right keywords. Choose keywords with low competition and high relevance. Focus on long-tail keywords, such as “blue men's wool jumper,” which have a specific buying intent, instead of broader terms like “blue jumper.” Use tools such as Semrush or Answer the Public to identify content opportunities.
Create niche content on topics your competitors haven't covered yet. Analyse what you already rank for and make the most of those keywords by using them consistently on your website.
Plan regular content around strategic keywords and topics that match the needs of your audience. This ensures consistency without exceeding your budget.
Real-world example: A baker from Utrecht used a simple content calendar to share relevant blogs and posts every week, targeting keywords such as "artisan bread Utrecht." With seasonal content, such as "order Christmas stollen in Utrecht," he attracted more local search traffic.
The result: a 45% increase in organic traffic and more customers in just one year.
Choose the right format for your content: lists, guides, comparisons or fun posts.
Real-world example: IT-Partner uses various content formats such as guides and comparisons, targeting keywords like "best IT solution." With blogs such as "5 ways to improve your cybersecurity" and "Why cloud hosting beats local storage" they reached their audience.
The result: a 35% increase in leads within six months.
Analyse old content on your website.
Outdated or poorly performing content can hurt your rankings. Use a 6-step method: reformat, repurpose, refresh, remove, retain and redirect. Update blogs with outdated data and combine poorly performing blogs into one strong article.
Use your keyword research to determine the primary keyword of each page. Work this keyword into the title, meta description, web copy and supporting keywords.
Create valuable, shareable content to attract natural backlinks.
Look for unlinked mentions of your brand, such as blog articles or videos that mention you and ask for a backlink.
A mobile-friendly, fast website improves both the user experience and your search results. Research by Deloitte commissioned by Google (Europe and the US, 2020) shows that a mobile site that loads 0.1 seconds faster delivers 8.4% more conversions in retail.
Use free tools such as Google PageSpeed Insights to gain insight into your performance.
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Small businesses can outperform big brands in local search results. Keep your Google Business Profile up to date with photos, correct contact details, opening hours and services.
Respond to reviews to build trust.
Encourage customers to share their experiences through reviews and video testimonials. This increases trust and your visibility in search results alike.
Analyse what your competitors are doing. Look at their backlink profile, keywords, on-page SEO, content performance and visibility on platforms such as TikTok and Pinterest. Discover where new competitors are emerging and use those insights to sharpen your strategy.
Free SEO tools such as Google Search Console and Google Analytics offer valuable insights without straining your budget. Analyse performance, keyword changes and user behaviour to keep optimising your strategy.
Imagine you have a limited budget and no time to lose. Then listen carefully.
I, Dominic from zoekmachinespecialist, have designed a streamlined, results-driven programme for your business that gets you going quickly, even with a small marketing budget.
It significantly strengthens your SEO presence.
The perfect solution for those who want to take action right away, without the complexity of a fully bespoke campaign.
This programme covers all the elements we've discussed. It includes keyword research, a content calendar, on-site optimisations and web copy, plus a bit of technical support and monthly consultations.
Request an opportunity analysis and have a personal conversation with me.
Your customers use a wide range of channels to find information and make decisions. According to Demand Sage, the average person uses 6.6 social networks.
This means your audience is active on multiple platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Even if people claim they don't use Facebook, Meta still generates as much revenue from Facebook as from Instagram.
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If you make good use of omnichannel marketing, you can achieve an impressive return on investment (ROI).
Many businesses work with a multi-channel approach.
This means they are active on multiple channels, such as social media, email, SEO and paid ads. These channels are often managed separately, without integration or sharing of insights.
The result? Separate systems and missed opportunities to improve the performance of different channels.Â
Omni-channel marketing goes one step further.
You are present on all relevant platforms and you also make sure the channels work together. For example, insights from Instagram are used to improve TikTok campaigns and successful email campaigns are analysed to optimise content on landing pages.
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By integrating everything, you make sure your marketing activities reinforce each other and contribute to your company's most important KPIs.
When your channels are integrated, you see an increase in efficiency and results.
They work together to deliver a consistent message and reinforce each other's effect. Without integration, channels operate independently, which leads to inefficiencies, waste and missed opportunities.
SEO and paid ads can share one strategy.Â
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By combining them, you get more traffic, better visibility and improved results. Think of reusing data from paid ads to improve organic content strategies.
Or use insights from SEO analyses to sharpen the targeting of your media campaigns.
I recently spoke with an SEO colleague about Bever, the Dutch retailer specialising in outdoor gear.
What their data showed was that an integrated media strategy – combining SEO, media and other channels – led to a 10% increase in ROI across all their channels.
This example shows that an omni-channel approach helps you get more value from your investments and reach your audience in a consistent and effective way.
A: That depends on your growth goals. As a rule, B2B companies are advised to invest at least 5% of their revenue in marketing and B2C companies around 10%. Investing too little can limit your growth, while investing too much (above 20%) is often financially unsustainable.
A: Creativity is the key here. Make smart use of content marketing, SEO and social media to increase your visibility without huge spending. Think of a structured content calendar, reusing existing content and targeted SEO optimisation.
A: Customers today use several channels before they make a purchase. By adopting an omnichannel strategy – where SEO, social media, email marketing and paid ads reinforce each other – you create a consistent brand experience and increase the chance of conversion.
More in this series on local SEO
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About the author
Dominic Pietersz
Your dedicated point of contact
Dominic helps SMEs grow through Google and other channels. With his international experience, he turns challenges into concrete growth.
Follow Dominic on LinkedInInspiration · A small business owner asked how much budget marketing deserves and I worked it out on the spot. That conversation became this strategy for anyone without deep pockets.
