Most contractors get marketing spend wrong in one of two directions: they spend nothing and lean entirely on word of mouth, or they pour money into ads that stop working the second they stop paying. The right number matters less than where the money goes. Here is a saner way to budget, and where each dollar actually returns the most.
The benchmark, and why it is only a starting point
A common rule of thumb is 5 to 10 percent of revenue on marketing, leaning to the higher end or beyond if you are trying to grow fast, and toward the lower end if you are established and just maintaining. So a contractor doing 500,000 a year might budget 25,000 to 50,000. But that percentage is just a frame. A contractor spending 3 percent wisely will beat one spending 10 percent on the wrong things. Direction beats amount.
Where the money produces the best return
Owned assets first
Your Google Business Profile, your reviews, and your local pages are assets. You build them once and they keep producing calls long after, with almost no ongoing cost. This is the highest return spend you have because it compounds instead of disappearing. If you do nothing else, fund getting your profile complete, your reviews flowing, and a handful of town pages live.
Paid ads to bridge, not to live on
Ads, especially Local Services Ads, are worth budget for instant leads while your owned presence builds, or to cover a slow season. But treat them as rent: the moment you stop paying, the leads stop. A healthy setup spends on ads early, then dials them down as free traffic takes over, rather than paying full price for every lead forever.
A website that actually converts
Not a vanity site, a working one: fast, mobile friendly, with service and town pages and clear calls to get a quote. This is a reasonable spend because it is where your ad clicks and organic visitors land. A pretty site with no real pages is decoration; a plain site with the right pages is a lead machine.
Where contractors waste money
Logos, glossy brochures, branded truck wraps, and expensive vanity websites feel like marketing but rarely produce a single call on their own. Sponsorships and print ads in this trade usually cannot be tracked to a job. None of these are where buyers are searching. Spend there only after the channels that actually ring the phone are fully funded.
A simple way to split it
For most outdoor living contractors: put the majority of your budget into the owned assets (profile, reviews system, pages), a meaningful chunk into paid ads while you build, and keep the brand and print extras small until you are comfortably booked. As your free ranking grows, shift the ad money down and bank the difference. The smartest dollar a local contractor spends is the one that gets them into the map pack and keeps them there, because that traffic is free and it compounds for years.
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of revenue should a contractor spend on marketing?
A common benchmark is 5 to 10 percent of revenue, higher if you are pushing for growth and lower if you are established and maintaining. Treat it as a starting frame, not a rule. Where the money goes matters far more than the exact percentage, since wise spending at 3 percent beats wasteful spending at 10.
Where should a contractor spend marketing money first?
On owned assets: a complete Google Business Profile, a system for gathering reviews, and a few local town and service pages. These keep producing calls long after you build them, with little ongoing cost, which makes them the highest return spend. Fund these before anything else.
Are truck wraps and brochures worth the money?
Rarely as a primary spend. They feel like marketing but seldom generate calls on their own and are hard to tie to actual jobs. They can have a small place once the channels that genuinely ring the phone, your Google presence and a converting website, are fully funded. Until then, the money works harder elsewhere.
How much should I spend on Google Ads versus SEO?
Early on, weight more toward ads for immediate leads while your free ranking builds over a couple of months. As your map pack position and pages start producing calls, shift spending away from ads toward maintaining the owned assets. The long term goal is to rely on ads as a top up, not a lifeline.