Free small-business calculator
Marketing is worth it when the new customers it brings in earn back more than it costs. Enter what you are being asked to pay and a few numbers about your business to see exactly how many customers it needs to bring in, and the most you should pay.
Check the offerAbout 15 leads a month at your close rate.
$6,000 total cost ÷ $200 kept per customer = 30 customers, spread across 6 active months.
At 5 out of 20, you need 21 leads a month. At 9 out of 20, you need 12.
The practical view
Marketing offers come in different shapes, but the basic test is the same: can the profit from new customers repay the complete cost? Use your own numbers rather than somebody else's case study.
Example: a $1,000 monthly pitch for a business that keeps $200 from a $400 job. Change any number in the calculator to replace the example with your business.
Build the real total
Include recurring fees, setup work, media spend, software required by the vendor, and the value of your own time. Leaving out a required cost makes the target look easier than it is.
Before you sign
Use the shortest useful test period and write down the break-even target before signing. The agreement should say who owns the accounts, data, website work, and creative after the relationship ends.
Read the result
Treat the result as the minimum delivery needed, not a forecast. An offer with little room above break-even needs tighter tracking and creates more cash-flow risk.
Give each channel a trackable link or phone number, ask every new customer how they found you, and keep a monthly count of leads and customers.
Straight answers
Keep checking the pitch
Running a nonprofit? The nonprofit version is coming separately.