I was talking online marketing with a couple of people today.
When you’re looking at doing marketing for anyone your basically need to know 2 things:
1. A goal.
2. A budget.
80% Don’t Mention Their Budget
I always ask for both. What happens, in 80% of cases, is that people:
- don’t have a budget in mind, or
- they’re not prepared to tell me.
What they generally want me to do is prepare a marketing plan on spec and then decide if they want to spend the money.
That’s bad for a couple of reasons:
- I could spend hours doing a marketing strategy that cannot be financed (after all, if I quote $2,000 for online Pay Per Click advertising and the client has a budget of $100 then we’re not even close). That’s a waste of everyone’s time.
- If I know your budget I can tailor the best solution to meet the goal. For any given problem there are numerous solutions – money gets you the best, easiest and quickest solution.
The Best Answer
I got the correct answer to the question “What’s your budget to achieve this goal?” twice today.
One guy was a client we’ve had for years. His website does extremely well and makes him lots of money.
The other was a young entrepreneur we haven’t worked with before.
I asked both what their budget was: “Unlimited. If it makes sales I’ll keep spending money.”
Marketing Should Be Cheap
Your marketing shouldn’t cost you a cent. Your marketing is meant to be making you sales. If it doesn’t then stop it immediately.
Cheers
Hey Brendon,
I met with a business owner who gave me that same answer last week.
He wanted to invest a minimal amount and pay us according to his success. Sounds nice on paper but my problem was: how can I trust his business practices and that he’ll follow through enough to make this a success.
So how does that answer help you decide what initial investment they’re willing to make?
-Costas
This question “what’s your budget” is purely and simply another way to say to the client “how much can I fleece you for”? If I tell you my budget is 10k, then I bet you’ll go away and come back with a price for the job at 9½K. I’ve been asked this question GOD knows how many times and I always reply the exact same way, I say “it’s none of your *****ng business”.
Costas, sorry for the very late reply!
Every time we’ve done a performance-based bit of work for a client, we’ve lost out.
Your prospect’s answer doesn’t help you in any way. It always comes back to the client trusting you. That’s the gateway to a solid relationship.