Budget season is here, whether you like it or not. For many marketers, it’s a time of stress and uncertainty. But it doesn’t have to be! By planning a marketing budget that allows for flexibility, you can unlock growth opportunities that make it easier to take action throughout the year.
A flexible budget not only keeps you prepared for emerging trends and changes in the market, but helps you focus on results and take action more rapidly. Rapid decision making can lead to faster buy-in from executive leadership and help cut through red tape holding your team back. Watch the latest Engage University video with Tyler Baber, Managing Director at BNP Engage, and Ben LeDonni, Chief Marketing Officer at BNP Media, to learn how to build a budget that works for you.
Key Actions for Building a Flexible Marketing Budget
1. Allocate Core and Flexible Funds
- Designate a portion of your budget for essential activities while keeping part unallocated for new opportunities. For example, if your marketing budget is $150,000, reserve $50,000 outside of core expenses. Tying this budget to specific categories of costs without a firm commitment can allow you to make changes more easily throughout the year.
- Companies that leave room in their budgets can quickly invest in emerging opportunities like AI tools, or shifts in market like short-form video. Adopting these emerging trends early can give you an advantage over competitors. This adaptability is crucial when new technologies or opportunities arise unexpectedly.
2. Identify Emerging Trends
- Stay informed about industry trends and changes, such as short-form video and programmatic advertising, which are expected to be major growth drivers in 2025. Plan now to ensure you have funds available to capitalize on these trending marketing opportunities.
- In the past, companies that embraced shifts (like responsive web design) early gained a significant market advantage, while those that delayed had to play catch-up. The same applies to trends like AI and video content. Being ready to invest in these opportunities can put your brand ahead.
3. Make Changes based on KPI Results
- When you know the outcomes you seek to achieve and have a system in place to measure results, it is easier to justify changes in tactics that require budget flexibility.
- Use specific KPIs — such as around brand awareness, lead generation, or engagement — to show leadership the value of maintaining flexibility in your budget. Leverage data tracked in systems like HubSpot to track your key metrics effectively.
- Tracking marketing success is like tracking fitness goals. Just as you need data to measure progress in fitness, having clear metrics is key to proving whether your marketing efforts are paying off. Make sure you have tools in place to monitor performance and make adjustments based on the result you’re achieving.
4. Engage Leadership Early
- Align your budget with company goals early and maintain frequent communication with leadership to speed up budget approvals. This helps to ensure that campaigns can kick off on time without delays.
- Engaging leadership early helps keep everyone is on the same page, which is crucial for getting quick approvals. Frequent conversations and proactive communication prevent delays, allowing marketing teams to kick off important initiatives without being held back.
- Tying budget requests back to expected performance will keep the conversation focused on results, rather than tactics.
5. Prepare for Key Trends in 2025
- Be prepared for changes in technology and user behavior to have an impact on the effectiveness of channels like search and social media. Short-form video and programmatic advertising are channels we expect many B2B marketers will find success in the coming year, as paid search and text-based content are impacted by the rise of AI-generated content.
- Short-form video will continue to be a significant growth area, given how audiences consume content today. Programmatic advertising allows for precise targeting, making it easier to reach your intended audience cost-effectively.
- Plan your budget to include these strategies so you’re ready to meet the demands of 2025.
Ready to Grow in 2025?
Leave room in your budget for the unexpected. Experiment with new technologies or pivot as needed. Need help? BNP Engage is here to guide you. Download our free Strategic Marketing Plan template to outline the plan for your digital strategy.
