What Can $500 a Month Get My Business for Marketing?

How much can $500 stretch per month for marketing? It’s a fair question that’s common among small- to mid-sized businesses just getting started. Sometimes, they have even less.

“I’ve worked with companies that have spent as little as $250 a month,” says Michele Potts, sales director for Zoe Marketing & Communications. “It can be done. But you have to be strategic. It also depends on how competitive your industry is and what sort of reach you want.”

With so many options, deciding where to allocate your limited budget can feel overwhelming. Based on Zoe’s 15+ years of digital marketing experience, we’ve noticed five logical starting points. You likely won’t be able to afford all five for $500, but we suggest focusing on:

1. Google Ads/search engine marketing ($200+/month)
2. Facebook ads ($300+/month)
3. First-party email marketing ($20+/month)
4. Local SEO ($80+/month)
5. Limited organic social media ($20+/month)

Plus, you’ll find out four things you really can’t get at this budget level — and four other low-cost tactics you can get if you’re willing and able to put in the time and effort.

Either way, you can decide on your next steps, whether you fly solo or work with a partner.

5 marketing tactics you can try for under $500 per month

First, let’s examine Google Ads, Facebook ads, first-party emails, local SEO and organic social media. In each case, we assume you’re marketing DIY, not with an agency.

Remember that you can perform some combination of these tactics for under $500 a month, but likely not all five — and not to their fullest extent.

1. Google Ads/search engine marketing ($200+/month)

Search engine marketing, or SEM, helps increase your visibility when people are Googling for keywords related to your business. Many small- to mid-sized businesses need a minimum of $200 monthly. Here’s a sample of how it can work:

• Cost: $1-$2 per click for search (i.e., text-based) ads; plan on about $200 per month
• Strategy: Use geo-targeting to focus on your local area, create ads for specific promos/services, and try A/B testing to boost ad performance.
• Expected results: A bump in website traffic, local visibility and inquiries. Expect about 100-200 clicks. With a conversion rate of about 3.75% for search ads, you could see about 3-7 conversions (i.e., sales) each month.

“Highly competitive keywords — like the legal or insurance industries — cost more, even exceeding $50 per click,” Potts says. And, depending on your goals, even $200 might fall short.

Potts once worked with a New Jersey preschool with seats for 60 kids and an SEM budget of $300. “They were getting 3-5 leads per month; not enough to keep their enrollment full.”

Increasing that amount helped them keep better pace with their competitors. “For small businesses, $1,000-$3,000 a month is better for effective campaigns,” she says. “But a smaller amount can at least get you started — and lift your visibility.”

2. Facebook ads ($300+/month)

Like SEM, social media ads grab people’s attention where they spend a lot of time. Here, we suggest starting with Facebook — one of the most popular and proven for conversions. For the typical smaller business, at least $300 a month can earn solid results:

• Cost: About $1 per click per ad; plan on $300 per month
• Strategy: Use detailed targeting options to focus on your ideal audience. Create engaging ads with strong calls to action. Use special formats like carousel ads to showcase multiple products or features.
• Expected results: Higher engagement (likes, comments, shares) and brand awareness. Expect about 300 clicks. With an average conversion rate of about 9% for Facebook ads, your average conversions could be 28 per month.

“It does depend on what you’re offering and how compelling your message is,” Potts says. “Actual sales can be tricky on social media since you’re asking people to leave their feeds.”

Still, effective small-business budgets can run $200-$800 a month. “One key is to target your ads correctly,” Potts adds. “I’ve worked with businesses that had previously only ‘boosted’ ads, but they wound up reaching the wrong locations.”

3. First-party email marketing ($20+/month)

Depending on your business model, reselling to your current customers via email — i.e., your “first party” data — can be powerful and affordable.

• Cost: Varies based on platform and how many contacts you have. A standard Mailchimp plan, for instance, ranges $20-$700/month for 500-100,000+ contacts. Plus, you’ll need to invest your in-house time to plan, write, create and distribute emails.
• Strategy: Pick an affordable email marketing tool like Mailchimp or Constant Contact. Send monthly newsletters with updates, promotions and valuable content. If possible, segment your email list to tailor content to different audiences.
• Expected results: Standard email open rates range 15%-25% with a click-through rate (CTR) of about 2.5%. For a list of 1,000 contacts, you could see 10-30 conversions per month, leading to more customer engagement and higher sales.

“Email marketing is an essential tactic for improving customer retention and increasing repeat business,” Potts says. “That said, it can be a time-consuming task to plan and manage it.”

Pre-created templates can help polish your emails. “To hire an agency for basic email marketing services, you’re likely starting at $300-$500 per month.”

4. Local SEO ($80+/month)

When people Google you, they should find accurate info about you quickly. Local SEO, or search engine optimization, ensures your details appear correctly in online directories and platforms — and that your web pages are “optimized” for local searches, too.

• Cost: Local SEO starts around $80-$150/month for citation management.
• Strategy: Use affordable tools like Moz Local or BrightLocal to ensure your NAP (name, address, phone) is consistent in directories. Claim and optimize your Google Business Profile and encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews. If time and resources allow, do some basic on-page SEO to optimize your website for local keywords.
• Expected results: Improved local search rankings and increased visibility in local search results. Quality SEO work can boost your conversions by nearly 15%.

“Local SEO is crucial for businesses that rely on local customers,” Potts says. “Ensuring your business appears in local searches can significantly impact your visibility and customer base.”

Fuller hired-out services, including work on your own website, can run $300- $2,000/month.

5. Limited organic social media ($20+/month)

Finally, maintaining an active social media presence is crucial for engaging with your audience and building brand awareness.

• Cost: Social media management tools like Hootsuite or Buffer offer plans around $20-$100/month, which vary based on the number of profiles and posts you create.
• Strategy: Create consistent, high-quality content that resonates. Use scheduling tools to post regularly and save time. Respond to comments and messages promptly. Tap into free features like stories, reels and live videos to maximize engagement.
• Expected results: Regular posting and engagement can build a loyal following. Expect increased brand awareness and web traffic. Businesses that post consistently often see a 20% increase in engagement within a few months.

“Maintaining an active social media presence is vital for connecting with your audience and keeping your brand top-of-mind,” Potts says. “Full-service social media management can be costly, but managing it in-house with the right tools can still deliver results.”

4 important marketing tactics you can’t get at $500/month

As you’ve seen, you can likely only get, at best, 2-3 of the five tactics above at $500 a month. That said, from a quality perspective, these four tactics often require hired expertise — and will be more expensive:

1. Content marketing: Creating high-quality blog posts, articles, videos and infographics typically costs $800+ per piece with an agency.
2. Targeted email marketing: Segmented email campaigns, personalized content and advanced analytics often cost $1,000+/month.
3. Full SEO management: Comprehensive keyword research, on-page and off-page optimization, and technical SEO services run $1,000-$5,000/month.
4. Extensive social media management: Full-service strategy, content creation, posting, engagement and analytics generally cost $1,000-$5,000/month.

4 other ‘cheap’ marketing tactics that mainly cost time and effort

If you’re willing and able, you also can use several other tactics to keep your outside marketing costs under $500 a month.

1. Networking and partnerships: Collaborate with local businesses for cross-promotions and participate in networking events to build relationships and increase referrals.
2. Referral programs: Encourage existing customers to refer new customers by offering incentives like discounts or free services.
3. DIY content creation: Create your own content using your in-house expertise and free or affordable tools like Canva for graphics and Lumen5 for videos.
4. Free social media features: Leverage free features like Facebook Groups, Instagram Stories and LinkedIn Articles to engage with your audience.

Next steps for starting your marketing on a budget

Marketing at $500 or less is a tight budget. But, in this blog, you’ve seen how it can be done — especially if you’re strategic and willing to put in some elbow grease.

Curious how you can grow your marketing? Talk to us. Here at Zoe Marketing & Communications, our plans start at $3,000 per month, but we help businesses of all budget sizes get started and find direction.

Need more support for going it DIY? We entirely understand. These articles are here to help you out:

• Marketing with no money: How to market your business for free
• 4 best free digital marketing learning resources for businesses