One of the most common questions clinic owners ask is: “How much should I be spending on marketing?”
The truth is, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but there is a structure. Whether you’re trying to grow, sustain or future-proof your business, your marketing budget should be driven by strategy, not guesswork.
Marketing budgets vary by business model and growth objectives.
According to Gartner’s 2024 CMO Spend Survey, average marketing budgets fell to 7.7% of overall company revenue in 2024, down from 9.1% in 2023, and were tracking at an average of 11% pre-COVID.¹
Use this as a benchmark. Rather than setting arbitrary amounts (for example, £500 here or £1,000 there), anchor your marketing budget to your revenue and your strategic goals. This keeps your spend realistic, measurable and accountable.
It’s also important to recognise that the 7.7% benchmark typically reflects established businesses. When you are in a phase of accelerating growth, it is wise to invest above the average to increase momentum.
The Gartner report also highlights a shift where marketers are expected to do more with less. Although overall budgets have tightened, digital spend continues to rise, now representing 57.1% of total paid media budgets in 2024 (up from 54.9% in 2023).²
Hosted Tip:
Always split your spend across new client acquisition, existing client retention and brand awareness. Growth isn’t just about being seen; it’s about being remembered.
Your campaigns will underperform if your foundation is weak. That includes your website, brand messaging, user experience and the ease with which clients can enquire or rebook.
HubSpot’s State of Marketing 2024 emphasises that foundational readiness (site optimisation, brand clarity and conversion flows) has one of the strongest correlations to campaign ROI.
Before scaling paid ads, ask yourself:
Hosted Tip:
Marketing doesn’t fix a weak foundation; it amplifies it. Make sure your digital home is ready before inviting traffic in.
Multiple studies show that retaining a client is far more profitable than acquiring a new one.
Research by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company, published in Harvard Business Review, found that a 5% increase in customer retention can boost profits by 25% to 95%.³ ⁴ ⁵
Membership programs, loyalty schemes, referral incentives and automated rebooking flows are powerful tools in aesthetics, where trust and experience drive repeat business.
Hosted Tip:
Retention is your most cost-effective marketing channel. Every loyal client is a micro-influencer for your brand.
Instead of asking, “How much should I spend on Instagram?”, start with your business objective.
A simple framework looks like this:
Hosted Tip:
Let results guide reallocation. Channels that perform should earn more budget over time.
Track metrics that tie directly to business outcomes, not vanity metrics.
Key metrics to monitor include:
Hosted Tip:
Likes don’t pay bills. Loyalty does. Focus on metrics that move your business forward.
Marketing momentum compounds over time. If you pause spending during quiet months, you lose traction, visibility and brand recall, and it takes more effort to rebuild.
Hosted Tip:
Marketing is not a tap you turn on when it’s quiet. It’s an engine that keeps your business growing, even when you’re busy.
If you use an agency or marketing partner, ensure they understand the compliance, pricing sensitivities, customer psychology and regulatory constraints unique to aesthetics.
Hosted Tip:
Ask for transparency, not magic. The right marketing partner will educate, not mystify.
The aesthetics industry has predictable peaks and quieter periods. National seasonality varies by region, procedure type and clinic model, so the best approach is to monitor your own booking patterns and compare them with broader market data.
Use slower periods for retention campaigns, education, brand storytelling and reactivation instead of aggressive acquisition pushes.
Hosted Tip:
When others go quiet, show up differently. Smart consistency beats sporadic activity every time.
A well-structured marketing budget isn’t about spending more, it’s about spending smarter.
The clinics that grow fastest are those that:
When marketing becomes a strategic function, not a reactive expense, it stops being a cost and becomes one of your most dependable growth levers.
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