Marketing Budget Planning

Decide how much to spend on marketing overall — the question that comes before how to split it across channels. The answer is set by stage, model, growth ambition, and cash runway, expressed as a percentage of revenue and then divided across functions.

When to use

The user needs a total marketing budget or wants to check whether their current spend level is reasonable for their stage and model.

Before you start

1. Read the brand/product context (.agents/product-marketing.md / .agents/aaj-brand.md) for model and stage, if present.
2. Gather: business model (B2B SaaS / ecommerce / services / marketplace), stage (pre-seed → mature), annual revenue (ARR or revenue), and growth ambition (conservative / balanced / aggressive).
3. Have unit economics handy. A budget is only affordable if the implied CAC clears LTV:CAC — run the unit-economics skill if unsure.

Method

For B2B SaaS, the engine uses AAJ's stage bands — AAJ's own estimates from client engagements (2023–2026), not third-party research — and says so in every output: