5 ways to get the most from flexible marketing budgets

Back in the days of traditional marketing, the annual budget was pretty much set in stone at the beginning of the year: You knew exactly how much money you’d be able to throw at media partnerships, print ads and events for the next 12 months.

These days, marketing departments require flexible budgets to respond to evolving trends and data. A lot can change in the course of a year, and the marketing world moves faster than ever before.

New software tools are becoming available, PR tactics are shifting and flexible budgets are becoming necessary to properly adapt on the fly. Budgeting for content marketing is a tricky proposition, as well.

On one hand, paying for and deploying most digital content initiatives is super simple. I could get an eBook in front of a few thousand people with no more than a credit card and a few clicks of my mouse.

Back in the day, an equivalent media placement would have required multiple parties, negotiations, contracts, art departments and thousands of dollars allocated in your budget.

Still, some companies remain hesitant because it’s difficult to prove upfront the ROI for content marketing. Marketers can’t always predict how much money they’ll need for these strategies or how many people they’ll reach through different articles and blog posts.