Marketing plan for a coach or consultant, at five budgets
Five levels of monthly marketing budget, from nothing to $5,000. Each names the channel mix, the cadence, the AI tools, the 90-day milestones and the mistakes to avoid. Outcomes are estimates with sources, never promises.
The steps, in order
- A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Post twice a week on LinkedIn about one problem you solve, and reach out personally to ten past contacts.
- Start a newsletter, write one signature framework and turn it into a free guide.
- Host a monthly live workshop and book discovery calls at the end.
- Run Meta or LinkedIn ads to the workshop registration, not to a sales page.
- Add podcast guesting, a partner referral programme and a lead nurture sequence behind the workshop.
Bootstrapped ($0)
Organic only: your time is the budget. Pick two channels and be consistent.
Channel mix
Share of your effort and spend. A suggested split, not a forecast.
- LinkedIn60%
- Email newsletter40%
The move for this budget
Post twice a week on LinkedIn about one problem you solve, and reach out personally to ten past contacts.
Weekly and monthly cadence
- LinkedIn9 post / monthOne client lesson or opinion a post, with a clear point of view.
- Email newsletter3 email / monthA weekly or fortnightly note to everyone who has been in touch.
AI tools to use
Each links to its page, where the price is checked and dated. Prices are not repeated here so they cannot go stale.
90-day milestones
- Days 1-30A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Days 31-60Hold the cadence for a full month and apply this: Post twice a week on LinkedIn about one problem you solve, and reach out personally to ten past contacts.
- Days 61-90Review which one channel produced real enquiries, keep it, and drop the weakest of the rest.
KPIs to watch
- Discovery calls booked
- Call to client conversion
- Email subscribers
- Referral share of clients
What not to do at this budget
- Selling to cold audiences with a high-ticket page and no warm-up.
- Posting daily without a consistent message.
- Trying every channel at once; you will do none well.
- Paying for followers, likes or lists.
What to expect (estimates)
- EstimateAbout 12 pieces of content and outreach a month across 2 channels. That is a workload target, not a result.Source: Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
- EstimateNo paid clicks at this tier. Organic channels such as local search and email compound over months, and we do not predict leads or revenue.Source: BrightLocal Google Business Profile research and SOCi local-pack data (via roundups)
Starter ($100 / month)
Free channels plus a small tool stack and one tiny paid test.
Channel mix
Share of your effort and spend. A suggested split, not a forecast.
- LinkedIn30%
- LinkedIn Adspaid30%
- Email newsletter20%
- Referrals20%
Monthly budget split: tools $50, paid media $30, creative $20, test reserve $0.
The move for this budget
Start a newsletter, write one signature framework and turn it into a free guide.
Weekly and monthly cadence
- LinkedIn12 post / monthOne client lesson or opinion a post, with a clear point of view.
- Email newsletter4 email / monthA weekly or fortnightly note to everyone who has been in touch.
- Webinars and talks1 session / monthOne live teaching session that ends in a discovery-call offer.
AI tools to use
Each links to its page, where the price is checked and dated. Prices are not repeated here so they cannot go stale.
90-day milestones
- Days 1-30A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Days 31-60Run the first paid test and compare it with your free traffic: Start a newsletter, write one signature framework and turn it into a free guide.
- Days 61-90Review which one channel produced real enquiries, keep it, and drop the weakest of the rest.
KPIs to watch
- Discovery calls booked
- Call to client conversion
- Email subscribers
- Referral share of clients
- Cost per enquiry (ad spend divided by enquiries)
What not to do at this budget
- Selling to cold audiences with a high-ticket page and no warm-up.
- Posting daily without a consistent message.
- Spending the whole budget on ads before the basics are in place.
- Buying several overlapping tools; one scheduler and one assistant are enough.
What to expect (estimates)
- EstimateAbout 17 pieces of content and outreach a month across 3 channels. That is a workload target, not a result.Source: Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
- EstimateRoughly 5 paid search clicks a month if the $30 ad budget all went to Google search at an average $5.42 per click. Clicks are not customers; your conversion rate decides that.Source: WordStream / LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (all-industry search CPC $5.42)
Growth ($500 / month)
A real paid test alongside a content engine that keeps running.
Channel mix
Share of your effort and spend. A suggested split, not a forecast.
- LinkedIn Adspaid50%
- LinkedIn19%
- Email newsletter13%
- Referrals12%
- YouTube6%
Monthly budget split: tools $100, paid media $250, creative $100, test reserve $50.
The move for this budget
Host a monthly live workshop and book discovery calls at the end.
Weekly and monthly cadence
- LinkedIn15 post / monthOne client lesson or opinion a post, with a clear point of view.
- Email newsletter5 email / monthA weekly or fortnightly note to everyone who has been in touch.
- Webinars and talks1 session / monthOne live teaching session that ends in a discovery-call offer.
AI tools to use
Each links to its page, where the price is checked and dated. Prices are not repeated here so they cannot go stale.
90-day milestones
- Days 1-30A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Days 31-60Run the first paid test and compare it with your free traffic: Host a monthly live workshop and book discovery calls at the end.
- Days 61-90Review which one channel produced real enquiries, keep it, and drop the weakest of the rest.
KPIs to watch
- Discovery calls booked
- Call to client conversion
- Email subscribers
- Referral share of clients
- Cost per enquiry (ad spend divided by enquiries)
What not to do at this budget
- Selling to cold audiences with a high-ticket page and no warm-up.
- Posting daily without a consistent message.
- Running ads without call or form tracking, so you cannot see what worked.
- Changing campaigns every few days before they have learned.
What to expect (estimates)
- EstimateAbout 21 pieces of content and outreach a month across 3 channels. That is a workload target, not a result.Source: Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
- EstimateRoughly 46 paid search clicks a month if the $250 ad budget all went to Google search at an average $5.42 per click. Clicks are not customers; your conversion rate decides that.Source: WordStream / LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (all-industry search CPC $5.42)
Scale ($1,000 / month)
Two paid channels, a creative routine and weekly measurement.
Channel mix
Share of your effort and spend. A suggested split, not a forecast.
- LinkedIn Adspaid29%
- Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram)paid26%
- LinkedIn15%
- Email newsletter10%
- Referrals10%
- YouTube5%
- Webinars and talks5%
Monthly budget split: tools $150, paid media $550, creative $200, test reserve $100.
The move for this budget
Run Meta or LinkedIn ads to the workshop registration, not to a sales page.
Weekly and monthly cadence
- LinkedIn18 post / monthOne client lesson or opinion a post, with a clear point of view.
- Email newsletter6 email / monthA weekly or fortnightly note to everyone who has been in touch.
- Webinars and talks2 session / monthOne live teaching session that ends in a discovery-call offer.
AI tools to use
Each links to its page, where the price is checked and dated. Prices are not repeated here so they cannot go stale.
90-day milestones
- Days 1-30A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Days 31-60Run the first paid test and compare it with your free traffic: Run Meta or LinkedIn ads to the workshop registration, not to a sales page.
- Days 61-90Review which one channel produced real enquiries, keep it, and drop the weakest of the rest.
KPIs to watch
- Discovery calls booked
- Call to client conversion
- Email subscribers
- Referral share of clients
- Cost per enquiry (ad spend divided by enquiries)
What not to do at this budget
- Selling to cold audiences with a high-ticket page and no warm-up.
- Posting daily without a consistent message.
- Scaling a campaign you have not yet seen pay back.
- Splitting the budget across more than two paid channels.
What to expect (estimates)
- EstimateAbout 26 pieces of content and outreach a month across 3 channels. That is a workload target, not a result.Source: Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
- EstimateRoughly 101 paid search clicks a month if the $550 ad budget all went to Google search at an average $5.42 per click. Clicks are not customers; your conversion rate decides that.Source: WordStream / LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (all-industry search CPC $5.42)
Aggressive ($5,000 / month)
A full channel mix with testing, retargeting and a person or agency on execution.
Channel mix
Share of your effort and spend. A suggested split, not a forecast.
- LinkedIn Adspaid25%
- Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram)paid22%
- Google Ads (search)paid15%
- LinkedIn11%
- Email newsletter8%
- Referrals7%
- YouTube4%
- Webinars and talks4%
- Press and podcasts4%
Monthly budget split: tools $400, paid media $3,100, creative $1,000, test reserve $500.
The move for this budget
Add podcast guesting, a partner referral programme and a lead nurture sequence behind the workshop.
Weekly and monthly cadence
- LinkedIn24 post / monthOne client lesson or opinion a post, with a clear point of view.
- Email newsletter8 email / monthA weekly or fortnightly note to everyone who has been in touch.
- Webinars and talks2 session / monthOne live teaching session that ends in a discovery-call offer.
AI tools to use
Each links to its page, where the price is checked and dated. Prices are not repeated here so they cannot go stale.
90-day milestones
- Days 1-30A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Days 31-60Run the first paid test and compare it with your free traffic: Add podcast guesting, a partner referral programme and a lead nurture sequence behind the workshop.
- Days 61-90Review which one channel produced real enquiries, keep it, and drop the weakest of the rest.
KPIs to watch
- Discovery calls booked
- Call to client conversion
- Email subscribers
- Referral share of clients
- Cost per enquiry (ad spend divided by enquiries)
What not to do at this budget
- Selling to cold audiences with a high-ticket page and no warm-up.
- Posting daily without a consistent message.
- Handing the budget to an agency without weekly reporting you understand.
- Scaling spend faster than your team can answer enquiries.
What to expect (estimates)
- EstimateAbout 34 pieces of content and outreach a month across 3 channels. That is a workload target, not a result.Source: Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
- EstimateRoughly 571 paid search clicks a month if the $3,100 ad budget all went to Google search at an average $5.42 per click. Clicks are not customers; your conversion rate decides that.Source: WordStream / LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (all-industry search CPC $5.42)
Questions
- How much should a coach or consultant spend on marketing?
- A commonly repeated rule of thumb, attributed to the US Small Business Administration, is 7-8% of gross revenue for businesses under $5 million; we could not confirm it on an SBA page, so treat it as a guide rather than a rule. This page shows five fixed monthly levels: $0, $100, $500, $1,000, $5,000.
- Can a coach or consultant market with a $0 budget?
- Yes, with time instead of money. At $0 the plan concentrates on LinkedIn and Email newsletter, with about 12 pieces of work a month. A one-sentence offer, a booking link and three testimonials on your LinkedIn profile.
- Where should a coach or consultant start with $500 a month?
- Start with LinkedIn Ads and LinkedIn and Email newsletter, and keep roughly $250 for a paid test you can track. Everything else is time.
- How often should a coach post on LinkedIn?
- Buffer's analysis of over two million posts found that two to five posts a week lifts per-post reach compared with one. Start at two a week and hold it for 90 days.
Sources
Benchmarks are third-party and some are second-hand; each caveat is stated. We do not promise leads or revenue.
- Small-business marketing budget guidance (7-8% of gross revenue, attributed to the SBA by third-party blogs)
Repeated by many blogs and attributed to the SBA; we could not confirm the figure on an SBA page, so treat it as a rule of thumb. (checked 2026-10-20)
- WordStream / LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (all-industry search CPC $5.42)
Figure read from a third-party summary of the report; industry tables were not retrievable. An average, not a quote for your market. (checked 2026-10-20)
- Buffer and vendor guides: about 3-5 Instagram or TikTok posts a week for small businesses
Mostly vendor blogs; the TikTok-specific figure is general guidance, not a platform study. (checked 2026-10-20)
- BrightLocal Google Business Profile research and SOCi local-pack data (via roundups)
We only saw secondary roundups: they report top-3 local-pack listings getting markedly more calls and clicks than positions 4-10, and the share of profile actions that are calls varies from about 16% to 24% by source. Directional only. (checked 2026-10-20)
Get the plan built around your business
$99 once. It includes the AI tool stack for your budget, a keyword and AI-search report, and this marketing playbook.
Find my plan