What's a customer
actually worth?
Most local businesses price marketing against a single job, not a customer relationship. See the full picture, and what you can afford to spend to win one. Then check that spend against the marketing budget calculator.
Below 1 for infrequent services (e.g. a roof), above 1 for recurring ones (e.g. HVAC maintenance, salon visits).
Rule of thumb: a customer who refers 1 friend of similar value roughly doubles (+100%) what they're worth to you.
Illustrative rule of thumb: many owners aim to spend a modest slice (often 15-25%) of a customer's lifetime value to acquire them.
per new customer, at your target of 20% of lifetime value.
A simplified lifetime-value model (job value × frequency × years, plus a referral estimate) - useful for budgeting decisions, not an accounting figure.