What costs sit beyond the advertising budget?
Separate investments so you can compare proposals covering the same work.
Separate media from services
Media spend buys distribution on advertising platforms. Strategy, campaign management and optimisation are separate services. Clarify who pays the platforms, what the fee includes and what requires a separate estimate. Comparing totals without matching deliverables is not enough.
Include production and infrastructure
List landing pages, copy, images, video, measurement implementation and integrations. Add relevant licences, hosting and maintenance. Separate initial costs from recurring and usage-dependent charges. Not every project needs every item; use the actual scope rather than a universal checklist total.
Account for internal capacity
Who approves materials, supplies product information and responds to enquiries? Team time and delivery capacity affect what you can sustain. More acquisition spend will not solve a lack of response capacity. Agree responsibilities before campaigns start.
Ask for a usable comparison
Record the period, currency, tax treatment, limits, dependencies and exit or transfer costs for each proposal. The form lets you separate a service investment range from media spend. These are discussion inputs, not an automatic quote or a return-on-investment promise.