#MediaBudgetingForCreatives

[laurafaritos]

HDMS044: Where Should the Money Go? A Comedian’s Guide to Spending Smart

Every creative hits this moment eventually: you’ve got a tiny budget, a big goal, and no idea where to throw the money. Should you boost an Instagram post? Run Facebook ads? Make a promo video? Print flyers? Bribe your ex into sharing your reel?

This module helped me realize: even million-dollar brands like OOFOS are asking the same questions. Their version has more zeros, but the core issue is the same—how do you spend your money in a way that actually works?

OOFOS is trying to grow sales and brand awareness in a super competitive space. Their paid media strategy is full of trade-offs: short-term vs. long-term, measurable vs. hard-to-track, expensive vs. efficient. And the data? It’s complicated. Some channels (like search ads) are crushing it, while others (like social and TV) are getting more expensive with less return.

This post breaks down how I interpreted OOFOS’s budget dilemmas, what I would’ve done with their media plan, and how this all applies to comedians like us who are trying to stretch every promo dollar without wasting time or energy.

Let’s talk spending smart.

I. What I Learned in Module 3.5.4 of Harvard’s Digital Marketing Strategy Course

This module—3.5.4: Evaluating a Paid Media Budget—was all about making smart decisions with real marketing money. We were given actual past data from OOFOS (the recovery footwear brand we’ve been following the entire course), and asked to analyze how they’ve been spending across different channels—social, search, display, TV, audio, etc.—and decide how we’d allocate their next budget.

Here’s what the data showed:

Search ads were the clear MVP. In early 2022, they had the highest ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)—almost 6 to 1.

Social ads, on the other hand, got more expensive and less effective over time. Their ROAS dropped from 4.74 in 2020 to just 1.39 in the 2022 plan.

TV and digital video were big spend categories with low measurable return—probably useful for brand awareness, but not conversion.

Audio and native ads delivered surprisingly strong results on small budgets, suggesting underused potential.

In our assignments, we were asked to reallocate the 2022 paid media budget based on all this. I chose to:

Decrease spend on social (performance was slipping)

Increase investment in search (best results for short-term revenue)

Keep TV and display stable (good for top-of-funnel visibility)

Cut back digital video (too costly, not converting)

Boost audio and native ads (promising results for low cost)

My reasoning? OOFOS needs to fund what’s working now without starving what will matter later. It’s not about chasing only high ROAS—it’s about balance: sustained visibility plus strategic selling.

II. How This Budgeting Mindset Shows Up in My Career

When I looked at OOFOS’s paid media breakdown, it felt weirdly familiar. Not because I’ve managed million-dollar ad budgets (lol), but because I’ve had to do the exact same mental gymnastics with my own creative promo.

Like: Should I spend $50 boosting a reel? Should I make a poster, even if it only gets 5 likes? Is this podcast guest spot going to help me sell tickets or just help people “know my name”?

This module reminded me that those are the same questions OOFOS is asking—just scaled differently. They’re not just deciding where to spend, they’re asking:

What gives us results we can measure now (search)?

What helps people remember us later (TV, display)?

What surprisingly worked that we should try again (audio, native)?

It’s the exact logic I use when I plan show promos:

I boost posts that are already getting traction (performance marketing)

I do podcasts, write essays, or post jokes knowing they won’t convert tickets right away—but they build a vibe (brand building)

And I always track what worked last time, even if it wasn’t the thing I expected

This isn’t about chasing viral moments. It’s about understanding that every promo move you make either sells something now or builds trust for later. You need both.

III. What Comedians Can Take from This

If you’ve ever stressed over whether to make a show trailer, print flyers, or just post “one more time” on Instagram—congrats, you’ve been doing media budget allocation without realizing it.

This module from the Harvard Digital Marketing Strategy course made it clear that even massive brands like OOFOS have to test, track, and rebalance constantly. And comedians? We’re small but scrappy media machines doing the same thing.

Here’s how you can apply what OOFOS learned:

Treat your time and energy like money. Just because you’re not spending $6.92 million on TV ads doesn’t mean your resources aren’t valuable. If you’re burning out trying to promote, something’s off in the balance.

Track what actually gets people in the room. Not what gets likes. Not what your comic friends hype. What works. That could be one clip. A single tweet. A weird flyer you handed out at a bus stop.

Don’t expect every tactic to convert. Some posts are for ticket links. Some are just to remind people you’re alive and hilarious. The same way OOFOS keeps TV for awareness and search for sales, you need a mix too.

Experiment with “small but mighty” tools. Audio and native ads surprised OOFOS with their impact. What’s your version of that? Is it podcast guest spots? A newsletter? A random post on Threads?

Being strategic doesn’t kill the art—it helps it reach people.

TL;DR On Budgeting Mindsets

The biggest thing I took from this module? Spending smarter doesn’t always mean spending more.

OOFOS didn’t just throw money at every channel—they adjusted based on what actually worked. And when something unexpectedly worked (like audio ads), they paid attention.

As creatives, we have to do the same. Not every flyer, video, or social post is worth your energy. But the right ones? In the right combo? Game-changing.

So next time you’re staring at your promo calendar, ask yourself:

What’s building my brand?

What’s selling the thing?

And what’s just draining me with no return?

That’s media strategy. That’s budgeting with intention. That’s how you keep making art without burning out.

Tchau tchau <333