Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

What is Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)?

Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI) measures the revenue or profit generated for every dollar spent on marketing. It helps businesses assess the effectiveness and financial impact of their marketing campaigns.

Quite unlike ROI, which considers the return on broader business investments, ROMI focuses specifically on marketing efficiency.

How to calculate Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)?

ROMI compares the incremental revenue or profit generated from a marketing effort to the cost of that effort. It can be calculated using revenue-based or profit-based approaches depending on how granular you want to be.

Steps to calculate Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

  • Define the Marketing Campaign or Time Frame:
  • Focus on a specific campaign, channel, or period.

  • Determine Incremental Revenue:
  • Calculate the revenue attributed to that marketing activity (exclude baseline revenue).

  • Identify the Cost of Marketing:
  • Include ad spend, tools, agency fees, and team costs specific to the campaign.

  • Calculate Profit (Optional):
  • Subtract COGS from revenue to get gross profit, for a profit-based ROMI.

  • Apply the ROMI Formula:
  • Use either revenue-based or profit-based calculation.

Formula to calculate Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

1. Revenue-based ROMI:

ROMI = (Incremental Revenue−Marketing Cost) ÷ Marketing Cost

2. Profit-based ROMI:

ROMI = (Gross Profit−Marketing Cost) ÷ Marketing Cost

Benchmark for Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

The ideal benchmark for B2B is:

5:1 (good)

10:1 (excellent)

Related Metric for Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

  • Marketing ROI
  • Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
  • LTV (Customer Lifetime Value)
  • Cost Per Lead (CPL)

Turn Every Marketing Dollar into Revenue! Talk to Us!

Learn how DiGGrowth helps maximize your marketing impact. Just write to us at info@diggrowth.com — we’ll get back to you promptly.

FAQ's

ROMI quantifies the business impact of marketing spend, helping teams justify budgets, optimize campaigns, and prioritize high-performing channels. It shifts marketing from a cost center to a revenue driver by aligning efforts with measurable outcomes.

A high ROMI is generally positive, but it must be interpreted in context. For example, a campaign with limited scale may show high ROMI but drive minimal revenue overall. Sustainable growth requires balancing both ROMI and volume of returns.

To improve ROMI, focus on increasing conversion rates, refining audience targeting, optimizing creative content, and reducing marketing costs. Using A/B testing, performance attribution, and channel mix analysis can also help boost returns from existing budgets.