To create an initial budget for marketing particularly use percentages. Take 5% from your net earnings and allocate it for marketing. Whatever that may be. From there you want to watch your ROI on your marketing spend and divide it up according to the performance. The marketing that brings the  loins share of business gets the lions share of the budget. This may change at different times of the year, but you can keep the 5% consistent. From there you look at what you owe and break it into immediate, 30, 60 90 day, full pay and partial pay groups. the immediate full pay get paid. from what's left we pay the immediate partials. then we mark in the calendar the 30 60 90 due dates. If we have a particularly good month with a lot extra we can plan for these by putting a little way for each. Always record what you pay, how you pay it, when and how much. If you have a transaction or reference number be sure to attach that as well.

Budgeting in a small business with a fluctuating income is always the most difficult when you get a big contract. There is always a temptation to spend the win-fall. But the smarter thing to do is put away the 5% and then figure out what you normal monthly obligations are and put that away as well. Why not put yourself in a position of having a month in the bank. So if you hit a particularly lean month you're still okay.