Marketing spending among architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting firms has reached an all-time high of 5.3 percent of net service revenue, an increase of 18 percent over the 4.5 percent reported last year, according to a recent ZweigWhite report.

The reports says that A/E firms are investing a greater percentage of net service revenue (gross revenue minus subconsultants' fees and reimbursable expenses) than ever before, an especially notable statistic in light of the economic difficulties many firms have been facing over the past couple of years.

"It's taken a long time, but it's finally sinking in," said Mark Goodale, a principal with ZweigWhite's marketing and strategic business planning consulting practice. "You have to spend money on marketing in this industry if you want to have a successful, growing firm. The competition is as fierce as we've ever seen it, and if you can't distinguish yourself from other companies, you're dead in the water."

A/E firms' total marketing spending has increased by 36 percent since ZweigWhite first started tracking the statistic in 1998. Median spending levels started at a low of 3.9 percent of net service revenue in 1998 and did not change in 1999. The figure then increased to 4 percent in 2000 and again to 4.6 percent in 2001. After slipping slightly to 4.5 percent last year, marketing spending increased to its all-time high of 5.3 percent this year.

Total marketing spending includes marketing labor (for both full-time dedicated marketing staff and marketing time for other employees) and all other marketing-related expenses associated with proposals, direct mail, advertising, and other activities.

More than a third of firm leaders -- 39 percent -- are expecting to continue to increase their marketing spending over the next year. This isn't at all surprising to Goodale, who expects marketing budgets to continue to rise and then level off once the economy shows consistent signs of strengthening. Firms may normally want to cut back on overhead expenses when times are tough, but Goodale emphasizes the importance of staying dedicated to marketing investments in any economy. Firm leaders who need to cut overhead and other operating expenses to help firm profitability will find it to their advantage to make cuts in areas other than marketing.