What should a digital health brand actually spend on marketing, and which channels should come first? In this episode of the Digital Health Growth Show, hosts Noah Goldfarb (Fire & Spark) and Chris Turitzin (Single Aim) go broad for the first time, bringing in two specialist guests to cover the full growth channel stack in one session. PR and organic social strategist Claire Schillings of November West Communications breaks down what a communications program actually looks like at each stage of growth — including real budget ranges. At seed stage, $5k a month is realistic and enough to build your messaging foundation, start an audience on social, and establish leadership credibility. By Series A, that typically moves to $8–10k a month as you add a regular media cadence and customer stories in trade publications. She also covers the mistake she sees most often: using PR to compensate for a story that hasn't been worked out yet. Performance marketing expert Chris Madden of MatchNode gets into the mechanics of paid media for digital health brands. Seed stage brands can start testing messaging themes for $5–10k a month in retainer, but ad spend is separate, and you need enough budget for the algorithms to actually learn. At $300 target CAC, a $5k monthly ad budget only gets you 10–15 conversions, not enough to run meaningful tests. By Series A, expect $10–15k in ad spend at minimum to start learning fast. He also names the most common paid mistake: spreading a limited budget across too many platforms and campaigns at once, when focus on two or three tests would move the needle faster. Noah rounds out the conversation with an honest take on SEO timing — why almost everyone who starts late regrets it, but why starting too early can also backfire. For early stage brands with no web presence, expect six to twelve months before real traffic arrives. Fire & Spark's retainers run from $8,500 to $20k a month, and the right time to bring in a specialist agency is typically Series A, not seed. At seed, a trusted freelancer you manage closely is often the smarter move. The total picture: seed stage brands covering all three channels should expect to spend $10–15k a month in retainer fees alone. By Series A, that moves to $25–35k across all three channels, with paid ad spend on top. At scale, retainers alone can reach $35–50k a month — with paid media buys running separately at $50k or more. Together, the three experts cover the one thing all channels have in common: none of them work until your positioning is clear and you know who you're building this for. The conversation ends with a lightning round of the single biggest mistake each expert sees brands make — and a candid discussion on how AI and generative search are reshaping which channels matter most right now. Whether you're a founder figuring out where to put your first marketing dollar, or an in-house marketer wondering if your current spend is in the right place, this episode gives you a rare, honest look at what growth actually costs, and when each channel is worth it.
