Decreased CPA by 68% by switching to feed-based Dynamic Ads
86% increase in conversions
400% decrease in cost per purchase
Crazy in Love grew to adopt a simple but effective social advertising strategy that now generates a considerable return on investment with Dynamic Ad campaigns on Facebook. The project started with an unsettling comment—“Client has excellent knowledge of search advertising, has little confidence in social.” We had our hands full. If the CPA spiraled out of control, Crazy in Love would instantly lose any temptation to test Facebook advertising.
Baby Steps
During initial meetings, Marin wanted to impart knowledge, so we explained the rules, techniques, and skills involved in Facebook advertising.
For starters, we ran a simple campaign structure with a conversion objective prospecting a 1% lookalike of the website’s website visitors. A simple campaign structure and objective would allow the Crazy in Love team to learn the basics.
After achieving moderate results (10% greater than target CPA), they were willing to test a similar structure across two other markets it was advertising in. We saw similar results.
A Growth in Confidence
As the client began to better understand how to optimize social ads, it became quite transparent that the social spend was generating revenue. Although we weren’t yet hitting the target CPA all the time, we were floating within 10-20% of our target across three markets.
Conversations shifted to Dynamic Ads, and how effective Dynamic Ads campaigns are in achieving a low CPA. After a week or so of working closely with the team on its product feed, and ensuring the Facebook pixels were correctly installed at each touch-point of the purchasing path, we launched DA in one market.
Since the particular market has significant web traffic, the results were instantaneous—we succeeded in decreasing the CPA by 66%.
Scaling Up
With DA successfully set up in one market, it once again provided a learning environment for Crazy in Love. Our account rep touched base a couple of times a week, suggesting change recommendations, offering a coherent reason every time, and building their knowledge.
Luckily, as the campaigns indicated a sound ROI, Crazy in Love pushed to self-educate and took every recommendation on board. At this stage the client was running Facebook campaigns for four months, and it became clear that it trusted that with successful optimization and strategy, there was a high chance of achieving a valuable ROI.
Testing and Lessons Learned
Crazy in Love's CPA was a purchase, so that became the focal point. To ensure top-notch DA campaigns, we taught them about the need to ‘feed’ our retention audiences. They understood the theory—however, because a purchase conversion was the main objective, they decided to use conversion campaigns as prospecting ‘feeding’ audiences.
Although conversion objective campaigns achieved some conversions, the total number of clicks weren’t enough to ‘feed’ our DA product audiences on Facebook. The DA CPAs started to spiral out of control, and as the client stumbled into the Christmas shopping period, it was noticeable that the campaigns weren’t being given the same care and attention. Ad scores began to fall, and frequency, CTR, CVR, and CPA all began to spiral.
The ads were becoming expensive. It was time to realign the strategy and ensure adequate optimization time.
Getting Back on Track
After agreeing that conversion objective campaigns were not optimum for ‘feeding’ DA campaigns, they agreed to test an outside traffic objective, in an attempt to drive more traffic with more clicks.
As the DA CPAs began to spiral we decided to rebuild our DA campaigns. This provided an opportunity to analyze attribution windows, to align retention days for optimum results.
By running Lookalike Prospecting campaigns with an Outside Traffic objective across all markets, we drove considerable traffic to the website that was later picked up by the DA setup. The results were excellent.
The Grand Finale
To highlight the success of this strategy we compared the data from Q4 2015 and Q4 2016. We noted an 86% increase in conversions, with a 400% decrease in CP purchase (€60.35 to €11.97).
Decreased CPA by 68% by switching to feed-based Dynamic Ads
86% increase in conversions
400% decrease in cost per purchase
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Marketing Data Pipelines: Turning Data Into Insights
Wrangling and making sense of all your marketing data is hard. For longer than a decade, we’ve been helping companies solve some pretty complex marketing data challenges – and we’ve compiled some of the knowledge we’ve gained over the years into a handy guide. The tl;dr? It’s complicated, but with the right tools, namely a marketing data pipeline (MDP), it doesn’t have to be hard! In this guide we break it all down to help you make sense of it, including breaking down:
What an MDP is
The stages of MDP maturity
Some of the key challenges with building an MDP
How to tell if you need an MDP
How to get started
And so much more!
Check out the report to learn all about corralling your marketing data today!
If you invest time, money, and resources into lead generation, you need to make sure that the leads you’re generating fit your ideal customer profile (ICP). We call these ideal potential customers targeted leads. So, what exactly can you do to generate targeted leads efficiently and effectively? Read on for expert tips and tricks.
Start with valuable lead magnets
A lead magnet is a piece of content designed to capture lead information and get potential customers into your CRM system. You can develop high-quality, value-driven lead magnets and give them out to potential customers for free in exchange for their contact information - usually their email address.
While everyone loves free stuff, the fact that a lead magnet is free is not enough to incentivize potential customers to take action. Lead magnets must be genuinely valuable to inspire them to download them and offer their contact info.
Here are some types of lead magnets you should consider creating:
An excellent example of a high-value lead magnet is Onnit's "8-Week 8-Pack Plan", a PDF detailing an 8-week workout plan people can download for free. All they have to do is provide their email address. Then, they’ll receive the guide right in their inbox.
Although Onnit isn’t exactly a B2B marketer, there’s a lot we can learn from this guide.
Of course, this lead magnet gets potential customers onto Onnit’s email list. But more importantly, it’s full of helpful images and step-by-step explanations that a reader can easily understand and follow. Since it’s easy to use, potential customers will find value in it immediately. This improves brand credibility and increases the likelihood that leads who download the 8-week plan can be upsold paid offerings, like a monthly workout plan subscription.
So, how can you create a highly valuable lead magnet? By making sure it's chock-full of helpful information and easy-to-follow steps towards a concrete result. Onnit’s goal is to get people in shape and help them adopt a fitness mindset. When creating your lead magnet, think: What would you like your customers to achieve? And then help them achieve it.
Once you’ve crafted your lead magnet, share it on various marketing channels like organic social, paid social, and paid search. More on that next.
Use paid search advertising to reach the right people
Getting your brand to the top of the search engine results page (SERP) is a great way to build visibility and provide a quick solution to customers' needs. Of course, paid search ads can drive traffic to your product pages, but it's also good to showcase your lead magnets in paid ads targeting relevant search terms. If your content answers a question that your ideal client is searching, that's a great way to grow your lead pipeline.
Here are some paid search tips for B2B marketers looking to generate high-value leads:
1. Use High-Intent Keywords
High-intent keywords are terms that potential clients use when they're getting closer to making a purchasing decision. Incorporate keywords that reflect specific needs, like “enterprise project management software” or “commercial insurance quotes.” Analyze your search terms report to find terms your target audience uses when they’re ready to engage and add those to your campaign as keywords.
2. Create Sitelinks for your Lead Magnets
Paid search is a great way to promote your best lead magnets. Create sitelinks that link to your different pieces of content. Using strong call-to-actions (CTAs) like “Download the Free Whitepaper” or “Watch our Webinar” as the sitelink text will drive users to engage with your lead magnets. Call extensions are also useful for B2B companies looking to increase inbound inquiries.
3. Optimize Landing Pages
Ensure that your ad’s landing page is optimized for conversions. It should provide high-level, digestible information about the product or lead magnet and include a simple, straightforward form to capture lead details. Keep the design clean and navigation easy, and ensure the messaging aligns with your ad copy to maintain consistency.
4. Focus on Quality Over Quantity
When it comes to B2B lead generation, the quality of the lead is often more important than the quantity. Optimize your campaigns to attract leads that are most likely to convert into paying customers. This means bidding higher on a small collection of more competitive, high-intent keywords rather than placing mid-tier bids on a large group of more vague keywords.
Craft personalized social media messages
Without a doubt, LinkedIn is the best social platform for generating targeted leads and connecting with decision-makers. To do LinkedIn outreach right, start by researching your ideal connections. Craft messaging that will resonate with your ICP by first understanding the types of problems they might be trying to resolve.
Here's an example of two outreach messages. Which one would you be more likely to act on?
I think we can all agree that the second is more compelling!
Once you identify a common problem for a targeted group of prospects, you can reach out with a message telling them how your product will resolve that problem. This message should be complemented by a quick overview of your track record and a call to action. Remember to include a link to one of your lead magnets!
Test Paid Social Ads
Paid advertising on social media will put your brand in front of a highly targeted audience, but you have to deliver a powerful message to inspire people to click. The combination of captivating visuals and a clear call to action will get people to click on your ad to check out your products and offers. When you combine this with a powerful landing page, you have a high chance of turning them into a lead on the spot.
Here are some B2B-specific tips for paid social campaigns:
1. Target Precisely
Use the detailed targeting options available on social platforms to hone in on your ideal customer profiles. This includes job titles, industries, professional interests, and company sizes. The more specific you can get, the more likely you are to reach decision-makers.
2. Create Engaging Ads
B2B doesn't have to be boring. Create content that captures attention and engages viewers. This can be through informative videos, eye-catching infographics, or thought leadership posts that position your company as an expert in your field.
3. Utilize Lead Generation Forms
Many social platforms offer lead generation functionalities, like LinkedIn’s Lead Gen Forms, which auto-populate with the user’s profile data when they click your ad. This reduces friction in the lead generation process, making it easier for users to sign up or express interest without leaving the platform.
4. Showcase your Lead Magnets
Not every ad should ask users to 'book a demo' or 'buy today'. Instead, promote some of your best lead magnets to cement yourself as a thought leader in the eyes of your ideal customer. Whether it’s an industry report, a sponsored article, or just a good old-fashioned whitepaper, driving traffic to your lead magnets is invaluable.
Build landing pages that inspire action
Your ads will only deliver the desired results if they link to equally powerful landing pages. When a potential customer clicks on an ad, they need to land on a page that delivers valuable information that is relevant to them.
For example, if a person searches for the best wireless security cameras, and your ad pops up, you want to make sure that it leads them to wireless cameras specifically. A common and costly mistake would be to lead them to your entire security camera selection, not a filtered landing page.
That's a big no-no.
With that said, what does a great landing page look like? Check out DoorDash, whose landing page gives you everything you need to take action immediately above-the-fold, along with added information and options as you scroll down.
Or how about Marin's very own performance marketing and automation landing page?
The above-the-fold part of the page has everything from a video intro to a short text explainer, as well as a clear CTA and some social proof sprinkled in at the bottom. As you continue to scroll, you get to know the specific features of the platform and the ways it can streamline your digital marketing campaigns.
Optimize Your Lead Generation Forms
When it comes to lead generation forms, brevity is your friend. Lead gen forms should be short, sweet, and to the point, and they should offer some value to the visitor (like a lead magnet). Make sure the user has to fill out no more than 6 info boxes to complete the form. Just two or three is ideal.
Here are some types of lead gen forms to add to your site:
Newsletter signup
Email in exchange for a discount code
Account Registration in exchange for access to resources
Lead magnet signup
Here's an example of a good lead gen form:
On Expat.com, the signup form is straightforward and concise, with color simplicity and contrasts to emphasize the call to action as well as other signup options.
Track Every Micro-conversion
The B2B sales cycle can be long and convoluted, with many different micro-conversions occurring along the way. A micro-conversion could include a form fill, a demo request, a phone call, or downloading a lead magnet. It’s critical to track every step of the customer journey to understand what’s driving sales and where customers are dropping out of your marketing funnel.
Marin attribution was built to do just that. It’s ideal for B2B businesses because you can view every micro-conversion side by side, and even calculate the conversion rate from one micro-conversion to the next. It’s critical to implement a multi-touch attribution tracking system so you can understand the full picture.
Over to You
Generating targeted leads starts with creating high-quality lead magnets that bring potential customers into your conversion funnel. Potential customers want to connect with brands on a more personal level, so it’s critical to position your brand as a thought leader in your industry.
Paid search and social advertising for B2B brands can be complex. Tracking the customer journey is no easy task. And with many sales cycles taking over 6 months, it can be difficult to determine which ads and lead magnets were the true needle movers that drove a lead to convert. With Marin’s cross-channel campaign management and attribution software, the process becomes streamlined and simple. Speak with a Marin rep to learn more!
EasyGo increases conversions from Apple Search Ads by 42% with Marin
EasyGo, headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, is a pioneer in the online gaming industry. They develop high-quality, engaging games and have quickly become one of Australia’s fastest-growing companies. Their marketing team leverages Apple Search Ads (ASA) to reach users actively searching for gaming apps on the App Store, ensuring they capture high-intent users at the moment of interest.