This wasn't what the client was hoping to hear. Over the last year their ad spend had gone up from about $3 000 a month to more than $10 000, but sales had declined.
The previous month was their worst ever: 7 new contracts, down from a high of 30+ new contracts a month.
Everything they'd tried to reduce their cost per click resulted in fewer leads and fewer sales. So they desperately kept raising their ad budget praying that they'd be able to spend their way to profit.
The client hoped that I'd be able to spot some mistake or setting in their Google Ads account that could get the CPCs down to what they were in previous years.
Often when I audit a Google Ads account I can find a handful of easy wins. I make a few recommendations. The client implements them and saves 10 times what I charge. Everyone is happy.
But, that wasn't the case here. I was looking at a well-run Google Ads account. Sure, there were a few things that would shave a little off the average CPC, but nothing short of a time-machine would get the CPC down to what it was before.
The trend, for as long as I've worked with Google Ads, has been that the costs go up. When I started in 2007 you could buy clicks for $0.01. Not anymore and never again.
But, it wasn't all doom and gloom. There is a lot that happens between the time someone clicks on your ad and the time you win the sale. This process is notoriously inefficient and an easy target for improvement.
In the previous month my client made 7 sales from 26 168 clicks. It sounds awful but it's not unusual. Let's take a look at how those 26 168 clicks turned into sales:-
In money terms he paid Google about $1 400 per client he contracted with. He could live with spending $500 per new client. Roughly a third of what he's currently spending.
That's because we have very little control over the cost per click. Google sets the lowest price they'll charge you, and other advertisers bid the cost up.
The other way to hit the $500 per client target is to triple the sales closing rate. Go from winning 7 out of 185 meetings to 20 out of 185 meetings. But, that's also a hard ask.
But it is possible and - in my experience, not that difficult - to make small improvements to each step. For example, it's quite realistic to:-
You can check my math in the table below. If I've got it right, the cumulative effect of these small changes means that they'll make 20 sales a month and hit the $500 per client target.
And that's the approach we're going with.
| Description | Current | Target | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Click on an advert | 26168 | 26168 | ||
| Submit an enquiry form | 3327 | 13% | 15% | 3925 |
| Complete an assessment | 1391 | 42% | 50% | 1963 |
| Book a sales meeting | 507 | 36% | 45% | 883 |
| Attend the sales meeting | 185 | 36% | 45% | 397 |
| Contract with the firm | 7 | 4% | 5% | 20 |
I offer 1-to-1 mentoring and consulting. You’ll get help, advice, support and answers without having to commit to a long-term contract. Details here.
Over the last few years I've done deep work with a handful of clients to increase the number of sales they made from their Google and Facebook leads. I've put what I've learned into a 9-lesson email course.
You’ll learn:-
My experience has been that it will deliver more sales if:-
Creating an elevator pitch that makes people want to talk to you. I've always answered the question What do you do? with something like I'm a Google Ads guy. Daniel Priestly changed how I think about answering this question.
Why book-an-appointment conversions are so difficult with Google Ads Why wasn't this wedding photographer getting calendar bookings from Google Ads?
How I help my clients get great testimonials Most people don't have a library of great testimonials. They either don't ask for them, or the testimonials they get aren't very effective. Here's how to fix this.
Most Google Ads advice is wrong for small businesses A small account needs a different setup and different management. You see, something that improves a $50 000 a month account might tank a $500 a month account.
Why you might want to pay Google to show an ad when someone searches for your business. It can sometimes be useful to pay Google to show your advert when someone searches for your business by name. Here's why and how...
Why we lost sales. Losing potential sales always hurts. But, if you know why you lost the sale you can make changes that'll help you win more sales down the line.
An easier way to sell services. Bigger value projects take a lot of work to sell. You have to have the discovery calls, meeting notes, customised proposals and quotes. And, you often need several follow-up meetings. There is another way.
Why I don't just delete fake leads from my inbox If the only thing you do with fake leads from Google Ads is delete the lead delivery email you risk getting swamped by fake leads. Here's why and what to do to improve lead quality.
Why I never use reCAPTCHA on Google Ads landing pages Nobody wants an inbox full of spam, but preventing fake leads from submitting your form is wrong if you’re paying for online advertising. Here's why...
What to say on the first call to an internet lead. Calling leads back fast is the best way to ensure you get a sale if there is one going. Here's what to say on that call.
More sales are lost because of inertia than price. Most of your potential clients want what you sell but haven't handed over the money because they've run out of steam. Here's how to keep them moving towards a sale.
How to win more quotes without lowering your prices In a perfect world you'd win every quote but the reality is that most quotes don't turn into sales. It is possible to turn a lot more quotes into sales without lowering prices. Here's one way.
You could be shooting yourself in the foot if you send quotes in Excel or Word. There is a problem with emailing quotes in Word or Excel: There is no guarantee that the quote will look like it should.
Is your sales process chaotic? I was surprised when three small business owners used the same word - chaos- to describe how they currently handle leads.
The weak link that might be causing you to lose leads Some of your leads never make it from your website to your inbox. And, there is a good chance you don't know about the missing leads.
Leads ghosting you? A business owner complained that his leads were ghosting (ignoring) him after initially showing interest. As we worked together we uncovered a mismatch between lead temperature and his response.
60 leads a week and no sales Their first instinct was to change the adverts. It sort of makes sense. Adverts aren’t producing sales so the adverts must be broken. Fix the adverts and you'll get more sales. But, they could change their ads, spend a load more money and get no sales. This is because the adverts might not be the real problem
About 25% of online leads are lost before they speak to a sales person. Losing 1 in 4 of possible sales before the process even starts is a huge waste. It's also a huge opportunity...
A warning about Google Local Service Ads for doctors, lawyers and other professionals I investigated using Google Local Service Ads for a law firm client. Turns out that there are some privacy issues which were of concern. They may be of concern to you too.
The one number you must know if you're going to use Google Ads to generate leads. How much can you pay for a lead and still be profitable? It is obvious, and it should be advertising 101, but I've lost count of the number of people paying Google who don't know the number.
Ever get to Friday and feel like you’ve accomplished nothing? That's been me for many months. I’ve been busy but not productive. I've felt burned out, tired and bored. This all changed after I implemented time blocking.
How do you get value from "low quality" Google Ads leads? One kind of "low quality" Google Ads lead is a genuine enquiry for something adjacent to what you offer. Here's how I helped one client make sales to them.
Do I really need 7 websites? Two groups of people visit your website: people who know what you sell and strangers who don't know you but want what you sell. One website can't serve both groups effectively.
Does PPC work for accountants? The short answer is “Yes, but only sometimes”. Google suggests that AdWords will work for any business but this is not true in real life.
Google Ads for industries with long sales cycles A client installs billboard size video screens. Here's how we used AdWords to get him in front of the decision makers early enough.
How do you test a business idea? You don’t want to invest time and money on a business idea unless you’re sure that it’ll get traction. Read on to learn how to use Google Ads to test an idea before committing to it.
How much is a Facebook like worth? I've just run a quick calculation and can confidently say that a Facebook like is worth $0.007. Let me explain
"I have no idea if his recommendations will increase my conversions..." A friend is trying to hire someone to manage her Google Ads. She's worried that they'll cost more than they bring in. Or, worse, they'll kill the flow of leads her business depends on. Here's how to reduce that risk.
Is AdWords scaleable? There are a finite number of people who want what you sell, can afford what you sell and are in an area you can reach. Some portion of those people will use Google. That number is the upper limit of AdWords scaleability.
Is AdWords worth it? "Is Google Ads really worth it? I have found that through tracking my CPC, I am not having that much success." was asked on Quora. My answer saved below.
Nobody is buying! Can’t you write better ads? Nobody is buying! Can’t you write better ads? That's the last thing you want to hear in a meeting with a new client...
Selling to strangers is different Ask 100 small business owners how they find customers and 99 of us will say "word-of-mouth". What we won't tell you is that our word-of-mouth marketing is not well tuned engine that spits out a steady stream of great prospects. They arrive by luck or magic.
Should I use my competitors' names as keywords in Google Ads? Should I use my competitors' names as keywords in Google Ads? The answer is, it depends. Read on to find out how to make the right decision for your business.
The cost of zero. Every small business owner needs to understand the cost of zero before they next invest in marketing. It does not matter what medium it is: Google Ads, Facebook, LinkedIn, magazines, radio, or anything else. The reason these campaigns fail so often is never as obvious as you might think.
Things you should never advertise on Google. Making money advertising identical branded goods on Google is really hard.
Which are the specifically right targets for a small paper pallet company? This question was asked on Quora. Saving my answer here.
Will Google Ads work? Thinking about advertising on Google? There are thousands of people who've used Google Ads and never made a sale. You don't have to be one of them. Read on to learn how.
Zombie Hunting Wednesday 3pm. You in? We’ve all got zombie leads. These are people we’ve quoted who haven't said yes. They haven’t said no either. Instead they’re ignoring us - our emails go unanswered and they’re always too busy to talk.
Google Ads delivers leads not sales What’s the most important problem in your industry? In my industry the most important problem is that Google Ads delivers leads but doesn’t deliver sales. Here's what I've been doing about that...
How to get leads from different sources into your CRM automatically I’ve got a client in the motor trade who gets about 2 000 leads a month from 22 different online sources. Here's how we put them into his sales engine automatically without expensive computer code.
I can’t get to the decision maker. "I‘ve got a great product but I can’t get to the decision maker." That’s a problem we smaller business owners face a lot. Can I tell you about how a former client of mine got the decision makers to come to her?
How to turn leads into sales. Two businesses in the same industry. One converts 5% of website leads into sales. The other converts 60%. Read on to find out why.
Make more sales from PPC leads by understanding why people enquire. Understanding why people buy is key to making more sales. Here's how you can get started right away.
Marketing Lessons from a Chimney Sweep There was nothing special about his customer-finding system. But, his customer-keeping system was the best I've ever seen for a small business.
How we turned no-shows into $185 150 worth of new business every month No-shows cost my client $283 328 a month. Here’s how we turned them into $185 150 worth of new business every month - without spending more on Google Ads.
How do I know which of my leads came from Google Ads? Here's the problem... Conversion tracking or analytics can tell you how many leads you got, but not who they are. Read on to see how to fix this.