Alcumus - SafeContractor 

To optimise our strategy, we conducted an audit of SafeContractor’s PPC accounts. Several insights emerged. Impression share for brand keywords was high, most users who searched for “safecontractor” on Google or Bing were served with an ad. As there was limited growth potential in this area, we needed to focus on optimising performance. Alcumus SafeContractor spend on non-branded keywords in Q1 2023, generated 126 leads at an average cost 22% above our target. Our audit revealed the company only appeared for 22% of searches for relevant keywords, indicating room for growth. 

Microsoft Ads achieved a similar cost per lead to Google Ads in Q1 2023. Given cost per clicks (CPC) on Microsoft Ads were 76% lower than Google Ads, we believed there was more that could be done to improve performance.  From analysing 2023 performance, we knew that men converted at a better rate than women, and users aged 25-54 drove the bulk of the leads. While these insights were useful, we believed that multiple approaches would yield the best results.  We didn’t want to restrict the brand campaigns to the best performing demographics, as we were concerned that the audience wouldn’t be big enough to spend the budget.

So we overlaid the best performing demographics onto our Brand campaigns and applied bid modifiers to increase CPC bids for users who were most likely to convert. For non-brand campaigns we focused on reaching users who were searching for the right keywords, such as “health and safety accreditation”. We believed that through targeting the right keywords, utilising the right bid strategy, and deploying best practice we could drive improved results.

Fundamentally SafeContractor’s Q1 2024 PPC campaigns targeted two audiences: Warm audiences: those acquired via the Brand campaigns who were already aware of SafeContractor and considering becoming a customer. Cold audiences: users acquired by the Non-Brand campaigns who were looking into health and safety accreditation providers but hadn’t decided yet. Each of these audiences had different aspirations that needed addressing. Warm audiences wanted certainty that SafeContractor was the right provider for them. Cold audiences needed convincing that investment in health and safety accreditation was worth their while.