What was wrong with the account structure?

It had accumulated more campaigns than it could support, with near-duplicate structures competing against each other for the same searches.

What came before optimisation?

Consolidation. Half the live campaigns were cut, and exact, phrase and broad match variants that had been running as separate campaigns were merged into single ones.

What is a Google Ad Grants account and why did it matter?

It is free search media for eligible not-for-profits, which the charity did not have. The page notes that media costing nothing lifts return on ad spend across the whole account.

What result did the work produce?

The page reports cost per acquisition fell 70 per cent year on year.

Selected work

Advertising · EssenceMediacom

World Vision Australia

70% reduction in CPA YoY

Led performance media strategies that drove a 70% YoY reduction in acquisition costs.

CPA
Analytics
measurement

Situation & Strategy

Donor acquisition for a not-for-profit means every dollar spent on media is a dollar pulled from programs. The account had bloated with too many campaigns, and near-duplicate structures were competing against each other for the same searches.

Tactics

Consolidation comes before optimization. I cut half the live campaigns and merged the splintered exact, phrase, and broad match variants into single campaigns.

Action

With a leaner structure, I added dynamic search copy so ads matched both the query and the searcher’s city. I also tailored messaging so returning visitors saw something different than first-timers. Finally, I set up a Google Ad Grants account they hadn't claimed—unlocking free search media.

Results

Cost per acquisition fell 70% year-on-year. The Ad Grants account changed the economics entirely: getting media for free lifts the return on ad spend for the whole account.

Same budget, more impact

For a charity, wasted media spend is money that never reaches the work.

BaselineOptimised

Sample: return on ad spend (placeholder)1.0x

Sample: return on ad spend (placeholder)1.7x

This case is written to the same four-part structure as 7 others. Read any one phase across all 8.

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Frequently asked questions

What was wrong with the account structure?: It had accumulated more campaigns than it could support, with near-duplicate structures competing against each other for the same searches.
What came before optimisation?: Consolidation. Half the live campaigns were cut, and exact, phrase and broad match variants that had been running as separate campaigns were merged into single ones.
What is a Google Ad Grants account and why did it matter?: It is free search media for eligible not-for-profits, which the charity did not have. The page notes that media costing nothing lifts return on ad spend across the whole account.
What result did the work produce?: The page reports cost per acquisition fell 70 per cent year on year.

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