$1000 isn’t going to cut it
Every marketer has a turning point—a lesson that reshapes how they approach campaigns forever. For me, it came with a $1,000 Google Ads budget and the realization that success in 2025, this is not enough.
A client’s Excitement of a Fresh Campaign
A small home cleaning business in Sydney entrusted me with their $1,000 budget, eager to see instant results. The owner envisioned a flood of leads, expecting their phone to ring off the hook within days. I shared their excitement and set up the campaign with high hopes.
The keywords were well-researched, the ad copy was sharp with clear call-to-action, and the targeting was spot on. We focused on a limited area in North Sydney to maximize relevance and minimize wasted spend. We hit launch, and the wait began.
The Harsh Reality
The first few days saw clicks coming in, but conversions? Almost nonexistent. The client called, concerned. We spent $300, and no one has booked yet. What’s going on?" The pressure was mounting, and I started questioning everything.
By the time we burned through $700, we had some leads but nowhere near the volume the client expected. I had to face the hard truth:
Budget was too lean
Client’s expectation did not match the realities of Google Ads in 2025
We needed a fresh approach
The Shift in Strategy
Rather than panic, I pivoted. I knew we needed to amend the campaign. The client couldn’t increase her budget so here’s what I did instead:
Change the bid strategy to Maximise Clicks: With 0 data for Google Ads, there was no foundation to generate conversions/leads. Maximise Clicks pivots the goal to get as many clicks (rather than conversions) which brings down the Cost Per Click and creates both brand awareness and conversion opportunities. Of course, this was a short term approach and I switched to Maximise Conversions Targeting CPA soon after we were generating results.
Landing page optimisation: Make the user experience as easy as possible with clear wording on the types of service you provide. Ensure your pricing is visible and a call-to-action, such as ‘Book Now’ or ‘Call Now’ is very visible.
I reduced the keywords: Understandably, a lot of business owners want to cover a wide range of keywords. However, that is not necessary in 2025 as Google Ads has the smarts to optimise a small set of broad match keywords to generate results. Ensure you switch bid strategy to Maximise Conversions or Conversion Value to get the best from Broad match keywords and keeping your negative keywords up-to-date.
The Turning Point
By the time we spent the last $300, something shifted. Leads trickled in steadily, and conversion rates improved. Within a month, the business was seeing a much better return. However, there was a problem.
$1000 is not enough
The initial CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) at $70 was too high for her business:
That is barely 14 leads per month
Her conversion rate was 50%, meaning out of the 14 leads she only had 7 actual booked jobs
Her selling price was too low, meaning her ROAS was too low
Of course CPAs can be reduced over time given enough data to point Google Ads to the right converting direction. But can your business survive months before meeting these lower CPA results?
Final Thoughts
Many small businesses today make the same mistake—not putting enough into their Google Ads. From the smallest business to the largest organisation, budgets have to be appropriate for the market demand. Of course, every industry is different, but reconsider your marketing budget, diversify your marketing or reduce the scope of your business.
Want to work together to maximise your Google Ads strategy? Let’s chat!
