The challenge
This fast-growing HR SaaS company sold to SMB HR and finance buyers, and paid search was a core pipeline channel. But lead quality was inconsistent, acquisition costs were high, and — despite demand — the team couldn't deploy its full media budget without efficiency collapsing.
The trend was going the wrong way. In the quarter before Sloss Digital took over, cost per lead climbed 48% — from $667 to $987 — while monthly lead volume fell by a third. The account was optimizing toward raw form fills, so Google's bidding had no idea which leads were actually worth paying for.
Our strategy
We rebuilt the account around a single principle: teach Google's auction to bid on qualified pipeline, not form fills. That meant fixing the data before touching the bids.
- 01
First-party data feedback loops
We fed qualified-lead and converted-lead data from the client's HubSpot CRM back into Google Ads conversion goals via Zapier, so smart bidding optimized toward real business outcomes instead of raw form submissions.
- 02
Value-based conversion goals
We assigned conversion values derived from the client's sales-funnel economics, teaching the auction which leads were actually worth paying for — and how much.
- 03
Enhanced Conversions via Google Tag Manager
We upgraded measurement with Enhanced Conversions through GTM, improving the signal quality Google Ads had to work with at auction time.
- 04
Value-based smart bidding
With clean signals in place, we deployed Target ROAS and Target CPA strategies to lift lead quality, keep cost per lead under control, and finally unlock full budget deployment.
The results
Within 60 days of takeover, cost per lead fell below $500 — and stayed there. Over the following seven months (October 2024–May 2025) the account compounded into a predictable, scalable pipeline engine.
- Averaged 277 qualified leads per month at a 41% lower cost per lead ($838 → $491)
- Conversion rate up 54% (2.4% → 3.7%) on cleaner, higher-intent traffic
- Deployed 33% more budget each month — in full — without losing efficiency
- Peak month (March 2025): 364 leads at $435 each — 3.7x the prior volume at less than half the cost per lead
- The company was later acquired by a Fortune 500 fintech