Better keyword choices and optimized landing pages meant we consistently got leads who were a great match for our program and ready to enroll.
When I joined LEARN academy in 2018 as the Director of Marketing, our Google Ads strategy was scattered and not getting the best results. We relied heavily on paid search ads, but there was little planning or clear optimization. My job was to create a focused strategy, manage our ad campaigns, control budgets, and boost performance. Our main goal was simple: use Google Ads to attract qualified leads, improve conversion rates, and increase our return on investment.
Our fragmented Google Ads strategy was producing just average results with a high cost per lead of $96. We were overly dependent on paid search and didn't have a strong approach to retargeting or data-driven optimization. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, we quickly pivoted from a local, in-person bootcamp to a fully remote, nationwide program. This opened up a much larger audience and let us scale our marketing significantly. In 2021, when we got approved for the VETTEC program, we launched targeted campaigns to capture the new organic and referral traffic it brought in. Still, we faced big hurdles like increasing competition and rapidly rising ad costs in 2022 and 2023. Our lead-to-application rates were also inconsistent, forcing us to adjust strategies to keep lead quality high constantly and results steady.
My approach was structured across four phases that built on each other to create scalable growth. Each phase solved specific challenges while setting up the next level of optimization.
When I started in 2018, I dove right into researching keywords to understand our service offerings, brand visibility, and how we compared to competitors. I carefully analyzed our existing campaigns, pinpointing what wasn't working well and identifying clear opportunities to improve efficiency and results.
With those insights, I built a focused strategy that used Google Search, YouTube, and Display Ads in a coordinated way. I tightened our targeting by using exact and phrase-match keywords, plus a lot of negative keywords, to ensure our ads reached the right audience. I also set up a strong retargeting approach to bring back visitors who showed interest but didn't immediately convert.
I put our new strategy into action by launching targeted ad campaigns supported by optimized landing pages that matched the keywords we targeted. I carefully managed our budgets, increasing spend gradually from $76.8K in 2018 to $153.6K by 2023. To ensure ads looked professional and appealing, I created visuals and ad copy using Adobe Creative Suite and Canva.
To track progress, I set up detailed conversion tracking and closely monitored performance through Google Analytics and HubSpot CRM. I adjusted our campaigns regularly, responding to real-time data, especially as costs increased sharply in 2022 and 2023. By focusing more on lead quality than quantity, we significantly improved our conversion rates, reaching a strong 41% in 2023.
Between 2018 and 2023, Google Ads revenue surged 52 percent—rising from $720 K to $1.09 M—while ROAS stayed consistently strong at 7–11×, proving we nearly doubled top-line returns without sacrificing efficiency.
During the scale-up phase (2018-2020), we grew lead volume by roughly 61 percent while consistently holding ROAS above 8×, proving we could accelerate demand without sacrificing efficiency.
Amid steep CPC inflation from 2021 to 2023, we re-engineered bidding, targeting, and creative to slash cost-per-lead by 33 percent while boosting lead-to-application conversion a remarkable 78 percent, extracting more value from every dollar even as clicks grew costlier.
Over six years, I grew our Google Ads revenue by 52%, from $720K in 2018 to $1.09M in 2023. We saw peak performance in 2022, reaching $1.22M—70% higher than when I started—with some of our strongest efficiency numbers.
I successfully doubled our advertising budget from $77K to $154K, generating 81% more leads (from 799 to 1,448). Even as advertising costs rose significantly, we maintained a strong return on ad spend every year.
In 2023, when costs spiked 66% (CPL rose from $64 to $106), I significantly improved lead quality. Our lead-to-application conversion rate nearly doubled from 23% in 2022 to 41% in 2023, bringing us close to our original high of 45%.
In 2022, our strategy delivered exceptional results, achieving a record 1,812 leads (127% increase from 2018), generating $1.22M in revenue (70% growth), and reaching our lowest CPL of $64 (33% lower than when we began). We maintained an outstanding 10.6x ROAS, proving our strategy’s effectiveness at scale.
Additionally, we smoothly transitioned our campaigns from local to national scale, effectively capturing new opportunities like our 2021 VETTEC program approval, further strengthening our market position.
Our strategic approach had a significant positive impact on the business, driving annual Google Ads revenue consistently above $1 million, peaking at $1.22 million in 2022. Even when facing tough market conditions, we improved the quality of leads and raised our application conversion rates, notably recovering from a low in 2022 to a strong 41% in 2023. We also successfully diversified our marketing strategy, moving away from relying too heavily on paid search. By incorporating stronger retargeting tactics and expanding to other channels like YouTube and display, we made our marketing efforts more competitive and resilient.
Throughout this project, I faced several major challenges but successfully navigated each one. When ad costs spiked significantly due to increased competition (CPC and CPA inflation), I strategically shifted budgets toward higher-quality traffic, protecting our overall performance. The sudden shift caused by COVID-19, forcing us from local, in-person classes to a remote, national bootcamp, could have disrupted our growth, but I quickly adapted our strategy and turned this change into a major growth opportunity. Even when our lead-to-application rates were volatile, I consistently relied on detailed data insights and continuous optimization, allowing us to maintain strong results and stable revenue.
This project clearly demonstrates my ability to scale digital marketing strategically, adapt quickly to unexpected challenges, and maintain strong results even under tough market conditions. Throughout this experience, I consistently used data-driven decisions, proactively led the marketing team, and adapted strategies to deliver reliable growth and significant revenue. I’m looking forward to bringing this strategic thinking, flexibility, and analytical approach to future marketing leadership opportunities.
