Sleep & Health Guide Case Study

Overview

LEAD GEN · GOOGLE SEARCH ADS · EMAIL FUNNEL

21 New Subscribers at $220 Ad Spend

Used Google Search Ads (RSAs) and a custom WordPress landing page to convert cold traffic into email subscribers through a free “7-Day Sleep Reset” PDF on a $10/day budget with zero prior campaign data.

$10.47

Cost Per Lead (CPL)

$0.70

Avg Cost Per Click (CPC)

4.02%

Click Through Rate (CTR)

6.67%

Conversion Rate

The Challenge

Starting From Zero

Sleep & Health Guide is a WordPress blog I built covering sleep health and wellness topics.

The goal was to grow an email list from scratch using paid search, with no existing audience, no conversion history, and a hard cap of $10 per day.

With no prior data to guide bidding or targeting, every decision had to be made with efficiency in mind. The low budget also limited data volume, making it critical to prioritize high-relevance traffic and avoid costly mistakes. There was no room for waste; every click had to count.

KPIs

What I Was Optimizing For

The funnel was structured as:
Search → Click → Landing Page → Email Signup
I tracked key metrics at each stage of the funnel to evaluate performance:

1. Search

CPC below $1.00

Why?

At $10/day, staying below $1 per click was the only way to generate enough volume to produce meaningful conversion data within budget.

2. Click

CTR above 3%

Why?

Strong CTR signals keyword alignment and ad alignment, improves Quality Score, which lowers CPC over time. Critical when every dollar is accounted for.

3. Landing Page

Highest Conversion %

Why?

Conversion % shows how well the landing page and offer converted visitors into subscribers after clicking the ad. The higher it is, the more effective the offer and landing page.

4. Email Signup

Lowest CPA

Why?

CPA is the most important metric as it ties ad spend directly to the outcome. It’s the single metric that tells you whether the entire funnel from keyword to landing page is working properly.

My Approach

What I Did, Step By Step

Built a keyword list around problem-aware intent

I targeted information-based queries from users already aware they had a sleep problem, not broad awareness terms. This kept CPCs low while reaching people most likely to download a free guide. Every keyword was filtered for ≥1k monthly search volume and competitiveness at or below $1 CPC.

View my entire Campaign structure and Setup here

Built a distraction-free landing page in WordPress

The landing page had no header, a minimal footer, and no navigation; the only action available was signing up. Copy was written to mirror keyword intent directly, addressing the user’s sleep pain point and presenting the 7-Day Sleep Reset PDF as the immediate solution.

Started with Maximize Clicks to gather data first

With zero conversion history, I opened with Maximize Clicks to build traffic efficiently before optimizing. I tested Maximize Conversions in the second campaign; performance declined, so I reverted. The data volume wasn’t there yet to support it.

Ran two campaigns, collected first, then optimized

The first 7 days were purely for data collection. After analyzing results, I tightened keyword-to-page relevance, updated landing page content for Quality Score, and re-launched for 8 more days with those adjustments applied.

Campaign 1 (7 Days)

Data Collection

Launched to generate initial performance data, clicks, CTR, and conversion behavior before making any optimization decisions.

$13.86

Average CPA

Campaign 2 (8 Days)

Optimization

Applied insights from Campaign 1, tighter landing page content, stronger keyword relevance, and refined bidding strategy based on what the data revealed.

$9.40

Average CPA (reduced 32%)

Results

My Final Results

Total Performance – 15 Days Total · $219.80 Spent

21

Subscribers acquired

$10.47

Average CPA

6.67%

Conversion rate

315

Clicks

$0.70

Avg CPC

4.02%

CTR

−32%

CPA reduction

Through landing page optimization and tighter keyword-to-page alignment, CPA dropped by 32% between the two campaigns without increasing the daily budget.

$13.86

Campaign 1 CPA

$9.40

Campaign 2 CPA

Here’s the screenshot of my Google Ads Dashboard showing both campaigns.

Next Steps

What I’d Do Next To Improve Performance

Quality Score

Tighten keyword → landing page alignment

Closer keyword-to-page relevance would lower CPCs and increase ad rank without raising the budget.

Conversion Rate

Add social proof to the landing page

Subscriber counts or testimonials would reduce friction for cold traffic and lift the conversion rate.

Relevance

Segment landing pages per keyword group

Dedicated pages per keyword cluster would improve message match and boost Quality Score across the board.

Reach

Focus on lost Impression Share

Recovering lost impressions through Quality Score improvements would expand reach without increasing the daily budget.

Key Takeaways

What I Learned/Observed

Relevance drives efficiency.

Targeting problem-aware queries and aligning the keyword, ad, and landing page around one specific intent was the biggest lever for keeping CPA low.

The landing page is half the campaign.

Removing navigation and tightening copy to match keyword intent improved both conversion rate and Quality Score, which fed back into lower CPCs.

Small adjustments compound.

The changes between Campaigns 1 and 2 were minor, but they produced a 32% CPA reduction without touching the budget.

Start with traffic before conversions.

Switching to Maximize Conversions too early hurts performance. The algorithm needs more data before it can optimize effectively.

Skills

Skills I Utilized

Keyword Research

SEMrush & Google Keyword Planner to build and filter the campaign structure

Google Search Ads

RSA structure, bidding strategy, and two-phase campaign optimization

Landing Page Optimization

Custom WordPress page built and refined for conversion rate improvement

Conversion Tracking

Proper audience settings and placements to maximize results

CONTACT

Get in Touch

I’m always open to discussing new opportunities! Looking for agency media buyer roles, in-house roles, and contract roles.

Jonathangrosario.work@gmail.com

View LinkedIn Profile

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