From Vanity Leads to Pipeline Value: How CRM Integration & a Multi-Channel PPC Strategy Cut a B2B Firm's Cost-Per-Qualified-Lead by 58%
Client: a high-growth financial advisory firm specializing in M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) consulting for mid-market technology companies.
Project Duration: 7 months (Ongoing)
Services: Google Ads (Search, Display), LinkedIn Ads, Conversion Tracking & CRM Integration (HubSpot)
Project Duration: 7 months (Ongoing)
Services: Google Ads (Search, Display), LinkedIn Ads, Conversion Tracking & CRM Integration (HubSpot)
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Executive Summary
The advisory firm was investing a significant budget into Google Search Ads but was caught in a classic B2B trap: a high volume of low-quality leads, astronomical Cost-Per-Click (CPC) for valuable keywords, and a 6-12 month sales cycle that made calculating the true ROI of their marketing spend impossible. The marketing team was judged on lead volume, while the sales team complained about lead quality, creating internal friction.
Studio.351 architected a sophisticated, full-funnel strategy that shifted the focus from generating "leads" to creating qualified sales pipeline. By combining the precise audience targeting of LinkedIn with the high intent of Google Search and integrating deep, two-way CRM tracking, we transformed their PPC from a cost center into a predictable revenue driver. This approach cut their Cost-Per-Sales-Qualified-Lead (SQL) by 58%, gave them clear visibility into their marketing ROI, and aligned the goals of their marketing and sales teams for the first time.
Studio.351 architected a sophisticated, full-funnel strategy that shifted the focus from generating "leads" to creating qualified sales pipeline. By combining the precise audience targeting of LinkedIn with the high intent of Google Search and integrating deep, two-way CRM tracking, we transformed their PPC from a cost center into a predictable revenue driver. This approach cut their Cost-Per-Sales-Qualified-Lead (SQL) by 58%, gave them clear visibility into their marketing ROI, and aligned the goals of their marketing and sales teams for the first time.
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The Challenge: the Black Hole of B2B Leads
- Prohibitive Costs: CPCs for their core keywords, such as "M&A advisory services for tech companies," often exceeded €50. This meant every unqualified click was a significant waste of budget, making it impossible to scale their campaigns profitably.
- Lead Quality Crisis: over 80% of form submissions were immediately disqualified. The leads consisted of students writing research papers, job seekers, and sales reps from other companies trying to sell them services. Sales reps were spending more effort on filtering than on closing deals.
- No ROI Visibility (The Attribution Gap): with a sales cycle lasting up to a year, there was no way to connect a click that happened in January to a deal that closed in December. The marketing team struggled to demonstrate their impact, while the finance team found it hard to justify the expenses.
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The Solution: a Quality-First, Full-Funnel Strategy
We abandoned the goal of simply lowering the Cost-Per-Lead (CPL). Instead, we focused on dramatically reducing the Cost-Per-Sales-Qualified-Lead (SQL) and providing end-to-end ROI tracking.
- Precision Targeting (LinkedIn Ads): use LinkedIn's powerful demographic targeting to build hyper-relevant audiences of their ideal customers (e.g., CEOs, CFOs, and VPs of Strategy at tech companies with 100-500 employees). The goal was not an immediate lead, but to build a warm, qualified audience pool.
- Intent Capture (Google Search Ads): continue to run Google Search Ads on high-intent keywords, but with a crucial filter: layer our curated LinkedIn audiences on top. This meant our expensive search ads were only shown to people with the right job titles who were also actively searching for their services.
- Measuring What Matters (Deep CRM Integration): this was the strategic linchpin. We connected their Salesforce CRM directly to Google Ads. This allowed us to import offline conversion data, tracking when a lead from an ad became a Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL), a Sales Qualified Lead (SQL), and ultimately, a closed deal with a specific contract value.
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Our Process: a Detailed Breakdown of Data, Platforms, and Patience
Phase 1: The Tracking Foundation
Before launching any new campaigns, we worked with their sales ops team to set up robust conversion tracking. We configured Salesforce to capture the GCLID (Google Click ID) from every form submission and established a process to automatically send conversion data back to Google Ads at each stage of the sales pipeline (MQL, SQL, Closed-Won).
Phase 2: Building the Audience (LinkedIn Campaign)
We launched a LinkedIn campaign promoting a high-value, ungated industry report: "The 2025 Tech M&A Outlook." The goal was not form fills. The goal was to build a video viewers and website visitors retargeting list of people who fit the ideal customer profile. This low-friction approach allowed us to build a large, highly relevant audience at a low cost.
Phase 3: The Surgical Strike (Google Search Campaign)
We restructured their Google Search campaigns. We took our audience of engaged professionals from the LinkedIn campaign and applied it to our search campaigns using the "Targeting" setting (not "Observation"). This single change meant that their €50 clicks were now exclusively spent on CFOs and CEOs, not students. We also created a separate, lower-bid campaign with the "Observation" setting to continue gathering data on broader traffic.
Phase 4: The Feedback Loop (Optimization for Pipeline)
After 3-4 months, we had enough data flowing from Salesforce back into Google Ads. Now, we could use Google's Smart Bidding strategies, but instead of optimizing for "form fills," we instructed the algorithm to optimize for "Sales Qualified Leads." The AI learned the patterns of users who became real sales opportunities and automatically prioritized showing ads to similar people.
Before launching any new campaigns, we worked with their sales ops team to set up robust conversion tracking. We configured Salesforce to capture the GCLID (Google Click ID) from every form submission and established a process to automatically send conversion data back to Google Ads at each stage of the sales pipeline (MQL, SQL, Closed-Won).
Phase 2: Building the Audience (LinkedIn Campaign)
We launched a LinkedIn campaign promoting a high-value, ungated industry report: "The 2025 Tech M&A Outlook." The goal was not form fills. The goal was to build a video viewers and website visitors retargeting list of people who fit the ideal customer profile. This low-friction approach allowed us to build a large, highly relevant audience at a low cost.
Phase 3: The Surgical Strike (Google Search Campaign)
We restructured their Google Search campaigns. We took our audience of engaged professionals from the LinkedIn campaign and applied it to our search campaigns using the "Targeting" setting (not "Observation"). This single change meant that their €50 clicks were now exclusively spent on CFOs and CEOs, not students. We also created a separate, lower-bid campaign with the "Observation" setting to continue gathering data on broader traffic.
Phase 4: The Feedback Loop (Optimization for Pipeline)
After 3-4 months, we had enough data flowing from Salesforce back into Google Ads. Now, we could use Google's Smart Bidding strategies, but instead of optimizing for "form fills," we instructed the algorithm to optimize for "Sales Qualified Leads." The AI learned the patterns of users who became real sales opportunities and automatically prioritized showing ads to similar people.
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The Results: Clarity, Quality, and High-Value Pipeline
- -58% reduction in the Cost-Per-Sales-Qualified-Lead. The cost to get a lead in front of a salesperson plummeted.
- +270% increase in the lead-to-SQL conversion rate. The sales team was closing a much higher percentage of the leads they received from marketing.
- Generated a €190k qualified sales pipeline directly attributable to PPC from a €39k ad spend in the first year.
- Provided a clear, data-backed dashboard showing the C-suite the direct ROI from their PPC investment, ending the debate on the channel's value.
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FAQ
Our keywords are too expensive. How can we afford to compete?
We solve this by not competing for every click. By layering demographic and firmographic audiences (e.g., from LinkedIn) onto your search campaigns, you ensure your expensive bids are only used on traffic that has a real potential to become a client. It's about making every click count, not winning every auction.
How do you solve the problem of getting too many "junk" leads?
We use a two-pronged approach. First, aggressive use of negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches (like "jobs," "salary," "student"). Second, we advertise high-value, specialized content. This acts as a natural filter; only people genuinely interested in the complexities of your field will engage, filtering out casual browsers.
Why use LinkedIn Ads if Google Search has higher intent?
We use them together for a "who + what" strategy. LinkedIn is unparalleled for targeting who you want to reach (the right person at the right company). Google Search is the best for capturing what they are looking for (their active intent). By combining them, we show our ads only to the right people at the exact moment they are looking for a solution.
How does CRM integration actually work on a technical level?
In simple terms, when a user clicks your ad and fills out a form, a unique ID (GCLID) is sent with their data to your CRM. As your sales team qualifies that lead and moves it through stages in the CRM, you set up automated triggers to send that data back to the Google Ads API. This tells Google, "Hey, that click you sent us last month just became a qualified opportunity worth €10,000." This data then powers the AI bidding.
Our sales cycle is over a year long. How can we get enough data for the algorithm to work?
This is a critical point. We don't wait for a closed deal. We optimize for a much earlier, mid-funnel milestone that is a strong indicator of a future sale. For most B2B clients, this milestone is the "Sales Qualified Lead" (SQL)—the moment the sales team accepts the lead and agrees it's a real opportunity. This event usually happens within days or weeks, providing the algorithm with a much faster feedback loop to learn from.
How much involvement do you need from our sales team?
The initial setup requires collaboration with your sales operations team to ensure the CRM integration is flawless. After launch, the only requirement from the sales team is to do what they already do: diligently update lead statuses in the CRM. Their standard workflow becomes the fuel for our optimization engine.
We solve this by not competing for every click. By layering demographic and firmographic audiences (e.g., from LinkedIn) onto your search campaigns, you ensure your expensive bids are only used on traffic that has a real potential to become a client. It's about making every click count, not winning every auction.
How do you solve the problem of getting too many "junk" leads?
We use a two-pronged approach. First, aggressive use of negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches (like "jobs," "salary," "student"). Second, we advertise high-value, specialized content. This acts as a natural filter; only people genuinely interested in the complexities of your field will engage, filtering out casual browsers.
Why use LinkedIn Ads if Google Search has higher intent?
We use them together for a "who + what" strategy. LinkedIn is unparalleled for targeting who you want to reach (the right person at the right company). Google Search is the best for capturing what they are looking for (their active intent). By combining them, we show our ads only to the right people at the exact moment they are looking for a solution.
How does CRM integration actually work on a technical level?
In simple terms, when a user clicks your ad and fills out a form, a unique ID (GCLID) is sent with their data to your CRM. As your sales team qualifies that lead and moves it through stages in the CRM, you set up automated triggers to send that data back to the Google Ads API. This tells Google, "Hey, that click you sent us last month just became a qualified opportunity worth €10,000." This data then powers the AI bidding.
Our sales cycle is over a year long. How can we get enough data for the algorithm to work?
This is a critical point. We don't wait for a closed deal. We optimize for a much earlier, mid-funnel milestone that is a strong indicator of a future sale. For most B2B clients, this milestone is the "Sales Qualified Lead" (SQL)—the moment the sales team accepts the lead and agrees it's a real opportunity. This event usually happens within days or weeks, providing the algorithm with a much faster feedback loop to learn from.
How much involvement do you need from our sales team?
The initial setup requires collaboration with your sales operations team to ensure the CRM integration is flawless. After launch, the only requirement from the sales team is to do what they already do: diligently update lead statuses in the CRM. Their standard workflow becomes the fuel for our optimization engine.
