This post was co-written by Gordon Donnelly and Conor Bond.

At nexus-security, our mission is to empower businesses like yours to execute impactful and profitable advertising campaigns on search engines and social media platforms. To that end, we embarked on a mission to identify five exceptional online advertising campaigns (two on Google and three on Facebook) that achieved remarkable success.

Each of these campaigns stands out as a top performer. From Facebook lead ads and Custom Audience creation to search network dominance and account structure optimization, these campaigns effectively utilize familiar strategies but with an extra layer of effectiveness.

Let’s delve into the details!

1. New Jersey Devils score with Facebook lead ads

If you’re familiar with the New Jersey Devils franchise, or hockey in general, you know the Devils were a National Hockey League powerhouse in the early 2000s. You might also know that recent years have been less successful. Before last season, the Devils had missed the playoffs for five consecutive years, negatively impacting season ticket sales. However, they did reach the playoffs this past year, and although they didn’t advance past the first round, the team generated excitement in New Jersey.

The Devils saw an opportunity to capitalize on their resurgence by leveraging Facebook ads during the 2018 offseason to boost season ticket sales. Their weapon of choice: Facebook lead ads.

Lead ads offer a simplified, in-app format allowing potential customers to provide contact information without exiting Facebook, leading to a 2.07% higher conversion rate compared to traditional landing pages. The Devils implemented a strategic three-step approach:

1. They created a Facebook event for a team-hosted open house where potential ticket buyers could learn about season ticket memberships and utilized Custom Audiences to target previous subscribers.
2. They developed two lead ad variations—one featuring a ticket sign-up call to action (shown above) and the other promoting the open house—again using custom audiences to reach a highly interested audience.

3. They re-engaged with individuals from the previous phases who hadn’t yet completed a form.

Running from May 31 to August 7, 2018, this Facebook campaign yielded impressive results: a 12X return on ad spend, 32% more leads compared to a previous email campaign, and over 700 leads in total. If only winning hockey games were as easy!

2. CheapCaribbean.com connects with prospects at every turn

The travel and hospitality industry is known for its extended sales cycles. While advertisers in this sector enjoy high click-through rates (CTRs) and low costs per click (CPCs)—an interesting inverse relationship—travel and hospitality ads experience lower-than-average conversion rates on both desktop and mobile devices.

Why? Because travel arrangements can be expensive. Unlike online shoppers seeking items like clothing or home decor, potential travelers conduct thorough research before making a purchase.

In essence: They rely heavily on Google searches.

Effective search marketing involves connecting with potential customers at strategic points throughout their journey down the sales funnel. The better you can match their intent at each stage, the more relevant your search ads become, ultimately driving greater success.

Let’s illustrate the consequences of misaligned intent. Imagine someone embarking on their vacation planning with a search for “northern European destinations.” They are clearly at the beginning of their journey, simply seeking inspiration.

If a Swedish resort targeted this keyword with an ad for its luxurious suites, the chances of that person clicking through to their website are slim. Over time, as more potential travelers in the initial research phase ignore the irrelevant ads from this resort, their CTRs, Quality Scores, and ad rankings will suffer.

However, the marketing team at CheapCaribbean.com—a company offering tropical vacation packages—excels at understanding and meeting potential customers’ needs at every stage.

When someone searches for “tropical vacation,” they’re in the early stages and not ready to commit. What does CheapCaribbean.com do? They present a general ad leading to a landing page showcasing their diverse range of tropical vacation packages.

Intrigued by the destinations displayed on the landing page, the potential traveler refines their search to “Caribbean vacation.” And guess what? CheapCaribbean.com is there, ready with a highly relevant ad. This time, the landing page is more focused, featuring only Caribbean packages. The text ad itself reflects the individual’s heightened intent by incorporating sitelinks to specific pages.

The savvy marketers at CheapCaribbean.com understand the importance of staying top-of-mind as potential travelers weigh their options. They retarget website visitors with captivating Display ads as they browse articles on travel blogs:

Now, our potential traveler has set their sights on the Caribbean. Punta Cana, located in the Dominican Republic, caught their eye from the previous landing page. Their next Google search? “About Punta Cana.”

Although they’re getting specific about their destination, they’re still not quite ready to book. CheapCaribbean.com nails it again, delivering a relevant ad that aligns with their intent, alongside an organic search result.

Impressed by what they’ve learned about Punta Cana, our potential traveler is nearing a decision. To explore accommodation options in Punta Cana, they search for “Punta Cana resorts.” And who occupies the top spot in paid results with the perfect ad? CheapCaribbean.com.

When they’re finally ready to book, CheapCaribbean.com is there to seal the deal.

What makes CheapCaribbean.com a master of online advertising can be summarized in four key points:

• They connect with potential customers at every stage of their purchase journey.
• They tailor ad copy and extensions to precisely match the individual’s intent.
• They build trust by consistently providing relevant and valuable information.
• They leverage Display remarketing to deliver engaging and contextually relevant banner ads.

Related: The 5 Best Marketing Campaigns We’ve Ever Seen (& How to DIY)

3. CordaRoy’s achieves 9X ROAS with customer lookalikes

Let’s be honest, we’ve all experienced the discomfort of sleeping on a couch. Waking up with a stiff neck from an unforgiving armrest, an air mattress that deflated in the night, or worst of all, being relegated to the floor. CordaRoy’s offers an ingenious unique, extremely cozy solution to these common sleeping arrangement woes, and they cleverly chose to showcase it using Facebook video ads.

CordaRoy’s strategy was based on the idea that visually demonstrating the functionality of their Bean Bag Bed would be far more effective in driving sales than relying solely on other channels. While the Search network excels at reaching high-intent prospects at their most receptive moments, what better way to truly connect with and qualify potential customers than by showcasing your product in action, highlighting its potential benefits? And what better platform to reach a vast pool of new prospects than Facebook with its extensive reach, brand awareness campaigns, and cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM) bidding? Spoiler alert: there’s no better way!

To connect with the most likely buyers, CordaRoy’s leveraged the power of customer lookalike audiences—a strategy we at nexus-security highly recommend. They also implemented a sophisticated remarketing strategy based on website traffic.

The results speak for themselves. By embracing this approach, CordaRoy’s witnessed a 44X increase in revenue, a 9X return on ad spend, a 39% reduction in cost per action on their website, and an impressive 12,012 purchases directly attributed to this Facebook campaign.

4. Lyft targets Uber’s brand name

In October 2017, Uber commanded a 72% share of the US ride-share market, leaving Lyft with 25%. As of October 2018, Uber holds a 69% share, while Lyft has grown to 28%. Moreover, Lyft’s revenue is surging at twice the rate of Uber’s.

Clearly, despite Uber’s continued dominance in the US ride-share arena, Lyft is making significant competitive inroads. How are they achieving this?

One key factor: exceptional search marketing.

Lyft boldly bids on Uber’s brand name as a keyword, employing a tactic known as competitor targeting. This involves bidding on rival companies’ brand names to capture navigational search queries, turning them into impressions that ideally convert into clicks and, ultimately, customers.

Competitor targeting offers three primary advantages:

1. With less competition, it proves to be a cost-effective strategy.
2. It provides a powerful avenue for building brand awareness.
3. You can be confident that you’re generating impressions (and clicks) from a highly qualified and relevant audience.

Essentially, Lyft strategically positions itself as a viable alternative to Uber, directly in front of individuals actively seeking ride-sharing services. By targeting those searching for “drive for Uber,” Lyft ensures that their message reaches individuals specifically interested in earning income as drivers.

However, competitor targeting does come with a couple of drawbacks:

1. It could ignite a bidding war between you and your competitor.
2. Your CTRs may not meet your expectations.

When you bid on a competitor’s brand name, you risk provoking them to retaliate by bidding on your brand name. This creates a scenario similar to the prisoner’s dilemma. The ideal outcome is for both companies to refrain from targeting each other’s brand names. However, once one company engages in competitor targeting, the other is compelled to follow suit.

Interestingly, this doesn’t seem to be the case with Uber and Lyft:

It appears that Uber, confident in its continued dominance in the US ride-share market, doesn’t feel threatened enough to bid on Lyft’s brand name. Of course, this is a unique market dynamic (a duopoly, to be precise).

The other potential downside of competitor targeting is the likelihood of lower-than-average CTRs. While this approach attracts a relevant audience, it’s essential to remember that users are specifically searching for your competitor for a reason. Expecting an exceptionally high click-through rate might be unrealistic.

However, in most cases, the concern with a low CTR is that it will negatively impact your Ad Rank, causing you to lose your position among the top sponsored results. But when you’re one of only a handful of companies bidding on a specific brand name, this concern becomes less significant.

In a nutshell, here’s what makes Lyft’s online advertising strategy so effective:

• They target users actively seeking rides or exploring driving opportunities.
• They build brand awareness typically associated with Display and YouTube advertising.

5. Big Barker streamlines account structure for amplified results

We’ve covered bean bag beds, so let’s shift our attention to something even more crucial: dog beds. Big Barker, a unique online dog bed retailer, faced a common challenge: a convoluted Facebook ad account structure. They were utilizing a staggering 33 different ad sets within a single campaign—an overwhelming number that made it incredibly difficult to gather and act on meaningful data. While their creative strategy was strong, their disorganized structure prevented them from fully capitalizing on it.

Enter ad set consolidation! At nexus-security, we’re strong advocates for a streamlined and simplified Facebook (and Google Ads) account structure. When our managed services team audits Facebook accounts, one of the first things they look for is an overly complex and cumbersome structure. Maintaining a well-organized data structure is paramount for automating processes and extracting insights that ultimately enhance performance.

Big Barker took this advice to heart. By significantly reducing their ad set count from 33 to 6 and organizing them based on specific targeting strategies and prospect profiles, they achieved remarkable results: a 30% increase in add-to-cart conversions and a 26% reduction in cost per add-to-cart. Now, that’s an impressive amount of savings!