PPC Costs in Aberdeen: The Expert Budgeting Guide

So, you're looking for the cost of PPC services in Aberdeen. It's a fair question, but it's also the wrong one to be asking. The real question isn't "how much does it cost?", but "how much can I afford to invest to acquire a customer profitably?". And the answer to that has very little to do with whether your agency is based in Dyce or Dundee.

Too many Aberdeen businesses get fixated on finding a local provider. They think someone who understands the local market will do a better job. Tbh, that's nonsense in 99% of cases. Your customers aren't buying from you because you're in Aberdeen; they're buying because you solve a specific, painful problem for them. The best person to advertise that solution might be in London, Manchester, or even Lisbon. Their expertise in your industry—whether it's subsea engineering, food and drink, or B2B software—is what matters. Focusing on geography first is a mistake that costs businesses a fortune in wasted ad spend and mediocre results.

Over the years, I've seen countless companies get burned by cheap, local agencies who talk a good game but don't have the specialised experience to deliver. They end up paying a low monthly fee but haemorrhaging money on ads that don't convert. So let's forget the postcode for a minute and talk about what really drives cost, value, and most importantly, results.

What are the actual pricing models I'll see?

When you start getting quotes, you'll find they generally fall into one of three buckets. Each has its pros and cons, and understanding them is the first step to not getting ripped off. Some agencies will offer a mix, but these are the foundations.

1. The Flat Monthly Retainer

This is the most common model you'll find, especially with small to medium-sized businesses. It's simple: you pay the agency a fixed fee every month to manage your campaigns. This fee covers their time, expertise, strategy, reporting, and all the ongoing tweaks needed to keep things running smoothly.

In the UK, and by extension Aberdeen, you can expect a massive range here:

• -> £500 - £1,000 per month: This is typically the freelancer or very small "one-man-band" agency territory. They might be able to handle a straightforward Google Ads campaign for a local service business (like a plumber or electrician), but they likely won't have the resources, strategic depth, or broad experience for anything complex. Be wary of what's actually included here; it might just be basic maintenance rather than proactive growth strategy.
• -> £1,000 - £3,000 per month: This is where you start to find more established agencies. At this price point, you should expect a proper strategy, regular communication, detailed reporting, and management across maybe one or two platforms. They'll have a small team, proper processes, and some decent case studies. This is a common price range for a lot of SMEs.
• -> £3,000+ per month: Now you're in the realm of specialist or larger agencies. They'll have deep expertise in specific niches (like B2B SaaS or high-growth eCommerce), handle multiple complex platforms (Google, Meta, LinkedIn), offer creative services, and provide high-level strategic consultancy that goes beyond just the ad account. Their fees reflect a higher level of expertise and the results they can drive.

The main advantage of a flat retainer is its predictability. You know exactly what you'll be paying each month, which makes budgeting simple. The downside is that the agency's incentive to scale your account can be limited if the retainer doesn't grow with the workload.

2. Percentage of Ad Spend

This model is more common for businesses with larger advertising budgets, typically £10,000 per month or more. The agency charges a percentage of the money you spend on ads, usually between 10% and 20%. So if you spend £20,000 on ads in a month and the fee is 15%, you'll pay the agency £3,000.

The logic here is that the agency is incentivised to help you scale. As you spend more (because the campaigns are working), their fee increases. It aligns your growth with theirs. However, the potential pitfall is obvious: it can also incentivise an agency to simply increase your spend, regardless of whether it's profitable for you. A good agency will manage this ethically, focusing on ROAS (Return on Ad Spend), but a bad one might just turn up the dial to increase their own revenue. This model requires a lot of trust and very clear KPIs focused on profitability.

3. Performance-Based/Hybrid Model

This sounds like the dream ticket, doesn't it? "You only pay us for results!" You'll see some agencies offering a low base retainer plus a bonus for every lead generated or a percentage of the revenue driven. It seems like the ultimate low-risk option.

Tbh, I'm extremely sceptical of pure performance models. For us, it's often a red flag. Why? Because an agency only controls a few parts of the puzzle. We control the ads, the targeting, and the landing page recommendations. We don't control your sales team's ability to close a lead, your pricing, your product quality, or your overall brand reputation. An agency taking on all that risk is either desperate for clients or they've built in massive margins to cover the clients that don't perform, meaning the successful clients are overpaying. A hybrid model can sometimes work, but if an agency is leading with a "pay per lead" offer, you should be very, very cautious.

It's not about the price, it's about the value

The single biggest mistake I see businesses make is choosing an agency based on price. They get three quotes, and they pick the cheapest one, thinking they've got a good deal. In reality, they've just bought themselves the most expensive learning experience of their life. A cheap agency can burn through your entire ad budget in a couple of months with nothing to show for it. That £500 you "saved" on the monthly fee just cost you £5,000 in wasted ad spend.

Value isn't about paying the lowest price. It's about the return you get on your *total* investment (agency fee + ad spend). A £3,000/month agency that delivers £15,000 in profit is infinitely better value than a £500/month agency that delivers nothing but clicks. I remember one client, a medical recruitment SaaS, who came to us after working with a "cheap" agency. Their Cost Per Acquisition was over £100. They were paying a low fee, but the ads were incredibly inefficient. We restructured their entire account, rewrote the ads, and refined the targeting. Within a few months, we got their CPA down to £7. They paid us a higher retainer, but their overall marketing became vastly more profitable.

The cost of an agency is determined by several factors, none of which is their location:

• -> Scope & Complexity: Are they managing a simple Google Search campaign targeting the Aberdeen area, or a complex, multi-national LinkedIn Ads campaign targeting C-suite executives in the energy sector? The latter requires a far higher level of skill and effort.
• -> Ad Spend: Managing a £50k/month budget is a different beast to managing a £2k/month budget. It requires more time, more sophisticated analysis, and carries a lot more responsibility.
• -> Team & Expertise: Are you getting a junior account manager following a template, or a senior strategist with a decade of experience in your specific industry? You pay for expertise, and it's almost always worth it.
• -> Services Included: Does the fee just cover ad management, or does it include strategic advice, copywriting, conversion rate optimisation suggestions for your website, and high-quality reporting that gives you actual insights?

This is why you have to vet agencies properly. Look at their case studies. Do they have proven, documented results in a niche similar to yours? Get on a call with them. Do they ask intelligent questions about your business, your margins, and your customers? Or do they just promise you "page 1 rankings" and "lots of traffic"? One is a partner, the other is a salesman.

How to budget for PPC the right way

Okay, so if you shouldn't just be looking for a cheap fee, how do you figure out what you should be spending? It starts with maths, not guesswork. You need to stop thinking about marketing as a cost and start thinking of it as an investment in acquiring customers. To do that, you need to know what a customer is worth to you.

This is where Lifetime Value (LTV) comes in. It's the total profit you can expect to make from a single customer over the entire course of their relationship with your business. Once you know this number, everything else becomes clearer.

The formula is simple:

LTV = (Average Revenue Per Customer Per Month × Gross Margin %) ÷ Monthly Customer Churn Rate %

Let's say you run a B2B software company based in the Altens Industrial Estate. Your average customer pays you £400/month. Your gross margin is 75%, and you lose about 3% of your customers each month (your churn rate).

LTV = (£400 × 0.75) ÷ 0.03

LTV = £300 ÷ 0.03 = £10,000

Each customer you acquire is worth £10,000 in gross profit to your business. Now we're talking. A common, healthy ratio for a business is to spend about one-third of the LTV to acquire that customer. This is your target Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC).

Target CAC = LTV ÷ 3 = £3,333

You can afford to spend up to £3,333 to get a new customer and still have a very healthy, profitable business. This single number transforms your entire approach. A £50 cost per lead from LinkedIn doesn't seem so expensive anymore if you know you can close 1 in 20 of those leads into a £10,000 customer (20 leads x £50/lead = £1,000 cost to acquire one customer).

Use the calculator below to figure out your own numbers. This is the foundation of any sensible PPC budget.

So, what should I actually do?

Armed with this information, you're in a much stronger position. Your goal is not to find the cheapest PPC service in Aberdeen. Your goal is to find the PPC partner that can deliver the best return on your investment, regardless of where their office is. There is a huge difference between hiring an in-house team vs getting an agency on board. To learn more about the costs and benefits of each, have a look at our PPC agency vs in-house cost guide for UK founders.

Here’s your action plan:

1. Do the Maths First: Before you speak to a single agency, use the calculator above. Understand your numbers. Know your LTV and your target CAC. This will be your north star.

2. Prioritise Niche Expertise Over Location: Start your search by looking for agencies with proven case studies in your industry. If you sell high-ticket equipment to oil and gas companies, you need an agency that understands B2B lead generation on LinkedIn, not one that's great at selling dresses on Instagram for a local boutique. Don't fall into the local agency trap that so many Aberdeen businesses do; the internet has made geography irrelevant for this kind of work.

3. Interview at Least Three Agencies: Get on a call with them. Don't just ask about price. Ask about their process. Ask them to critique your current website and offer. Ask them to show you results for a similar client. The right agency will impress you with their strategic thinking, not their low price.

4. Focus on the Total Picture: Your budget has two parts: the ad spend and the management fee. The management fee is the smaller, less important part. The success of your entire investment rides on the agency's ability to turn the ad spend into a profitable return. Many businesses get good traffic that doesn't convert, and a good agency will help you diagnose why you're getting ads traffic but no sales.

This is the main advice I have for you:

Getting paid advertising right is difficult. It's a combination of maths, psychology, and relentless testing. While it's possible to learn it yourself, the learning curve is steep and expensive. Working with a specialist who has already made the mistakes and learned the lessons on someone else's dime can be a massive shortcut to growth.

If you're serious about using paid ads to grow your business and you're tired of the guesswork, it might be time to bring in an expert. We offer a completely free, no-obligation strategy session where we can take a look at your business, your goals, and give you some honest, actionable advice on what it would take to succeed. It's a chance to get a taste of the expertise we bring to the table.

Hope this helps!