Solved: Best Ad Type for Online Label Printing Business?

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out!

Happy to give you some initial thoughts on your label printing business. It's a tricky market, especially when you're working with a tight budget. A lot of people jump straight into the technicals of which ad type to use, but that's usually the last piece of the puzzle. The real problem, and the reason most ad spend gets wasted, is that the strategy isn't right from the start. We need to get the foundations solid before you spend a single quid.

I'll walk you through how I'd approach this, focusing on finding the right customers first, then crafting the right message, and only then picking the right ad types. It’s a bit of a different way of thinking but it's what stops you from just burning cash.

Your ICP is a Nightmare, Not a Demographic

Right, first things first. Forget "online label printing business in the UK". That's what you do, not who you help. The single biggest mistake I see is businesses targeting broad categories like "small business owners" or "companies in the UK". It's a complete waste of money because your message ends up being generic and speaking to absolutely no one.

To stop burning cash, you have to define your customer by their *pain*. A specific, urgent, expensive, career-threatening nightmare. Your customer isn't just a job title; they're a person terrified of something going wrong. Let's make this real for your business.

Who buys labels?

-> The Artisan Gin Distiller: Her name is Sarah. She's poured her life savings into her craft gin. Her nightmare? She's just bottled 500 units for a big trade show, and the cheap paper labels she ordered are peeling and running with the slightest bit of condensation from the ice bucket. Her premium product now looks amateur and cheap. She's not searching for "custom labels"; she's frantically searching for "waterproof gin bottle labels" or "gin labels that don't peel". She's in a state of panic.

-> The Etsy Candle Maker: His name is Tom. He's built a decent following for his hand-poured soy candles. His nightmare? A customer just left a 1-star review because the safety warning label on the bottom of the candle was unreadable and smudged. He's now terrified of getting shut down or, worse, someone's house burning down. He isn't looking for "product labels"; he's looking for "heat resistant warning labels for candles" or "CLP compliant candle labels". He needs a solution to a compliance and safety problem, not just a sticker.

-> The Organic Skincare Founder: Her name is Priya. She's spent a fortune on high-quality, organic ingredients. Her brand is all about luxury and natural beauty. Her nightmare? The labels she got printed look washed out, the colours are wrong, and they make her expensive glass jars look like something from a bargain bin. She's losing sales because her packaging doesn't reflect the quality inside. She's searching for "luxury cosmetic labels" or "high quality skincare labels uk".

You see the pattern? Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) isn't a person; it's a *problem state*. Once you've isolated that nightmare, everything else becomes easier. Your ad copy writes itself, and your targeting becomes incredibly precise. This is the work you have to do before you even open Google Ads. Sit down and map out 3-5 of these nightmare scenarios. Who are they? What is their specific pain? What exact words would they type into Google in their moment of desperation?

This intelligence is the entire blueprint for your strategy. Without it, you're just guessing, and guessing is expensive.

You'll need a message they can't ignore

Once you know their nightmare, you can stop selling labels and start selling the solution. Your ad needs to speak directly to their pain. Most of your competitors are probably running boring ads like "Custom Labels UK - Fast & Free Delivery". You can do so much better.

Let's use the Problem-Agitate-Solve framework. It's simple but incredibly effective.

For Sarah, the Gin Distiller:
Headline: Labels Peeling on Your Bottles?
Description: Don't let condensation ruin your premium look. Our waterproof vinyl labels stay perfect, even in an ice bucket. Look professional, sell more. Get your quote.

For Tom, the Candle Maker:
Headline: Worried About CLP Compliance?
Description: Smudged warning labels are a huge risk. Get crisp, clear, and fully compliant heat-resistant labels for your candles. Protect your brand and your customers. Order today.

For Priya, the Skincare Founder:
Headline: Your Labels Don't Match Your Quality?
Description: Stop letting cheap labels undermine your luxury skincare. Our premium printing makes colours pop and gives your products the high-end finish they deserve. Elevate your brand.

Notice we're not talking about ourselves, our machines, or our "great customer service". We are talking about *them* and *their problem*. We're entering the conversation already happening in their head. This is how you get clicks from people who are actually likely to buy, not just people browsing for the cheapest price.

I'd say you should use Google Ads... but not just Shopping

Okay, now we can finally talk about which ads to use. You mentioned Google Shopping, and yes, you should absolutely have a Shopping campaign running. It's brilliant for capturing people who already know what they want. Someone searching for "1000 round 50mm vinyl labels" is a product-aware, bottom-of-the-funnel buyer. You need to be there for that.

But the real oppertunity, especially for a specialist business like yours, is with Google Search Ads targeted at the *problems* we just identified. This is where you find the higher-value customers who are desperate for a solution, not just a commodity product. Sarah the gin distiller isn't searching for "1000 round labels"; she's searching for a solution to her nightmare.

So, you need both:

1. Google Shopping Campaigns: This is your baseline. Organise these by product type (e.g., Round Labels, Square Labels, Paper, Vinyl). This is for capturing the low-hanging fruit.

2. Google Search Campaigns: This is your growth engine. Structure these campaigns around your customer's *nightmares* or *use cases*.

-> Campaign 1: Alcohol Bottle Labels
--> Ad Group: Gin Bottle Labels (Keywords: "waterproof gin labels", "custom gin bottle stickers", "gin label printing uk")
--> Ad Group: Beer Bottle Labels (Keywords: "beer bottle labels that dont peel", "craft beer label printer")

-> Campaign 2: Candle Labels
--> Ad Group: Candle Warning Labels (Keywords: "clp candle labels", "heat proof warning stickers")
--> Ad Group: Candle Jar Labels (Keywords: "luxury candle labels", "custom soy candle labels")

-> Campaign 3: Cosmetic Product Labels
--> Ad Group: Skincare Jar Labels (Keywords: "oil proof labels for cosmetics", "skincare label printing")

This structure allows you to write hyper-relevant ads (like the examples above) that speak directly to the searcher's specific problem. The person searching for "gin labels" sees an ad about gin labels, not a generic ad about "custom printing". This massively increases your Click-Through Rate (CTR) and your Quality Score, which in turn lowers your Cost Per Click (CPC). You pay less to get a much better customer.

You probably should forget dedicated landing pages... for now

You asked about dedicated landing pages for each service. My honest advice? Forget about it for now. This is a classic case of premature optimisation. With a limited budget, your focus should be on getting the highest return from every pound spent. Building, testing, and maintaining multiple landing pages is a huge time and resource drain.

Here's the reality: your current product or category pages *are* your landing pages. Your immediate priority should be making them as effective as possible. A brilliant ad that sends traffic to a confusing or untrustworthy page is like pouring water into a leaky bucket. You're just wasting clicks.

Before you even think about new pages, look at your existing ones and ask these questions:

-> Is it blindingly obvious what I should do next? Is there a clear, unmissable "Get a Quote" or "Design Your Label" button? Or is it lost amongst twenty other links and bits of information?

-> Can I trust this website with my money? Where are the reviews from other businesses? Do you have photos of the labels you've printed for real customers? Do you show your address and a phone number? Trust is a massive factor in online sales, especially for B2B. People need to know you're a real, reliable operation. Customer testimonials, photos of your work, and clear contact info are not optional.

-> Do the product photos look professional? Are they crisp, clear, and showing the labels in use on actual products? Or are they just generic mockups? People buy with their eyes. Showing a stunning gin bottle with your label on it is a thousand times more persuasive than a flat graphic of the label itself.

-> Is the copy persuasive? Does it talk about the materials, the finish, the durability? Does it answer common questions about turnaround times and artwork requirements? You need to pre-emptively answer every question a potential customer might have.

Fix these things on your main site first. Once you have a website that converts visitors well, and you've got profitable ad campaigns running, *then* you can experiment with dedicated landing pages to see if you can squeeze out a few extra percentage points in conversion rate. But it's step ten, not step one.

We'll need to look at how much you can afford to pay

This is the bit most small businesses skip, and it's why they're always terrified of their ad spend. They focus on getting the lowest possible Cost Per Click (CPC) or Cost Per Lead (CPL) without knowing what a "good" cost actually is. The real question isn't "How low can my CPL go?" but "How high a CPL can I afford to acquire a truly great customer?"

The answer is in the customer's Lifetime Value (LTV). Your customers probably re-order from you, right? A gin distiller who's happy with your service will keep buying labels for every new batch. That's your LTV.

Let's do some rough maths. We need to make some assumptions here, but you can plug your own numbers in.

Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA): What does a typical customer spend with you per year? Let's say a small producer orders a few times and spends £800 a year.

Gross Margin %: What's your profit margin after materials and printing costs? Let's say it's 60%.

Annual Churn Rate: What percentage of customers do you lose each year? Let's say 25% of your customers don't re-order the following year.

Now, the calculation is:
LTV = (ARPA * Gross Margin %) / Annual Churn Rate
LTV = (£800 * 0.60) / 0.25
LTV = £480 / 0.25 = £1,920

In this example, each new customer is worth £1,920 in gross margin to your business over their lifetime. This number changes everything.

A healthy business model often aims for a 3:1 LTV to Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) ratio. This means you can afford to spend up to a third of your LTV to acquire a customer.

Affordable CAC = £1,920 / 3 = £640

Suddenly, paying £50 or even £100 for a new customer doesn't seem so expensive, does it? It looks like a brilliant investment. This is the maths that allows you to advertise confidently. You're no longer scared of the cost per click; you're focused on the long-term value. Use the calculator below to play with your own numbers.

You'll need a clear set of actions

There's a lot to take in here, and it's easy to get overwhelmed. The goal isn't to do everything at once. The goal is to do the right things in the right order. Trying to optimise your ads when your core customer understanding is flawed is a complete waste of time and money.

I've broken down the main recommendations into a simple table for you. This is the roadmap I'd suggest you follow. Focus on Phase 1 until it's completely solid before even thinking about the later stages. This disciplined approach is how you build a profitable advertising machine on a small budget.

This whole process can seem like a lot of work, and it is. Getting paid advertising right isn't about flicking a few switches in Google Ads; it's about deep business strategy. It's about understanding psychology, maths, and then, finally, the ad platform itself. Many business owners try to do it themselves and end up wasting thousands before they realise how complex it is.

Working with an expert means you get to skip the expensive trial-and-error phase. For example, one campaign we worked on was for a client selling high-ticket industrial products. By focusing on their customers' specific problems—just like we've discussed for your gin distillers and candle makers—we were able to generate a consistent flow of qualified B2B leads. This strategic approach is what separates campaigns that work from those that just waste money, and we can help you implement it properly from day one.

If you'd like to chat through this in more detail and have us take a look at your specific situation, we offer a free, no-obligation initial consultation. We can review your site and your goals and give you a clear plan of action.

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh