Solved: Need Advice on Finding a Cost-Effective Ad Agency

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out. Happy to give you some initial thoughts and guidance on sorting out your paid advertising and figuring out the agency situation.

Sounds like a common spot to be in with a new SaaS product like yours, especially targeting small teams and startups. Getting that initial organic traction is great, but yeah, it's a slow burn when you need to really pour fuel on the fire to scale. Paid ads are definitely the way to go for speed, but you're spot on, it's proper easy to blow through cash without seeing much back if you don't know what you're doing. And finding help that actually fits a smaller operation and budget is another kettle of fish entirely.

Where to start with the advertising - Platform Choice

The very first thing, before you even think about which button to click in Google Ads or LinkedIn, is to get crystal clear on your ideal customer. You mention small teams, startups, specific departments. Think about the actual people who make the decision to use or buy project management software in those setups. What are their job titles? What problems are they trying to solve?

Once you know *who* they are, you need to figure out *where* they are and, crucially, *when* they are most likely to be receptive to hearing about your solution. For B2B software, especially something functional like project management, there are usually two main scenarios, and that dictates your platform choice:

Scenario 1: They are actively searching for a solution.
People don't usually wake up and think "Hmm, I fancy a new project management tool today" out of the blue. They switch when their current system is painful, or they're setting up a new team, or they're growing and the old ways aren't cutting it. At this point, they are likely going to Google or another search engine and typing things in like "best project management software for startups", "simple PM tool for small team", "alternatives to [competitor name]", "how to manage projects with a remote team", etc.

If your ideal customer is doing this, then Google Search Ads is usually your absolute best starting point, especially with a limited budget. You are putting your solution right in front of people who are literally searching for help with the problem you solve. The intent is super high. While clicks can be expensive depending on competition, the *quality* of that traffic is generally higher because they are looking to buy or sign up *now*. This typically leads to a lower cost per sign-up compared to trying to interrupt people on social media who weren't thinking about project management at all.

Scenario 2: They aren't actively searching right now, but fit your profile.
Maybe they know they have problems, but they aren't yet thinking about specific software. Or maybe they don't even realise there's a better way to manage their projects. In this case, you need to go to where they hang out online and get in front of them.

For B2B, this almost always means LinkedIn Ads. It's more expensive than Google Search on a per-click basis usually, but the targeting is unmatched for reaching specific B2B audiences. You can target by job title (e.g., "Head of Engineering", "Operations Manager", "Startup Founder"), company size (you can specifically target that 5-20 employee range you mentioned), industry, skills, etc. This is powerful for reaching the right decision makers directly. You can run lead generation campaigns here, sending people to a landing page or using LinkedIn's own lead forms which can work well.

Meta Ads (Facebook/Instagram) is usually less ideal for precise B2B targeting. They have *some* options like "small business owners" or interests related to startups, but it's much less granular than LinkedIn. It *can* work, perhaps for broader awareness or maybe retargeting people who visited your site from other channels, but for driving direct B2B sign-ups efficiently on a limited budget, I'd usually favour Google Search or LinkedIn first, depending on the search intent factor.

Based on teh examples of SaaS campaigns we've run, the platform choice makes a massive difference to cost per acquisition. We've seen costs for B2B decision makers on LinkedIn around $22 per lead, which might be higher than a pure sign-up cost on Meta (saw $7 per trial for one software client on Meta), but the *quality* of the lead from specific B2B targeting can be much higher and convert into paying users better. It really comes back to your target audience and their behaviour.

Why your website is non-negotiable before scaling ads

This is absolutely critical, and it's often where limited budgets get wasted first. You can drive all the right traffic in the world to your website, but if the site doesn't persuade people to sign up for your tool, it's all pointless clicks and wasted money. The website conversion rate is king.

Think about it: you pay for every click. If 100 people click your ad at £2 a click, that's £200 spent. If only 1 person signs up, your cost per sign-up is £200. If you double your website conversion rate so 2 people sign up from those 100 clicks, your cost per sign-up halves to £100, instantly making your ads twice as efficient without spending an extra penny on the ad platform itself.

For SaaS, especially with a new tool, the "offer" on your website is paramount. As per the accounting software example we saw, not having a free trial is a massive barrier. Asking someone to pay upfront for a new software, particularly something as embedded in their workflow as project management, is a huge ask. Your competition is likely offering free trials, maybe freemium tiers, or extensive demos.

A free trial is usually the absolute best way to get people in the door for SaaS. It lowers the risk for the user significantly. They can try it out, see if it fits their team's workflow, and experience the value first-hand before committing. Your website's landing page should be designed to push people towards that free trial sign-up with persuasive copy that highlights the benefits for a small team.

Beyond the offer, look at the user experience. Is the sign-up process smooth? Are there too many steps? Does the page load quickly? Is the value proposition clear within seconds of landing on the page? Are there any trust signals (like testimonials or reviews)? With a limited budget, every visitor counts, so optimising your website to convert as high a percentage as possible is just as important as the ads themselves.

Managing a Limited Budget & The Need for Focus

You mentioned not having thousands to throw around. That's perfectly fine, but it means you have to be smart and focused. Trying to be everywhere at once (Google, LinkedIn, Meta, etc.) with a small budget is the fastest way to dilute your spend and not get enough data on any platform to see what's working or why it's failing. You just won't learn anything useful.

Pick ONE platform you believe has the highest potential based on your target audience and their likely behaviour (is it Search intent? Is it LinkedIn's specific B2B targeting?). Start there. Allocate maybe £500 - £1000 a month initially, depending on what you can manage and what average click costs look like for your target keywords/audiences. £1k/month is a decent starting point that allows for some meaningful testing and data collection over a month or two.

Within that platform, test different things:
-> Different ad copy/creatives: Does focusing on time-saving work better than collaboration features? Do images work better than text ads?
-> Different targeting options: If on Google, test different keyword groups. If on LinkedIn, test different job titles or industry/size combinations.
-> Different landing pages/offers: Could you test sending traffic to a free trial page vs a demo request page? (Though free trial usually wins for initial sign-ups).
-> Retargeting: Make sure you're pixelling visitors (setting up tracking) so you can show ads specifically to people who visited your site but didn't sign up. This can significantly lower CPA as these people already know you.

It takes time and iterations to find what works. Don't expect miracles in the first week. Look at the data: where are people dropping off? Low CTR on ads? -> Ad copy/targeting issue. High bounce rate on the landing page? -> Page relevance/offer issue. High drop-off on the sign-up form? -> Form complexity issue. This data guides your optimisations.

The point about scaling plateauing (like in the software scaling example) is real, but that's when you've *proven* a channel works and are trying to get *more* out of it. You're not there yet. You need to find the first profitable channel first.

Navigating the Agency World - Finding Help

It's totally understandable why you're feeling overwhelmed and considering an agency. Doing this properly is easily a full-time job, especially when you're also running the rest of your business. And yes, the agency world can feel like a maze.

You're right to be wary of slick websites and big promises that might not fit a smaller budget or operation. The key is finding an agency that:

1. Understands B2B SaaS: This is niche expertise. An agency that crushes it for eCommerce might not know the nuances of longer B2B sales cycles, lead qualification, or typical SaaS conversion points (trial sign-ups, demos). Ask specifically about their experience with B2B software clients. Have they helped companies like yours acquire users or trials? Ask for examples (without expecting confidential data). For instance, we've run quite a few B2B SaaS campaigns, seeing results from $7 per trial to £7 CPA for a job matching SaaS, $22 CPL for decision makers - the costs vary massively depending on the specific offer and target audience, but an agency with relevant experience will understand these benchmarks and what levers to pull.

2. Focuses on Performance & ROI: You need results, not just fancy reports. Look for agencies that talk about cost per sign-up (or trial, or qualified lead, whatever your core metric is), conversion rates, and return on ad spend (ROAS) or customer lifetime value (CLTV). They should be focused on efficiency for your budget. Avoid anyone who talks vaguely about "brand awareness" or "getting lots of clicks" if your goal is sign-ups. They should be asking *you* about your sign-up-to-paid conversion rate and average user value, because that's how they know what a viable acquisition cost is for you.

3. Is Transparent & Collaborative: Especially with a smaller budget, you want an agency partner, not just a vendor you hand money to. They should be transparent about where the budget is going, what tests they are running, and why campaigns are performing the way they are. They should explain the data and work *with* you to improve the website/offer if that's the bottleneck (which it often is, as we discussed). Be wary of agencies that are cagey about ad account access or don't explain their strategy clearly.

4. Manages Expectations: Anyone who *guarantees* results or promises unrealisticly low costs straight away is a red flag. Performance marketing, especially with a new product and limited budget, requires testing and optimisation. A good agency will explain that the initial phase is about gathering data and finding profitable angles, and scaling comes after that. They should give you realistic timelines for seeing results (usually measured in months, not days).

As for whether more affordable agencies are less effective... not necessarily, but sometimes you get what you pay for in terms of experience and strategic thinking. A very cheap agency might be less experienced or using a less tailored approach. It's less about the price tag itself and more about the *value* they provide and their *fit* for your specific B2B SaaS needs and budget constraints. Asking the right questions about their B2B SaaS experience and how they approach testing and cost-effectiveness is key during the vetting process.

Ultimately, the right agency acts as an extension of your team, bringing expertise you don't have in-house to accelerate your growth efficiently. It means you can focus on building and improving your product while they focus on acquiring users cost-effectively.

Here’s a quick overview of some key actionable steps to consider based on this:

Trying to navigate all of this - understanding the platforms, figuring out targeting, writing ads, designing landing pages, setting up tracking, analysing data, and iterating - while also running your software business is incredibly challenging. That's why many successful SaaS companies bring in expert help specifically for performance marketing once they hit the point where they need to scale faster.

Finding the right expertise, whether it's a fractional expert, a consultant, or an agency that fits your needs and budget, can save you a lot of wasted spend and get you to your growth goals much faster. It’s an investment to free you up to focus on the core product while someone else focuses purely on driving cost-effective user acquisition.

If you wanted to chat through your specific situation in a bit more detail, happy to jump on a call and give you some initial pointers on platform choice, offer, and what kind of budget might be realistic to start seeing results. We could also quickly look at your website if you like and give feedback there.

Regards,
Team @ Lukas Holschuh