join.com

Optimized bidding strategies reduce CPC and CPA

Homepage » Case Studies » Optimization of JOIN’s bidding strategies

+ 1 %

Click Through Rate

- 1 %

Cost per Click (CPC)

- 1 %

Cost per Acquisition (CPA)

About JOIN.COM

JOIN.com is a free recruiting software that helps small and medium-sized businesses quickly and easily hire the right employees. With just one click, customers can publish their job postings across more than 100 platforms and manage incoming applications efficiently. JOIN.com streamlines the entire hiring process and makes it easier for companies to find talent.

Step 1

The Challenge

In August 2018, we took over performance marketing for JOIN.com. The goal was to develop an effective strategy to acquire a high volume of new customers via Google Ads. Initially, the campaign performed well, but after several months, both cost per acquisition (CPA) and cost per click (CPC) increased — significantly reducing campaign efficiency.

Rising CPC and CPA

After early successes, costs increased, threatening campaign profitability.

Negative trends in the campaign funnel

Some keywords that had performed well initially began generating significantly higher click costs without corresponding conversions.

Need for optimized bidding strategies

The challenge was to identify the root cause of the declining efficiency and restore performance through targeted bidding strategies and structured tests.

Step 2

Our Approach

To counter rising costs and declining performance in JOIN’s Google Ads campaigns, we developed a structured strategy focused on hypothesis-driven testing and optimization of bidding strategies. The primary objective was to reduce the cost per acquisition (CPA) and cost per click (CPC).

Formulating hypotheses & campaign testing

Testing with Google Ads Experiments: We used Google Ads’ testing tool to determine whether the focus on upper-funnel keywords was responsible for increasing CPCs and CPAs.
Shift to lower funnel: When initial tests showed no significant improvement, we shifted focus to lower-funnel optimization to improve conversion efficiency and increase conversion rates.
Data analysis & validation: The tests and resulting hypotheses enabled deeper insights and precise identification of problem areas.

Testing and adjusting bidding strategies

Switch to Target CPA: Since early tests did not improve performance, we switched the bidding strategy to Target CPA to optimize bids in real time toward a predefined CPA goal.
Targeted adjustments: This shift made it possible to generate conversions at the desired CPA and provided stronger control over campaign performance.
Results after 3 weeks: Within three weeks, CPA decreased by 33% and CPC dropped by 19%, significantly improving overall performance.

We Create Digital Leaders

Step 3

WEVENTURE delivers Results

Thanks to strategic adjustments to the bidding strategies, we significantly improved JOIN.com’s Google Ads performance. The changes led to a substantial reduction in costs and a clear increase in efficiency. (Status: October 2020)

Click Through Rate

Driven by optimized bidding strategies and targeted testing.

Cost per Click

Switching to Target CPA reduced CPC by 19%, leading to significant savings.

Cost per Acquisition

The new bidding strategy lowered CPA by 33%, greatly improving profitability.

Learnings

Key Insights

Testing is essential: Structured testing made it possible to identify the cause of rising costs and refine bidding strategies. Without testing, these issues would have been difficult to diagnose.
Choosing the right bidding strategy is critical: Switching to Target CPA reduced CPA by 33% and CPC by 19% — showing the importance of selecting a strategy aligned with campaign goals.
Funnel focus matters: The shift from upper-funnel to lower-funnel optimization significantly increased conversion rates and lowered cost per conversion.
Long-term adjustments pay off: Time invested in testing and fine-tuning campaigns resulted in sustainable performance improvements and major cost reductions.