Master paid acquisition: Proven strategies to boost your growth

You know that feeling when you're throwing money at ads and getting tons of clicks, but your conversion rate is terrible? Yeah, we've all been there. The problem isn't that paid acquisition doesn't work—it's that most people are doing it wrong.

Here's the thing: paid acquisition isn't about casting the widest net possible. It's about finding the right people at the right moment. Those people who are actually in-market, actively looking for a solution like yours.

The real goal of paid acquisition

Let me be blunt: if your goal is to drive as many clicks as possible, you're already losing. High traffic numbers might make you feel good, but they don't pay the bills.

The real goal? Attract people who are ready to buy. Intent beats volume every single time. You want someone who's been researching solutions for weeks, not someone who just stumbled across your industry term while writing a college paper.

The best practices that actually work

Here's what separates the winners from the money-wasters:

Stop wasting money on tyre-kickers

The biggest mistake I see? Going after people who aren't ready to buy. When you target top-of-funnel keywords, you're attracting:

• Students doing research for assignments

• Competitors checking out your messaging

• People who are just curious but have no budget

• Researchers who won't make decisions for months

These people will click your ads, consume your content, and then vanish. They'll tank your conversion rates and eat up your budget.

Target the right stage of awareness

Instead, focus on people who are solution-aware. They know they have a problem, they know what type of solution they need, and they're actively evaluating options. These are the golden prospects.

Look for keywords that show this intent:

• "Best [your category] software"

• "[Your category] pricing"

• "[Competitor name] alternative"

• "Top [your category] tools"

These searches tell you someone is ready to make a decision soon.

The intent vs. volume mindset shift

This approach might give you fewer clicks, but those clicks will be worth way more. Would you rather have 10,000 visitors with a 0.5% conversion rate or 1,000 visitors with a 5% conversion rate? The maths is pretty clear.

When you focus on intent over volume, you'll see:

• Higher conversion rates

• Lower cost per acquisition

• Better quality leads

• Faster sales cycles

Making it work for your business

Start by auditing your current keywords. Are you targeting terms that attract researchers or buyers? If you're going after broad, educational keywords, you're probably attracting the wrong crowd.

Shift your focus to bottom-of-funnel terms. Yes, they're more competitive and expensive per click. But they're also more likely to turn into customers.

The goal isn't to get the cheapest clicks—it's to get the most valuable ones.

"We are on-track to deliver a 43% increase in inbound leads this year. There is no doubt the adoption of Growth Method is the primary driver behind these results."

Laura Perrott, Colt Technology Services

Growth Method is the GrowthOS built for marketing teams focused on pipeline — not projects. Book a call at https://cal.com/stuartb/30min.

For more tactical advice on kickstarting your paid acquisition strategy, check out The 3 easiest wins to kickstart paid acquisition for additional insights.