PPC shouldn’t drain your budget, it should deliver on it. Too many brands treat paid ads like a quick fix, but without structure, testing, and smart optimisation, you’re just burning spend.
May 15, 2025
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PPC doesn’t need to be a money pit. If you’re pouring budget into paid ads and not seeing results, it’s time to change your approach, not your spend.
Our Head of Search, Jack, puts it simply: “Stop treating PPC as just a short-term sales driver. Instead, focus on building a strong foundation to create campaigns aligned with best practices, test continuously, and refine as you go. That’s how you build a strategy that’s tailored to your business goals and designed to last.”
At Serotonin, we’re all about performance. That means refining the way you manage your campaigns so every penny works harder, drives better results and builds your awareness long-term.
Here’s our tips to stop wasting budget and start winning with PPC.
Forget guesswork. A strong PPC campaign starts with clarity around your spend and what you want that spend to achieve.
That means defining your cost-per-click, knowing your ideal return on ad spend, and tracking where your money’s going across platforms.
Think about your budget as a performance tool, not a fixed figure. Ringfence some of it for testing new ad formats, new keywords, new ideas. But keep it controlled, measured, and outcome-focused.
Broad, bloated keyword lists? They’re costing you.
It’s easy to waste money on terms that don’t convert so tighten them up. Focus on high-intent, relevant keywords that match what your audience is actually looking for. And while you’re at it, build out your negative keyword list. That alone can protect your spend from poor-fit traffic.
If you’re not reviewing keywords weekly, you’re not running your PPC properly.
Your campaign setup shouldn’t be an afterthought. If you’re lumping keywords together, running overlapping ads or relying on auto-generated content expect messy results.
Structure your campaigns around specific themes and goals. Align each ad group to a clear focus, with copy and landing pages that match. That’s how you boost quality scores, lower your CPC, and actually drive results.
You don’t need hours to optimise your PPC but you do need consistency.
Spend 20 minutes each week checking in on performance. Pause poor performers, push budget into what’s converting, and swap out stale ad copy. Look at what’s happening on mobile vs. desktop. Shift bids based on what’s working, where and when.
These aren’t major overhauls, they're minor moves that make a major difference.
Google might be the go-to, but it’s not the only option.
Smarter PPC strategies cast the net wider. Channels like YouTube, Bing and Pinterest open the door to lower-cost clicks, more visual storytelling, and bigger opportunities for brand awareness at the top of the funnel.
When you diversify your platform mix, you’re not just chasing conversions, you're building a full-funnel journey that meets people earlier, and moves them faster.
Your PPC should be working harder, not you.
It’s not about spending more. It’s about spending better.
With tighter structure, smarter optimisation and clearer goals, your PPC budget becomes a growth engine - not a line item. And if you want help making it happen?
You know where we are. Let’s make your ads actually perform. Get in touch with us today and we can help you.
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