1. Start with Your Goals
Before you even think about numbers, define what success looks like for your campaign. Are you trying to:
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Generate leads?
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Increase online sales?
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Drive traffic to a specific landing page?
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Build brand awareness?
Your goals will heavily influence your budget. For example, a campaign focused on lead generation in a highly competitive industry will likely require more spend than a local awareness campaign in a niche market.
🎯 Pro Tip:
Set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) so you can track ROI clearly.
2. Know Your Industry Benchmarks
Some industries are more competitive (and expensive) than others. Cost-per-click (CPC) can range from less than $1 to over $50 depending on your field. For example:
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Legal and insurance keywords are highly competitive.
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Local service providers may face lower CPCs.
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Niche eCommerce brands may have varying costs based on product and competition.
Use Google’s Keyword Planner to research average CPCs in your industry and location.
💡 Example:
If you’re in the HVAC industry and your target keyword has an average CPC of $10, and you want 100 clicks per month, you’ll need a base monthly budget of around $1,000.
3. Understand Your Conversion Metrics
Let’s say your landing page converts at 10%. That means you’ll need 10 clicks to get one lead. If you’re paying $5 per click, you’ll spend $50 per lead. If you want 20 leads a month, your budget needs to be at least $1,000/month.
🧮 Formula:Monthly Budget = (Target Leads per Month) x (Cost per Lead)
If you don’t have historical data, start small, track your results, and adjust from there.
4. Consider Your Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
Your PPC budget should be proportionate to the value of each customer. If one customer is worth $1,000 in revenue over time, spending $100 to acquire them might make perfect sense. If a customer is only worth $50, you’ll need a tighter strategy and more efficient conversions.
✅ CLV-driven budgeting helps you avoid overspending while still staying competitive.
5. Set a Monthly Minimum (and Expect a Ramp-Up Period)
We recommend starting with a minimum of $500–$1,500/month for most small to mid-sized businesses. Why? Because anything lower often doesn’t provide enough data to optimize effectively.
Remember:
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Google Ads needs time to learn and optimize (the “learning phase”)
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You’ll get better results with consistent spending over time
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Budget flexibility allows you to test keywords, audiences, and creative
📈 The more data you collect, the smarter your campaign becomes.
6. Don’t Forget Management & Creative Costs
Your ad spend is only part of the investment. Also consider:
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Ad creation (copywriting, graphic design, landing pages)
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Ongoing management (whether done in-house or with an agency like Banton Media)
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A/B testing (you’ll want to test different versions of ads or pages)
Working with professionals can help you stretch your ad dollars further through strategic bidding, better creative, and campaign optimization.
7. Track, Adjust, and Scale
Your Google Ads budget isn’t set in stone. Start with a data-driven estimate, monitor performance closely, and make adjustments based on:
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Cost-per-click
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Cost-per-lead
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Conversion rate
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ROI
If you’re seeing positive ROI, scale up your budget to increase volume. If results are weak, evaluate your targeting, landing pages, and messaging before simply increasing spend.
Conclusion: A Smart PPC Budget is a Strategic One
There’s no magic number that works for everyone—but there is a method. By defining your goals, understanding your audience, and tracking your metrics, you can create a Google Ads budget that’s not only realistic, but profitable.
At Banton Media, we specialize in building and managing Google Ads campaigns that maximize ROI. Whether you’re new to PPC or ready to scale, we can help you set a budget that works and build a campaign that delivers.
📈 Need help creating or optimizing your PPC strategy? Let’s talk.
