The Full-Stack BFCM Breakdown

Hey, it's Arik.

I want to share a case study with you that perfectly illustrates why I'm obsessed with full-stack marketing.

This is about a brand we work with that absolutely crushed November, and they did it in a way that most brands would think is impossible.

They grew their revenue by 40% while spending 44% less on Google Ads. Their email marketing generated over $50K in revenue from just 12 campaigns. And their Google Ads ROAS jumped from 5.36x to 13.38x.

Here's exactly how they did it, and what you can learn from their approach.

Let me start with the results, then I'll break down the strategy:



The Numbers
Google Ads Performance:
‣ October: $9,460 spend, $50,698 revenue, 5.36x ROAS
‣ November: $5,314 spend, $71,095 revenue, 13.38x ROAS
‣ Result: 40% revenue increase with 44% less spend

Email Marketing Performance:

‣ 12 campaigns sent throughout November
‣ $50,225.82 in campaign revenue
‣ $78,963.74 in attributed revenue
‣ Top campaign: $8,847.50 from a single Black Friday send

Meta Ads Performance:

‣ November 1–30 (Full Month):
Total Spend: $86,625.53
Total Revenue: $196,592.89
Total Purchases: 1,169
Average ROAS: 2.27x
Cost Per Purchase: $74.10

‣ Black Friday–Cyber Monday Weekend (Nov 28–Dec 1):
Total Spend: $48,089.17
Total Revenue: $108,228.09
Total Purchases: 658
Average ROAS: 2.25x
Cost Per Purchase: $73.08

When you add it all up, this brand had their best month ever while actually spending less on their biggest channel.



What We Did
1. Campaign Restructuring for Efficiency
A lot brands run their Google Ads like a shotgun blast, broad campaigns targeting everything remotely related to their products, hoping something sticks. We took the opposite approach and turned their campaigns into a sniper rifle.

‣ We consolidated ad groups around high-intent keywords (the search terms that indicated someone was ready to buy, not just browse).

‣ We increased bids on proven performers while pausing underperformers. If a campaign wasn't generating profitable conversions, we cut it entirely. The budget that was previously spread across fifteen different campaign types got concentrated on the five campaigns with the highest conversion rates.

‣ We also improved their Quality Scores by making their ads more relevant to what people were actually searching for and ensuring their landing pages matched the promise in their ads. Higher Quality Scores meant Google rewarded them with lower costs per click, which meant their budget went further.

The result: we could spend less while getting more qualified traffic that was ready to buy.

2. Email Marketing That Actually Converts
Our email strategy was all about sending the right emails to the right people at the right time.

Top-performing campaigns:
Black Friday announcement: $8,847.50 revenue
Cyber Monday push: $6,234.18 revenue
Product spotlight series: Multiple $3K+ campaigns
Abandoned cart recovery: Consistent daily revenue

What made all of this work was our approach to segmentation and timing. We sent different messages to first-time visitors versus repeat customers, to people who bought recently versus those who hadn't purchased in months. We timed our sends based on when their audience was most likely to engage, not just when it was convenient to hit send.

3. Creative Strategy That Scaled
On the Meta side, we made a decision that goes against everything most marketers are taught: instead of constantly testing new creative angles, we found what worked and doubled down on it.

Their best-performing creative was a simple before-and-after video. And rather than moving on to test completely different concepts, we created multiple versions of this same winning idea. Different visuals, different angles, but always the same core message: here's what your life looks like without us, and here's what it could look like with us.

We also incorporated customer testimonials that reinforced the transformation story and added seasonal messaging.

This approach gave them consistent performance while reducing the time and money spent on creative production. The result was a steady stream of qualified traffic that fed into their other channels, creating a compound effect that made everything else perform better.



The Cross-Channel Effect
These channels didn't work in isolation. They worked together to create a compound effect.

How it worked:
‣ Google Ads captured high-intent searchers looking for LED solutions
‣ Meta Ads built awareness and retargeted website visitors
‣ Email nurtured leads and converted browsers into buyers
‣ Each channel fed the others with data and audiences

The reality of attribution: That $71K in Google Ads revenue probably came from some customers who saw a Meta ad first, then searched on Google, then converted after receiving an email.



What You Can Learn From This
Lesson 1: Efficiency Over Volume
More spend doesn't always mean better results. This brand proved that strategic optimization can deliver better performance with less budget.

‣ Action step: Audit your current campaigns. Where are you spending money on low-performing keywords, audiences, or creative? Cut the fat and double down on what works.

Lesson 2: Email Is Still King
While everyone's obsessing over TikTok and new platforms, email continues to deliver incredible ROI. $50K from 12 campaigns is proof that a well-executed email strategy can be your biggest revenue driver.

‣ Action step: Look at your email performance from the last 30 days. What were your top-performing campaigns? How can you replicate that success?

Lesson 3: Creative Optimization Beats Creative Testing
Instead of constantly testing new creative, they found what worked and optimized it. This approach is more sustainable and often more profitable.

‣ Action step: Identify your top-performing ads from the last quarter. How can you create variations that build on those winners?

Lesson 4: Cross-Channel Attribution Is Everything
Don't judge channels in isolation. The real magic happens when they work together to guide customers through your funnel.

‣ Action step: Set up proper tracking to understand how your channels influence each other. Use tools like Google Analytics 4 to see the full customer journey.

If you want to replicate this success, here's your step-by-step plan:

Week 1: Audit and Optimize
‣ Review your Google Ads account for underperforming campaigns
‣ Identify your top email campaigns from the last 90 days
‣ Analyze your Meta creative performance

Week 2: Restructure and Focus
‣ Consolidate Google Ads campaigns around your best performers
‣ Create email templates based on your highest-converting campaigns
‣ Pause underperforming Meta creative and double down on winners

Week 3: Cross-Channel Integration
‣ Set up proper tracking between all channels
‣ Create retargeting audiences from your email subscribers
‣ Align messaging across Google, Meta, and email

Week 4: Scale and Optimize
‣ Increase budgets on your best-performing campaigns
‣ Launch new email campaigns based on proven templates
‣ Test variations of your winning creative


The Bottom Line
This case study proves that you don't need to spend more to make more. With the right strategy, you can achieve better results with less budget.

The key is thinking about your marketing as a system, not individual channels. When Google Ads, Meta Ads, and email work together strategically, the results compound in ways that are impossible to achieve with any single channel.

See you next Thursday,
Arik