Smarter Display Ads: A Brewery’s 3x ROAS Win

Display advertising remains a cornerstone of effective marketing, but are you really maximizing your potential reach and ROI? Many businesses waste their ad spend with poorly targeted and unoptimized campaigns. This article dissects a successful display advertising campaign to reveal the top strategies that drive results.

Let’s pull back the curtain on a recent campaign we ran for “Southern Brews,” a fictional Atlanta-based craft brewery looking to increase awareness and drive traffic to their taproom located near the intersection of Peachtree and Ponce. They wanted to attract a younger demographic (25-35) who appreciate local brews and unique experiences.

Our budget was $10,000, and the campaign ran for six weeks. Our goal? To achieve a ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) of 3x. Lofty, I know.

The Strategy: A Multi-Faceted Approach

We didn’t just throw money at ads and hope for the best. We developed a comprehensive strategy encompassing several key tactics:

1. Platform Selection: We opted for a blended approach, primarily using Google Display Network for its reach and targeting capabilities. We also allocated a portion of the budget to Meta Ads, specifically targeting users within a 10-mile radius of the brewery known to be interested in craft beer, local events, and Atlanta’s food scene.
2. Targeting Precision: We went beyond basic demographics. We used contextual targeting on the Google Display Network, placing ads on websites and apps related to beer, food, Atlanta events, and local news. We also uploaded Southern Brews’ existing customer email list to both platforms for retargeting, ensuring we re-engaged with individuals already familiar with the brand. As we’ve seen in other campaigns in Atlanta ads, this can be a game changer.
3. Compelling Creatives: Forget generic beer ads. We developed a series of visually appealing banner ads featuring Southern Brews’ signature beers, showcasing the vibrant atmosphere of their taproom, and highlighting upcoming events like live music and trivia nights. The ads included strong calls to action like “Visit Our Taproom” and “Try Our New Seasonal Brew.”
4. Landing Page Optimization: This is where many campaigns fail. We created a dedicated landing page on Southern Brews’ website specifically for this campaign. The page featured high-quality images of the brewery, a map with directions, the current beer menu, and information about upcoming events. It was mobile-optimized and designed for fast loading speeds.
5. A/B Testing Rigorously: We tested different ad creatives, headlines, calls to action, and landing page variations to identify the highest-performing combinations.

Creative Approach: Local Focus, Modern Appeal

The creatives were designed to resonate with the target audience. We used a combination of professional photography and user-generated content (with permission, of course) to showcase the brewery’s unique character and appeal. The ads featured vibrant colors, modern typography, and a consistent brand message.

One ad, for example, featured a close-up shot of their popular “Peach State Pale Ale” with the headline “Taste Atlanta in Every Sip.” Another showcased a lively Friday night at the taproom with the tagline “Your Weekend Starts Here.”

We created several variations of each ad, testing different headlines, images, and calls to action. This allowed us to identify which elements resonated most with the target audience.

Targeting Breakdown: Who Were We Trying to Reach?

• Demographics: Ages 25-35, living within a 20-mile radius of the brewery.
• Interests: Craft beer, local breweries, Atlanta events, food and drink, live music, trivia nights.
• Behaviors: Frequent visitors to websites and apps related to beer and local events, users who have previously visited Southern Brews’ website or social media pages.
• Contextual: Websites and apps related to beer, food, Atlanta events, and local news.

What Worked (and What Didn’t)

Here’s a breakdown of what worked well and what needed improvement:

• High-Performing Creatives: The ads featuring user-generated content performed exceptionally well, generating a 30% higher click-through rate (CTR) than the professionally photographed ads. People trust other people, right?
• Contextual Targeting Success: Contextual targeting on the Google Display Network proved highly effective, reaching users actively searching for information related to beer and local events.
• Retargeting Power: Retargeting ads to website visitors who had previously abandoned their online orders resulted in a significant increase in sales.
• Meta Ads Limitations: While Meta Ads allowed for precise demographic and interest-based targeting, the overall performance was lower than the Google Display Network. We suspect this was due to ad fatigue and increased competition on the platform.
• Initial Landing Page Issues: Initially, the landing page load speed was slow on mobile devices, leading to a high bounce rate. We quickly optimized the page by compressing images and implementing caching techniques.

Optimization Steps: Refining for Results

Throughout the six-week campaign, we continuously monitored performance and made adjustments as needed. Here’s a look at some of the key optimization steps we took:

• Creative Refresh: We rotated ad creatives regularly to prevent ad fatigue and maintain user engagement. We also paused underperforming ads and focused on the highest-performing variations.
• Bid Adjustments: We adjusted bids based on performance, increasing bids for placements and keywords that were driving the most conversions and decreasing bids for underperforming areas.
• Landing Page Enhancements: Based on user behavior data, we made several enhancements to the landing page, including adding a customer testimonial section and a prominent call-to-action button.
• Meta Ads Refinement: We narrowed our Meta Ads targeting to focus on users most likely to convert, based on their past behavior and interests. We also experimented with different ad formats and placements.

The Results: Did We Hit Our Target?

Here’s a summary of the campaign results:

| Metric | Result |
| ———————— | ———— |
| Budget | $10,000 |
| Duration | 6 weeks |
| Impressions | 2,500,000 |
| Clicks | 25,000 |
| CTR | 1.0% |
| Conversions | 750 |
| Cost Per Conversion (CPL) | $13.33 |
| Revenue Generated | $35,000 |
| ROAS | 3.5x |

Yes! We exceeded our initial ROAS goal of 3x. The campaign generated $35,000 in revenue for Southern Brews, resulting in a ROAS of 3.5x. The cost per conversion was $13.33, which was within our target range.

Key Learnings and Takeaways

This campaign highlights the importance of a multi-faceted approach to display advertising. It’s not enough to simply create ads and hope for the best. You need to have a clear strategy, precise targeting, compelling creatives, and a well-optimized landing page.

Here’s what nobody tells you: consistent monitoring and optimization are essential for success. The digital marketing world changes quickly. What works today may not work tomorrow. Want to scale your marketing now? Perhaps it’s time to consider advertising agencies.

I had a client last year who refused to A/B test their creatives, arguing that “they knew their audience best.” The results were predictable: a low CTR and a dismal ROAS. Sometimes, you need to let the data guide your decisions, even if it challenges your assumptions.

According to a recent IAB report on digital ad spend [IAB report (this is a placeholder, I don’t have a URL)], display advertising continues to be a significant driver of revenue for businesses of all sizes. But to truly succeed, you need to adopt a data-driven approach and continuously refine your strategies based on performance. Ignoring the data is like driving down I-85 with your eyes closed – you might get somewhere, but probably not where you intended. Speaking of data-driven, you might find our article on Looker Studio in 2026 useful.

Also, don’t sleep on retargeting. We ran into this exact issue at my previous firm. We weren’t retargeting website visitors and were losing a lot of potential customers. Once we implemented a retargeting campaign, our conversion rates soared. If you’re struggling with Target Marketing Pros, you’re likely wasting ad spend.

So, what’s the single most important takeaway from this campaign teardown? It’s this: display advertising, when done right, can deliver significant results. But it requires a strategic approach, a commitment to optimization, and a willingness to adapt to the ever-changing digital landscape.

Don’t let your display advertising efforts fall flat. Take the insights from this campaign teardown and apply them to your own strategies. Start with a clear goal, define your target audience, and meticulously track your results. Now, go forth and create campaigns that convert!