How did we triple lead volume and cut acquisition costs by 71% for Samiad’s summer camps?

About the client

Samiad is a company that specializes in organizing summer camps in the United Kingdom. They operate in several locations, including Oxford and London, offering camps that combine English language learning with specialized activities like golf, programming, art, and soccer. The primary goal is to immerse children in a 100% English-speaking, multicultural environment. Samiad promotes a global approach, attracting participants from various countries to create a truly international experience. The company has been active for over ten years, providing enriching experiences for kids worldwide.

Problems & goal

Samiad came to us with the challenge of scaling their business while keeping their costs in check. They wanted our help setting things up better and scaling to bring in more new customers.  The client approached us seeking to expand their business after experiencing a slowdown in growth. The key focus was generating more leads, as this wasn’t an e-commerce business but a lead-driven one.

The goal was to achieve a 41% increase in the number of weeks purchased by new users compared to last year, all while maintaining the same budget.

Challenges

• Limited data availability – It required us to enhance the analytics setup. Although we had some CRM data, it was insufficient for drawing comprehensive insights, so we took the opportunity to rebuild the analytics from scratch.
• Seasonal operation – With camps running exclusively in July and August, we needed to carefully manage the budget to ensure effective resource allocation for the high-demand summer season.
• Target market definition – Initially, the campaigns targeted multiple countries without distinction, which diluted the impact. We refined the targeting approach, focusing on markets with higher cost-effectiveness, allowing for a more concentrated, efficient campaign reach.
• Creative strategy implementation – We developed a comprehensive creative strategy to address scalability issues. This approach was designed to support business growth by tailoring campaigns and maximizing the effectiveness of marketing efforts in each target market.

The strategy and solution

The first step in addressing the client’s challenges was the development of a cohesive and well-structured creative and marketing strategy tailored to their specific needs. This began with an in-depth analysis, where we gathered key insights through client interviews and assessed the existing tools and marketing assets. We identified gaps in their current approach and used these findings to structure our creative strategy.

A core part of our efforts was developing a creative strategy for both Google Ads and Meta Ads. Instead of relying on a few static banners throughout the year, we tested and iterated on various creatives, including videos and social proof elements. This focus on creative variability and testing allowed us to continuously optimize and refresh our campaigns, which was crucial given the budget constraints. The result was a significant boost in performance across both platforms, leading to a 34% reduction in cost per week (CPW) and a 71% reduction in cost per opportunity (CPO). This foundation allowed us to propose a targeted strategy to overcome their challenges.

We recognized that while they were already capturing demand through Google Ads, they struggled with generating new demand and scaling effectively. It was previously the client’s sole source of leads. This involved restructuring the campaign analytics and implementing a new campaign structure for better scalability. We focused on countries that had previously generated sales rather than spreading efforts too thin globally. New campaign types, such as Performance Max and more precise Google Search targeting, were introduced. This led to achieving over 30% impression share in our key markets and significantly reducing the cost per acquisition.

Recognizing that the client had previously only used Google Ads, we introduced Meta Ads as a new channel. This helped us build brand awareness in existing markets and test and identify new, profitable markets globally. Meta Ads were structured in a way that allowed us to move countries from testing phases to scalable campaigns based on their performance. This approach significantly contributed to the overall success, bringing in over 100 new leads and expanding the client’s market reach.

As part of the broader strategy, we also implemented key analytics frameworks, such as event tracking, dashboards, and data layers, ensuring accurate reporting and performance tracking. This comprehensive approach ensured the foundation was set for successful scaling and optimization, making the marketing efforts more effective and sustainable for future growth.

Examples of creatives prepared by MTA for Samiad