15 Ppc Agency Success Stories [2024]
Paid search marketing is an effective way for brands to generate qualified leads and a high return on investment. So it's no surprise businesses are looking for PPC agencies to set up marketing campaigns.
PPC agencies manage internet pay-per-click advertising campaigns that include strategy, design, implementation, SEO, and analysis of ads performance.
PPC professional is a highly sought-after role. 45% of small businesses use PPC advertising. Besides, PPC is a huge business driver for 74% of brands. According to statistics, the global PPC Software market will reach a CAGR of 7.68% within a decade.
Starting a PPC advertising business can be lucrative. f you are planning to start a PPC agency, take AdWords and Bing Ads certifications, and choose a niche.
In this list, you'll find real-world PPC agency success stories and very profitable examples of starting a PPC agency that makes money.
1. Impression ($7.8M/year)
Aaron and his university friend, Tom, founded Impression as a side project while working in-house for a renewable energy business. They couldn't find an agency partner that met their expectations, so they decided to create one themselves. Starting with services like paid media, SEO, and digital PR campaigns, they evolved Impression into a strategic agency partner, reaching milestones like employing 100 staff and aiming for a revenue target of £10m.
How much money it makes: $7.8M/year
How much did it cost to start: $0
How many people on the team: 103
Impression - a digital marketing agency started by two friends who were able to grow the business from scratch by profit-funding and recently reached the milestone of employing 100 staff, serving as a strategic agency partner to clients, and set to hit its next revenue target of £10m.
2. Digital Position™ ($4.68M/year)
Roger Parent, the founder of a digital marketing agency, came up with the idea after realizing the shortcomings of the agency he was managing at his previous job. Frustrated by their lack of transparency and slow response times, he decided to offer a better service himself. Since then, his agency has experienced significant growth, with a projected revenue of $416k in 2022 and a goal of reaching $30mm by 2029.
How much money it makes: $4.68M/year
How much did it cost to start: $1K
How many people on the team: 30
Digital Position, a digital marketing agency, was founded by Roger Parent, who was unhappy being underpaid at his job; the company is now generating over $330k/month in revenue, and aims to generate $5m in 2022, with a long-term goal of hitting $30m before Parent is 40.
3. SharpNet Solutions, Inc ($4.2M/year)
SharpNet Solutions was founded in 1998 by Christopher Sharp, a chemical engineer who wanted to secure his family's future. After self-training in website building, he realized the potential of internet marketing and launched his own company. Today, with a team of 38 talented members, SharpNet generates over $4 million in annual gross sales, offering SEO, PPC, social media management, and website design services with a strong focus on customer satisfaction.
How much money it makes: $4.2M/year
How much did it cost to start: $200
How many people on the team: 39
This case study is about Christopher Sharp, who founded digital marketing company SharpNet Solutions, which employs 38 people and has gross sales of over $4 million/year, and focuses on customer satisfaction and producing bottom-line results.
4. Digital Next ($3.48M/year)
Nathan Elly, founder of Digital Next Australia, came up with the idea for his search marketing agency after completing a year of industry experience in SEO. Through selling SEO services and witnessing the growing importance of digital marketing, he recognized the potential for SEO to become an essential part of the marketing mix. After launching the business in Australia, they have since achieved a turnover of approximately $2 million per year.
How much money it makes: $3.48M/year
How much did it cost to start: $5K
How many people on the team: 13
Nathan Elly, founder of Digital Next Australia, shares how he started a search marketing agency that now turns over approximately $2 million per year through organic growth, cold calling and effective partnerships.
5. The Creative Collective ($2.4M/year)
Yvette Adams, founder of The Creative Collective, came up with the idea to start her marketing agency out of both ambition and necessity. With a diverse background in marketing and media, she saw the potential in offering a one-stop-shop for creative services on the Sunshine Coast. She began by offering her services to people she knew and quickly gained clients and referrals, positioning her agency as a pioneer in the industry.
How much money it makes: $2.4M/year
How much did it cost to start: $0
How many people on the team: 20
The Creative Collective is a full-service marketing agency that has grown its revenue and doubled its team in the past year, with around 100 active clients and responding to an average of 160 inquiries each month.
6. NERDS Collective ($2.28M/year)
Born out of a passion for underground UK music, Luke Hodson founded NERDS Collective in 2007, transforming an initial series of warehouse parties into a youth marketing powerhouse with a near £1 million turnover by year four.
How much money it makes: $2.28M/year
How much did it cost to start: $3.5K
How many people on the team: 10
Luke Hodson founded NERDS Collective, a youth marketing agency based in London that specializes in big data, cultural intelligence, and gen-Z, after starting out selling doughnuts and snacks in school playgrounds to identify opportunities and make money, and now boasts a turnover of just under £1m and 112 signed off projects by Puma through a client-servicing strategy that is brutally honest and solution-oriented.
7. PageTraffic ($1.2M/year)
Navneet Kaushal, the founder & CEO of PageTraffic, came up with the idea for his SEO agency after experiencing the impact of the internet during his MBA studies. He tested SEO strategies on his own website and saw it rank in the top ten within months. With a passion for digital marketing and a desire to help businesses succeed, Navneet launched PageTraffic in 2002 and has since grown it into a successful agency with a strong online presence and a global client base.
How much money it makes: $1.2M/year
How much did it cost to start: $10K
How many people on the team: 80
Navneet Kaushal, founder & CEO of PageTraffic, shares how he started an SEO agency in India in 2002, which now generates over $1.2 million in annual revenue and attracts clients globally.
8. Salt Water Digital ($1.07M/year)
Daniel Thompson, the founder of Salt Water Digital, came up with the idea for his digital marketing agency while working for a research and development company in 2011. After teaching himself web development and SEO, he built an affiliate site called ExerciseFoamRollers.com. When he was laid off in 2012, he used his unemployment insurance to start his own business and eventually expanded to offer SEO, PPC, and website development services.
How much money it makes: $1.07M/year
How much did it cost to start: $1K
How many people on the team: 9
Salt Water Digital is a digital marketing agency specializing in SEO, PPC, and website development, serving small businesses with revenue from $300k to $5m, having grown from $25k/month to $40k/month in the past eight months, with a goal to hit $60k/month by year end.
9. Conversion Perk ($540K/year)
Devjeet’s journey began during the Great Recession when he couldn't land a traditional tech internship, leading him to discover digital marketing. With just ₹2.5 lakh (USD 3,500) and a vision to make digital marketing the main focus, he founded Conversion Perk in 2018, now generating many times the initial investment and recognized as one of India's top PPC Management Agencies.
How much money it makes: $540K/year
How much did it cost to start: $3K
How many people on the team: 26
This case study article showcases the journey of Devjeet, the founder of Conversion Perk, a digital marketing agency. With an initial investment of just ₹2.5L, the company has achieved impressive milestones, becoming partners with industry leaders like Google and Amazon and generating a monthly revenue that is many-fold more than the initial investment. The article also highlights their strategies for customer attraction and retention, including mastering the digital landscape, focusing on SEO, utilizing platforms like Upwork, and employing personalized email marketing campaigns.
10. Rocket PPC ($480K/year)
Gabriele Contilli and his co-founder, Pasquale, started Rocket PPC with the goal of hiring experienced talent, working remotely, and serving large clients and startups. They believed that pay-per-click advertising was the best way to help businesses grow in an unpredictable market. In their first year, they exceeded their goal of reaching a break-even point of 100k by doubling that amount, and their low churn rate of only 10% allowed them to plan for a second year with a 50% increase in revenue, reaching the 30k/monthly revenue range.
How much money it makes: $480K/year
How much did it cost to start: $1K
How many people on the team: 6
Rocket PPC is a highly-talented and experienced Pay per Click agency based in Italy that was able to exceed their initial break-even point goal of 100k in the first 12 months, resulting in a double amount of expected revenue and a second year with a +50% in revenues that drove them into the 30k/monthly revenue range, with a focus on attracting big clients, expanding their team, and maintaining high quality.
11. Base Coat Marketing ($360K/year)
Austin Houser, the founder of Base Coat Marketing, came up with the idea for his business after acquiring painting businesses as clients at his previous agency and realizing the industry lacked effective marketing solutions. By creating a niche-focused agency dedicated to the professional painting industry, Houser has been able to quickly scale his business and generate impressive results, with $30,000 in monthly recurring revenue and a 50% profit margin within just three months of launching.
How much money it makes: $360K/year
How much did it cost to start: $15K
How many people on the team: 2
Austin Houser, founder of Base Coat Marketing, launched a full-service digital marketing agency catering exclusively to the professional painting industry and within three months exceeded last year's revenue under his previous agency and is generating $30,000 in monthly recurring revenue with roughly a 50% profit margin by offering simple, niche-focused packages and providing personalized, valuable interactions with customers.
12. Restoration Digital Marketing ($300K/year)
Jeff Carrier came up with the idea for Restoration Digital Marketing after speaking to restoration owners who lacked focus on internet marketing. With their industry-specific knowledge and experience as a restoration company, RDM was able to educate the industry and generate $25,000/month in leads.
How much money it makes: $300K/year
How many people on the team: 2
Restoration Digital Marketing generates over $25,000 per month helping restoration companies achieve positive ROI through its specialized digital marketing services, and its success has been fuelled through word-of-mouth marketing tactics and developing client relationships.
13. Get X Media ($180K/year)
Corey Hayes, the founder of Get X Media, came up with the idea for his business after seeing a growing demand among his entrepreneurial friends who needed assistance with website design and business cards. Recognizing the opportunity, he expanded his services to include customized apparel printing and a comprehensive suite of digital marketing solutions, leading to rapid growth and revenue in the six-figure range.
How much money it makes: $180K/year
How much did it cost to start: $5K
How many people on the team: 3
Seasoned web designer Corey Hayes started Get X Media, a marketing agency that offers website design, customized apparel printing, and comprehensive digital marketing solutions that has experienced significant growth, with a remarkable increase in traffic 13 times higher than before and approximately doubling year-over-year, achieving a retention rate of 98%, and hoping to triple growth this year.
14. Anachak Design ($84K/year)
Vathana Nguon stumbled into starting his web design agency in 2015 with low expectations, but through face-to-face marketing and old-fashioned methods, he was able to grow his business and generate $5,000 per month. He built his expertise in WordPress development through self-teaching and extensive research, eventually launching his agency that focuses on WordPress design and development. By targeting the tourism industry and offering specialized services, he was able to stand out and become the go-to web designer for tourism businesses in Cambodia. Additionally, he utilized SEO and blogging to attract customers and achieve long-term success.
How much money it makes: $84K/year
How much did it cost to start: $1.5K
How many people on the team: 3
Learn how Vathana Nguon started a freelance web design agency in Cambodia through self-taught WordPress design, attracting clients through search engine optimization and unique selling techniques, and utilizing tools like Themeforest and MailChimp to grow a steady stream of new and returning clients.
15. Social Reach ($78K/year)
Stephen, the founder of Micro Bikes UK, stumbled upon the idea of mini bikes when his suppliers sold a few of them alongside ride-on cars on their eBay store. After realizing their potential, he took some time away, developed a business plan centered around mini bikes, secured seed investment, and launched Micro Bikes. With a solid after-sales service and his expertise in digital marketing, Stephen was able to overtake older, handymen-run competitors and generate six-figure revenue within 18 months.
How much money it makes: $78K/year
How much did it cost to start: $0
How many people on the team: 2
Micro Bikes UK is a successful e-commerce store specializing in kids quad bikes and dirt bikes with petrol engines, currently on track to hit six-figures in revenue with strong branding and a solid after-sales service.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
