The Client
HAVERDALE is an online outerwear brand selling warm, waterproof and windproof coats across the United States. Our Google Ads for this apparel brand turned $11K+ in ad spend into $86K+ in ad revenue in five months, about 7x.
The brand's range is built around a few hero coats: the 3-Season Trench Coat, the Chill Buster Trench Coat and the Quilted Banker Coat. Before we started, the account's only campaign that spent was a Search campaign that ran in March 2018, spent about $600 and recorded no sales. We built a Google Shopping campaign in November 2018, right before the winter coat season.
"About $600 in ad spend and no sales before us. $86,000+ in ad revenue in our five months."
The Challenge
- A short, intense season. Coats sell when the weather turns. The campaign had to be live and profitable before the holiday rush, with no time for a slow ramp-up.
- Big names on the same searches. Shoppers searching for a trench or winter coat see department stores and household outerwear brands in the same results.
- Premium price points. The average order from the ads was about $290. A technical coat is a considered purchase, so the product, the price and the image have to sell in the ad before anyone clicks.
- No sales history in the account. The earlier Search campaign gave Google nothing to learn from.
What We Built
1. A Google Shopping Campaign Built Around the Hero Coats
In November 2018 we launched a Standard Shopping campaign for the full range, with the hero coats, the 3-Season Trench Coat, its V2.0 version, the Chill Buster Trench Coat and the Quilted Banker Coat, carrying the budget.
2. Purchase Tracking That Counts Sales
We added a purchase conversion action for the store's transactions. Revenue here is counted from purchases only; page views, add-to-carts and checkouts are not counted as results.
3. Daily Optimization via Ad Campaign Concierge™
The campaign was reviewed daily under the process that runs today as our proprietary Ad Campaign Concierge™ system: product bids and budget moved toward the coats that sold, and away from the ones that only drew clicks.
The Results
- $86K+ in ad revenue from $11K+ in ad spend, about 7x ROAS
- 290+ orders from the ads
- $44K+ in the 2018 holiday season, mid-November to December, at about 9.8x
- Best month: December 2018, $33K+ at about 10x
A strong five months: from no recorded sales to $86K+ in ad revenue, with the holiday season alone returning nearly ten dollars for every dollar spent.
Key Takeaways
- For apparel, Shopping sells. A coat sells on its image and price, and Google Shopping puts both in the search results before the click.
- Lead with the hero products. The 3-Season Trench Coat and its V2.0 version carried the account.
- Launch before the season, not during it. Going live in mid-November gave the campaign the full holiday window, and December returned about 10x.
- Five focused months can change a brand's numbers. About $11K in Google Ads for an apparel brand turned into $86K+ in revenue.
Frequently Asked Questions
What ROAS can an apparel brand get from Google Shopping?
HAVERDALE averaged about 7x over five months: $11K+ in ad spend brought in $86K+ in revenue from the ads. December 2018 returned about 10x.
How fast can Google Shopping work for a clothing brand?
Right away. Our Shopping campaign launched in mid-November 2018 and brought in $11K+ in ad revenue in its first two weeks, at about 7.5x.
How much should an outerwear brand spend on Google Shopping?
HAVERDALE started at about $1,400 for the second half of November 2018 and ran at about $3,000 a month through the winter. That budget produced $86K+ in ad revenue in five months.
Which products sell best through Google Shopping for an outerwear brand?
The hero product. HAVERDALE's 3-Season Trench Coat drove $23K+ in ad revenue in its original version alone, followed by the newer V2.0 version, the Quilted Banker Coat and the Chill Buster Trench Coat.
About This Campaign
Google Shopping for an apparel brand, built and optimized by Live PPC Ads with the process behind our Ad Campaign Concierge™ system.
Industry: E-Commerce: Outerwear & Apparel Platforms: Google Ads (Shopping) Location: United States (online store) Account Duration: November 2018 to March 2019. The engagement has ended.
Figures cover only the campaigns we built (the campaigns marked "LPA" in the account). Revenue is purchase value from the store's "Transactions" action and Google Shopping purchases; page views, add-to-carts and checkouts are excluded. "Before us" is the account's March 2018 Search campaign. All figures are approximate and rounded down, in US dollars.