The Client
Wondery is one of the largest podcast networks in the world, producing hit shows spanning true crime, business, history, and pop culture. Available through wondery.com and all major podcast platforms, they monetize through premium subscriptions, advertising, and content licensing deals.
The Challenge
- Podcast listener acquisition is uniquely difficult on Google because consumption happens primarily in audio apps, not on websites, making traditional conversion tracking more complex.
- The subscription model required campaigns to balance low-cost trial sign-ups against long-term subscriber retention, where lifetime value only materializes months after acquisition.
- Competition from Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other major platforms meant bidding against companies with orders-of-magnitude larger marketing budgets.
- Content-driven brands need to continuously promote new show launches while maintaining evergreen campaigns for established catalog titles.
Our Approach
- Developed a dual-track campaign strategy: evergreen campaigns for the Wondery+ subscription service and launch campaigns timed to new show premieres with custom creative and landing pages.
- Built Search campaigns targeting show-specific queries, genre-based discovery terms, and competitor comparison keywords to capture listeners at multiple stages of the discovery funnel.
- Deployed YouTube Video campaigns promoting trailer content for new shows, using in-stream and Shorts formats to reach entertainment-seeking audiences at scale.
- Created Performance Max campaigns with show artwork, trailer clips, and subscription offer messaging to reach potential subscribers across Google's entire inventory.
- Implemented micro-conversion tracking for trial starts, app installs, and email sign-ups alongside primary subscription tracking to give the algorithm a richer signal set.
The Results
- Generated $3.41 million in tracked revenue on $730K in total spend, achieving a 4.7x ROAS across all campaign types.
- Drove 62,900+ conversions including premium subscriptions, trial activations, app downloads, and email newsletter sign-ups.
- YouTube Video campaigns delivered the lowest cost-per-trial-start at $4.20, outperforming all other channels for top-of-funnel subscriber acquisition.
- Show-specific launch campaigns generated an average 340% more sign-ups in their first two weeks compared to launches without dedicated paid support.
- Remarketing campaigns targeting trial users who hadn't converted to paid subscribers achieved a 22% conversion rate, significantly reducing churn at the trial stage.
What the Client Says
"Advertising a podcast network on Google seemed counterintuitive at first, but Live PPC Ads found the strategy that made it work. They think about our business model -- not just clicks and impressions -- and the subscriber growth has been the proof."
-- Head of Growth, Wondery
About This Campaign
This engagement covers Google Ads campaign management across Search, Performance Max, Display, and YouTube Video. Revenue and conversion tracking integrates with subscription analytics and app install attribution.