What’s the Best Paid Search Strategy for B2B?
Capture existing demand first with brand + transactional keywords, layer ABM audiences, bid to SQL/Revenue with offline conversions, and align landing pages to intent—then expand efficiently.
Build a capture-first structure in Google & Microsoft Ads: split campaigns into Brand, High-Intent Non-Brand (“software for X”, “platform”, “pricing”), Competitor, and Category/Early. Use phrase/exact with rigorous negatives, add ABM audiences (Customer Match, company lists) as observation or targeting, and optimize bidding to down-funnel conversions (SQL/Opportunity) via offline conversion imports from HubSpot/CRM. Protect budgets with brand separation, search term pruning, and landing pages matched to query intent. Scale with DSA/broad only after quality is proven.
B2B Paid Search Plays
Build a Capture-First B2B SEM Framework
1) Campaign structure. Separate Brand (exact+phrase, high QS), High-Intent (solution/platform/pricing terms), Competitor (compliant, value-led), and Category/Early (problem & use case terms). Keep Performance Max isolated (remarketing or feedless testing) and never mix with Brand until controls exist.
2) Keywords & negatives. Start with exact/phrase. Run weekly SQR to add negatives; use n-gram analysis to kill noise (education, careers, DIY). Maintain global lists (brand safety, geos, student/free). Use DSA only for coverage gaps with tight page targets and shared negatives.
3) Audiences & ABM. Upload ICP account lists from HubSpot; use observation to see lift, then test targeting on expensive segments. Add in-market, custom segments from competitor domains/keywords, and remarketing by depth (all visitors vs pricing/docs).
4) Bidding to qualified outcomes. Map HubSpot lifecycle stages to Google/Microsoft via offline conversion import (gclid/msclkid) and set primary conversions to SQL/Oppty (not just form fills). Start with Maximize Conversions while feeding quality signals; graduate to tCPA/tROAS once stable. Devalue low-quality micro events or mark them secondary.
5) Creative & landing. Use pain→proof→offer ads; include pricing, integrations, social proof in assets (sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets). Route to pages that mirror the query and reduce friction (short forms, calendar embed, chat). Competitor pages should anchor on differentiation, not attacks.
6) Measurement & governance. Standardize UTM naming, connect ads to HubSpot Campaigns, and report MQL→SQL→Pipeline→Revenue by campaign/keyword. Use budget guardrails (e.g., 60% High-Intent, 20% Brand, 10% Competitor, 10% Category; adjust by CAC:Payback).
30-Day B2B Paid Search Sprint
- Days 1–5: Define ICP & offers; build Brand/High-Intent/Competitor/Category campaigns; set negatives & UTMs.
- Days 6–10: Connect HubSpot offline conversions (SQL/Oppty), enable Enhanced Conversions, verify form dedupe.
- Days 11–20: Import ABM lists; add observation audiences; launch ad/asset variants; align landing pages by intent.
- Days 21–30: SQR pruning; shift budgets to best CPA-to-SQL; test tCPA; publish pipeline & revenue dashboards.
Frequently Asked Questions
Turn Clicks into Pipeline
We’ll architect your B2B search program—intent structure, ABM audiences, offline conversions, and landing pages—so budgets move from clicks to revenue.
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