Google Ads & CRO Case Study
Apprenticeships
Are Us
From inflated metrics and generic campaigns to real leads and measurable growth.
About Apprenticeships Are Us
Apprenticeships Are Us is a national apprenticeship and traineeship placement service connecting job seekers with employers across Australia. They cover a wide range of trades and industries including automotive, electrical, plumbing, IT, childcare, carpentry, hairdressing, and hospitality.
With candidates ranging from school leavers to mature age career changers, the business relies heavily on Google Ads to generate a steady pipeline of qualified applicants across every trade category.
The Challenge
When Rank Haus took over the Google Ads account, we inherited an account that looked busy but was not delivering real results.
Inflated Conversion Tracking
The account was reporting thousands of “conversions” per month, but these were micro-interactions like page views and button clicks, not genuine form submissions or leads.
Generic Campaign Structure
Just three broad, catch-all campaigns were targeting every trade and audience in a single bucket, making it impossible to optimise spend by trade or intent.
Low Website Conversion Rate
The site was converting at around 2%, meaning 98% of paid traffic was leaving without taking any meaningful action. CTA placement, page flow, and content gaps were all contributing factors.
No Performance Visibility
With everything lumped into generic campaigns, there was no way to see which audiences were generating leads, which were wasting budget, or where to scale spend.
Our Objectives
The goal was clear: rebuild the account from the ground up so every dollar spent could be measured, optimised, and tied to a real lead.
Fix Conversion Tracking
Strip out inflated micro-conversions and rebuild tracking to count only genuine form submissions as leads.
Restructure Campaign Architecture
Replace the generic campaigns with a segmented structure to control budget allocation and measure performance at a granular level.
Improve Website Conversion Rate
Consult with the marketing team on CRO improvements to turn more of the existing traffic into actual leads.
Reduce Cost per Click
Drive down CPC through better targeting and quality scores, while increasing the volume of real, qualified leads.
The Rank Haus Approach
1. Campaign Restructure
- Rebuilt from 3 generic campaigns into 12 targeted LeadGen campaigns
- Each campaign segmented by audience and intent for precise budget control
- Individual keyword strategies and ad copy tailored to each campaign
- Clear attribution so every lead traces back to the campaign that generated it
2. Conversion Tracking Overhaul
- Removed all inflated micro-conversion goals (page views, scroll depth, button clicks)
- Implemented clean form submission tracking as the single conversion action
- Set up proper attribution so every lead could be traced back to the campaign and trade that generated it
3. CRO Consulting
- Consulted with the marketing lead on CTA placement and visibility
- Recommended page layout and user flow improvements
- Identified content gaps that were causing drop-off
- Changes implemented in August 2025 with immediate impact
The Results
The combination of restructured campaigns, clean tracking, and CRO improvements delivered measurable, sustained growth.
CRO Impact
Conversion Rate Transformation
In August 2025, we consulted with the Apprenticeships Are Us marketing lead on a series of website improvements. The impact was immediate and sustained.
Before CRO (May to July 2025)
Average conversion rate of 2.0% across the site. Monthly conversions averaged around 153. Engagement rate sat at 33 to 38%.
After CRO (August to October 2025)
Conversion rate jumped to 7.8% average, peaking at 9.9% in September. Monthly conversions increased to 764. Engagement rate improved to 36 to 44%.
Data from Google Analytics 4
Conversion rate improvement from a single round of CRO recommendations
Google Ads
Spend Efficiency
The restructured account delivers more leads with better visibility into performance, allowing us to continuously shift budget toward the highest-performing trades.
Q1 2026 Total Spend
12 campaigns generating 394 qualified leads with full visibility into which campaigns deliver the strongest return on ad spend.
Budget Allocation
Top-performing campaigns receive the largest share of budget. Underperforming campaigns are paused or restructured, not left to bleed spend.
CPC Reduction
Average cost per click decreased 24% driven by improved quality scores and tighter keyword targeting.
Ongoing Optimisation
Monthly lead volume increased 90% between H2 2025 and Q1 2026 as campaigns matured and CRO improvements compounded.
The Bottom Line
Apprenticeships Are Us went from an account running on vanity metrics and generic targeting to one built on real leads, trade-level visibility, and measurable returns.
The campaign restructure gave the business something it never had before: clarity on which campaigns generate leads and at what cost. Combined with CRO consulting that lifted conversion rates 4x, the result is a pipeline that grows month on month.
With 394 qualified leads in Q1 2026 and cost per click down 24%, the account is now a reliable, scalable growth engine for the business.
Services: Google Ads Management • Conversion Rate Optimisation Consulting
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