Peak Ace & Leatherman: The sharpest tools in your pocket - carving out a multi-channel strategy

Read up on how we at Peak Ace:

>helped Leatherman achieve a 141% revenue increase using multi-channel PPC and Paid Social strategies, surpassing their 94% goal.
>targeted new audiences with P-Max campaigns, focusing on Non-Brand growth, past purchaser exclusions, and creative automation.
>overcame Meta disapprovals while testing challenges, doubling conversions and improving ROAS significantly.
>earned 10 awards for the project, including European Search and Global Search Awards, showcasing its success.

1. #adwexp Peak Ace & Leatherman The sharpest tools in your pocket - carving out a multi-channel strategy
2. #adwexp 2 Agenda 1. About myself & Peak Ace 2. Leatherman & the Project 3. Objectives & Budget 4. Target Audience & Strategy 5. Implementation & Creativity 6. Challenges 7. Results & Evaluation 8. Conclusions
3. #adwexp A little about myself & Peak Ace ▪ Antonio Baroni ▪ Originally from Padova, Italy ▪ Living in Berin since 2017 ▪ Working for Peak Ace since 2021 ▪ PPC Manager and Project Lead for Leatherman Peak Ace AG ▪ Digital marketing agency offering PPC, SEO, content marketing, digital strategy, AI, and CRO services ▪ Founded in 2007 ▪ Headquartered in Berlin ▪ 170+ Peak Acers speaking 25+ languages at native level ▪ Working closely with brands such as, Airbnb, TUI, Sage, AutoScout24 and Luxair
4. #adwexp 4 Leatherman is a prestigious American brand making multitools and pocketknives. Peak Ace started working with Leatherman in October 2021, managing PPC & Paid Social.
5. #adwexp OBJECTIVES & BUDGET What we wanted to achieve
6. #adwexp 6 Our objectives Revenue % Revenue from new customers Increase revenue by 94% vs 2022 (PPC + Paid Social) At least 20% of total PPC revenue had to come from Non-Brand campaigns. During Q4, at least 10% of this Non- Brand revenue had to come from campaigns with past purchasers’ exclusion ROAS ROAS set by the clients had to be maintained Source: Internal; Confidential Information
7. #adwexp TARGET AUDIENCE & STRATEGY Reaching relevant users while improving Non-Brand and new customers share
8. #adwexp 8 Understanding Leatherman’s target audience & strategy Possible Expansion ▪ Female more represented in the consideration phase (vs male as owners) ▪ Age 16-29 ▪ Into boating, sailing, winter sports, camping ▪ Mid income, working in service industry Typical Owner ▪ Mostly male ▪ Age 30-49 ▪ Into DIY, hiking, cycling, fishing, running ▪ High income, high education level Strategy: Maintaining loyal existing customers while turning users in the consideration phase into new customers. Source: Leatherman, internal surveys, 2019, 2022.
9. #adwexp 9 Moving from Search to P-Max to achieve our goals Challenges ▪ Search alone didn't seem like the right channel for NCA ▪ Struggle with ROAS ▪ Not your typical repeat-purchase product
10. #adwexp 10 Moving from Search to P-Max to achieve our goals Solution P-Max seemed a promising solution ▪ Relying on text, images and video creatives ▪ Operating both at the bottom funnel and mid funnel ▪ Leveraging AI using audience signals ▪ Offering possibility to exclude past purchasers
11. #adwexp 11 Harnessing new campaign types in PPC Adequate audience signals We implemented the P-Max campaigns in different accounts Brand exclusion and negative lists We segmented EMEA in 2 tiers Constant dialogue with the client
12. #adwexp 12 Achieving ROAS goals with a new structure and automation Ad customizers connected to stock status Stock-checker script Increased efficiency levels The portfolio bid strategies were restructured
13. #adwexp 13 How we reached the right audience on Paid Social Personas Website Visitors Lookalikes Past Purchasers We addressed different lifestyles with the products Users who already know the brand vs past purchasers exclusion We implemented lookalikes of existing customers We targeted existing customers with accessories
14. #adwexp 14 Our strategy to achieve the best outcome Increased visibility We reworked the creative landscape Excluding past purchasers for NCA. Ads approved – Conversion campaigns started After ads were rejected multiple times, we went with reach & awareness campaigns
15. #adwexp IMPLEMENTATION & CREATIVITY Improving the integration among channels while meeting the platform requirements
16. #adwexp 16 Diversified messaging for new and existing customers More descriptive headlines for generic campaigns / new customer acquisition More focus on special features/services (i.e., customization) for users who know the product Non-Brand Brand *Multifunction knives – Multitools for everything *Customize your Leatherman. * * Source: Google Ads
17. #adwexp 17 Diversified ads for new and existing customers Prospective campaigns using incentives Focus on maintenance and add-ons to reach existing customers Source: Meta Ads
18. #adwexp 18 Aligning ad copy with our target audience Ideal for hiking and adventure lovers Ideal both for professionals and DIY enthusiasts Ideal for real life and everyday situations *Your adventure buddy (…). **Bushcraft, camping, DIY, climbing. * ** Multitools for technicians, mechanics, carpenters, electricians, plumbers. Find out our selection for DIY, small repairs & your next projects. * For Real Life (…) *for every situation. * Source: Google Ads
19. #adwexp 19 Fully integrated across channels: Creatives for every season Display Social Video Source: Google Ads
20. #adwexp 20 Creatives for every audience Source: Meta Ads
21. #adwexp 21 Creatives for every audience Source: Google Ads
22. #adwexp 22 Lifestyle and product-centric creatives Source: Meta Ads Lifestyle Product-centric
23. #adwexp 23 Inclusive language and creatives In Romance languages (FR, IT, ES) we avoided using the "default" masculine form and gave equal visual representation to both men and women. Source: Meta Ads
24. #adwexp 24 Ensuring maximum efficiency through a new structure We divided the products into 3 tiers: ▪ Tier 1: Top sellers and/or high margin products. ▪ Tier 2: Average sellers and/or mid margin products ▪ Tier 3: Slow sellers and/or low margin products. low mid high Source: LTG GmbH DE – Google – 01.01.2023 – 31.12.2023.
25. #adwexp 25 Recurring ad updates through ad customizers using KNIME Source: KNIME, workflow, internal data. What is KNIME? ▪ KNIME is a data analysis tool which helps you create automations without any coding expertise. ▪ This was used mainly for clearance stock that we wanted to get rid of and during promotions.
26. #adwexp 26 Optimising efficiency with a stock-checker script Another way to optimise ROAS was to make sure our ads were not leading to out-of-stock product pages. To achieve that, we implemented a stock-checker script that automatically paused ad groups (for Search and asset groups (for P-Max) connected to products that were out of stock. Source: Snapshot of the script code
27. #adwexp CHALLENGES A summary of some of the challenges we faced and how we overcame them​
28. #adwexp 28 Challenge 1: Meta disapprovals – the issues Creative disapprovals ▪ Creatives showing blades, but also lifestyle creatives with rejections ▪ Catalogue images showing blades Website disapprovals ▪ Open blades on PDP and overview pages, less than two clicks from buying a product ▪ UGC with visible blades, firearms etc. Source: Meta Ads
29. #adwexp 29 Challenge 1: Meta disapprovals - our solution Source: Meta Ads Creative disapprovals solution / workaround ▪ Creatives with a more lifestyle-focused approach, showing the tools closed and in action, without highlighting the blades. ▪ Catalogue with adjusted sources to only show closed tools. Website disapprovals solution / workaround ▪ Implementing an UTM parameter to all our campaigns (also PPC) that modifies the page to only show closed tools and remove UGC from the landing page.
30. #adwexp 30 Challenge 2: How to test when you can't A/B test Challenge Risk Hard to get to new customers Missing out on traffic and revenue Opportunity In Q3, the idea to exclude past purchasers was launched. However, conducting an A/B test wasn't possible. Solution We duplicated P-Max: one campaign without exclusion, one with exclusion We didn’t apply past purchaser exclusion to the P-Max Accessories campaigns, since these are mostly of interest to Leatherman owners.
31. #adwexp 31 Challenge 2: How to test when you can't A/B test Source: LTG GmbH MCC - Google- 01.09.2023 – 30.09.2023. In September 2023, excluding past purchasers helped achieve more than double the conversions and double the revenue at very similar ROAS. Spend Purchases Revenue Past purchasers excluded vs included +94% +133% +100%
32. #adwexp 32 Challenge 3: Achieving goals without harming peak season Still, we didn’t want to give up our three objectives: revenue, ROAS, Non-Brand expansion (10% of which from new customers). We kept both P-Max campaigns running (with and without exclusion). The strategy proved successful and we overdelivered on all our objectives. As Q4 is the key quarter for the client in terms of revenue, no risks could be taken.
33. #adwexp RESULTS & EVALUATION A summary of what we achieved​
34. #adwexp 34 We overdelivered on all our goals and acquired new customers while doing it! Revenue Generated +141% vs 2022 (the goal was +94%) ROAS Overall +64% vs. goal % Revenue from new customers Non-Brand: 29% of total revenue (+45% vs. goal) In Q4, 13% of Non-Brand Revenue was from new campaigns with past purchasers excl. (+30% vs. goal) Source: Leatherman internal data; Confidential Information
35. #adwexp 35 Performance timeline in 2023 including key actions 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 €0,00 €100.000,00 €200.000,00 €300.000,00 €400.000,00 €500.000,00 €600.000,00 €700.000,00 €800.000,00 €900.000,00 €1.000.000,00 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Revenue x ROAS PPC Meta ROAS Meta Conversion Campaigns started Microsoft Ads activation Past Purchasers Excl. (Google) Source: Google Ads + Microsoft Ads + Meta - 01.01.2023 – 31.12.2023.
36. #adwexp 36 We achieved +141% revenue and a higher ROAS YoY 0% 100% 200% 300% 400% 500% 600% 0,00 € 200.000,00 € 400.000,00 € 600.000,00 € 800.000,00 € 1.000.000,00 € 1.200.000,00 € 1.400.000,00 € Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Revenue x ROAS Revenue 2022 Revenue 2023 ROAS 2022 ROAS 2023 Past Purchasers Excl. Microsoft Activation Source: Google Ads + Microsoft Ads + Meta - 01.01.2023 – 31.12.2023.
37. #adwexp 37 Non-Brand revenue has doubled YoY 85% 15% 2022 Brand Non-Brand 70% 30% 2023 Brand Non-Brand Source: Google Ads + Microsoft Ads + Meta - 01.01.2023 – 31.12.2023.
38. #adwexp WRAP UP Through automation and a multichannel strategy, we exceeded every target
39. #adwexp 39 Our winning combination Profitability Innovative automation solutions New Customer Acquisition Multi-channel Integration
40. #adwexp 40 Peak Ace's innovative approach, particularly their utilization of P-Max with past purchaser exclusion, has been instrumental in our success. Through their strategic guidance, we not only surpassed revenue targets and achieved remarkable ROAS, but also gained a significant influx of new clients, propelling our business to new heights.” Philipp Mannel, EU Digital Marketing Manager & Team Lead at Leatherman Tool Group Most importantly, the client is happy!
41. #adwexp 41 A season of Awards This Leatherman x Peak Ace case won a total of 10 prestigious awards in 2024: 4 European Search Awards 2 Global Search Awards 4 European Paid Media Awards
42. #adwexp 42 Let’s get in touch Want to know more about Peak Ace and what we do? E-Mail: hi@pa.ag Or get in touch with me directly via LinkedIn: