CASE STUDY: How We Reduced CPA by 42% for a Canadian Online Dispensary
Background: The Client & Their Challenge
A Canadian online cannabis dispensary approached us with a common issue: their Customer Acquisition Cost (CPA) was too high, making their Google Ads campaigns unprofitable. Due to strict regulations and intense competition, they struggled to attract new customers while keeping costs low.
Reduce CPA without sacrificing sales
Optimize ad placements to increase conversions
Improve ad relevance and landing page experience
The Challenges – Why It Wasn’t Working
🔹 Google’s restrictions on cannabis-related ads: Many ads were getting disapproved.
🔹 High CPC (Cost per Click): The average CPC was too high, leading to an expensive CPA.
🔹 Low conversion rates: Clicks weren’t turning into sales due to poor ad targeting.
🔹 Limited audience targeting options: Google restricts demographic targeting for cannabis.
🚀 We had 30 days to fix it and improve their ROI.
Our Strategy to Overcome These Challenges
We implemented a 3-step approach to optimize their Google Ads performance:🔹 Reorganized Google Ads campaigns into structured ad groups based on customer intent
🔹 Switched from manual CPC to Smart Bidding (Target CPA & Max Conversions)
🔹 Removed low-performing keywords and added negative keywords
🔹 Improved landing page load speed (from 4.5s to 1.8s)
🔹 Created high-converting CTAs and improved product descriptions
🔹 Added trust signals (customer reviews, security badges, fast shipping info)
🔹 Used Custom Intent Audiences based on past purchase behavior
🔹 Focused on remarketing ads for abandoned carts & past visitors
🔹 Geo-targeted high-performing locations and excluded low-converting areas
The Results After 30 Days
📊 Key Metrics Before vs. After Our Optimization
| Metric | Before | After | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost per Acquisition (CPA) | $57.4 | $33.5 | 🔻 42% |
| Conversion Rate | 2.1% | 3.8% | 🔼 81% |
| Click-Through Rate (CTR) | 3.2% | 5.7% | 🔼 78% |
| ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) | 1.9x | 3.4x | 🔼 79% |
Sales Revenue Grew by 63%
CPA Dropped by 42%
Conversions Increased by 28%
Want to Scale Your Cannabis Business with Google Ads?
If you’re struggling with high ad costs and low conversions, our Google Ads optimization strategies can help. Whether you run a dispensary, a CBD brand, or an online cannabis store, we’ll create a data-driven campaign that delivers results.