The High Cost of High-Intent Keywords
As a B2B business owner in Houston, I know you need a steady stream of qualified sales leads. It’s tempting to jump right into
Google Ads, targeting those high-intent, "I need it now" keyword phrases like "cooling tower repair" or "24/7 HVAC service."This isn't a bad instinct. But you've probably discovered it's very expensive. It’s easy to get frustrated and blame Google, but the platform isn't the problem. Your enemy is the competition. Those who have mastered advertising strategy may not be playing by the same rules.
How Local Businesses Can Beat National Budgets
You’re not just bidding against other local Houston companies; you're bidding against massive, national corporations with huge budgets. They drive up the cost for everyone.
B2B marketing is typically a competitive environment, though you could be fortunate enough to be selling something with high demand and low competition, that is not as often the case.
I’ve seen many businesses give up, thinking "Google Ads doesn't work." I'm Doug Mansfield, and I'm here to tell you that may be the wrong conclusion. You're just using the wrong strategy. There's a better way to play, a two-step process I call
"Warming up the audience" It’s a strategy built on one of the most powerful tools in digital advertising: Retargeting .
Step 1: The Warm-Up (Building a "Warm" Audience)
First, you have to stop trying to ask for a sale on the first date. You need to "warm up" your potential clients. For this, I recommend using lower-cost, high-visibility ad formats like
Display Ads and
Skippable YouTube Ads .
- Display Ads: These are the visual "banner" ads you see on websites all across the internet. Think of them as your company's digital billboards, placed on industry news sites or local publications. The goal isn't to get a click; it's to get your name, your logo, and your message in front of thousands of potential Houston-area clients, building brand recognition for pennies.
- Skippable YouTube Ads: This is even more powerful. It’s that 15 or 30-second video ad that plays before the video someone wants to watch. For a relatively low cost, you get to showcase your professionalism, your crew on a job site, or your state-of-the-art facility.
The goal of this "warm-up" campaign is not to generate sales leads. The goal is to get seen and to build an audience of people who are now familiar with your brand.
The Magic Ingredient: What is Retargeting?
Now we get to the part that makes this all work.
Retargeting (sometimes called "remarketing") is an advertising feature that allows you to show your ads specifically to people who have already interacted with your brand.
Think of it like this:
- Someone watches your "warm-up" YouTube video ad.
- Google's system essentially puts a "virtual tag" on that person, adding them to a private audience list that only you can use.
- They are no longer a "cold" prospect. They're a "warm" prospect.
Retargeting is the digital equivalent of a follow-up. You're now able to separate the people who have shown even a passing interest from the rest of the general public.
Step 2: The Pitch (Using Retargeting to Win)
Now that you have your "warm" audience list, it's time to make "the pitch."
You finally run those expensive, direct-response ads for "cooling tower repair." But here's the crucial difference: you tell Google to only show these ads to the people on your
retargeting list, the people who already watched your warm-up video.
Think about the customer's experience. Their HVAC system is down, and they search Google. They see a list of three companies. They don't recognize two of them, but they recognize your name. "Oh, right," they think. "I've seen their videos. They look like a professional outfit."
Who do you think they're going to click?
Because they are "warmed up," they are significantly more likely to click your ad and become a sales lead. This makes your "pitch" campaign far more efficient. You stop wasting money showing expensive ads to cold prospects and focus your budget only on those who are already familiar with you.
This Principle Works on LinkedIn Ads
The same "Audience warm up" strategy I'm outlining for Google can be applied directly to
LinkedIn Ads . For many Houston B2B companies, this is a critical network, and the same rules of engagement apply.
The
execution will be different, of course. Instead of a YouTube video, your "warm-up" campaign on LinkedIn might be promoting a valuable industry article, a case study, or a short video that plays in the feed. The goal is to get your target audience, say, "Project Managers in the Houston Energy Sector", to engage with your content.
LinkedIn's ad system, just like Google's, allows you to build a retargeting audience of those who engaged. Here's an article that explains LinkedIn's Matched Audiences (https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a424450)
Then, you run your "pitch" campaign, like an ad for a "Book a Demo" or "Contact Us" landing page, and you show it only to that "warm" audience you just built.
The core principle remains the same: combine a brand awareness campaign with a direct response campaign. Don't just compete on price-per-click; out-strategize your competition. Stop trying to win a bidding war for a cold audience. Warm them up first, and then make your pitch.
A Note on Support: Google vs. LinkedIn
As a final summary, I want to add a personal note based on my recent experiences. In previous times I may have formed a different opinion, but currently, I've been personally more impressed with LinkedIn's support team than with Google's. If you're a newcomer and plan to take this challenge on yourself, it might make sense to lean into LinkedIn first. In my opinion, you may find it easier to use their support team to help guide you to success.
Let Me Handle the Strategy for You
I've spent my career mastering these strategies, and I know this can be a lot to take on yourself. If you're a B2B business owner in Houston who would rather focus on running your business than managing complex ad campaigns, I'm here to help. My company, Mansfield Marketing, is ready and capable of executing every step of this "Warm-Up & Pitch" strategy for you. If you prefer to delegate your marketing, contact Mansfield Marketing today, and let's build a predictable pipeline of qualified leads for your business.
