“We'd never done paid advertising in over 30 years of business. Humming Web set everything up from scratch and within 3 months we had a consistent pipeline of enquiries coming in. The leads were genuine — people actually looking to buy tanks. Worth every dollar.”
The challenge
North Coast Water Tanks had never run paid advertising in over 30 years of operation. Referrals and organic search had kept them busy, but those channels are unpredictable, and the business had no way to turn on or scale enquiries on demand.
The opportunity was clear, but the challenge was real: starting from absolute zero: no pixel data, no audience history, no creative to learn from, in a category where buyers are price-comparing across multiple suppliers.
Water tank buyers are also considered purchasers. They are comparing specifications, certifications and prices before making a decision that could cost them $1,000 to $7,000+. The ads needed to reach the right people and make a strong first impression from day one.
Our approach
Rather than running a single campaign and hoping it worked, we launched with a two-campaign split test from the very start, giving us real performance data quickly and a way to identify the more efficient approach before committing all budget to one strategy.
Both campaigns used Meta Instant Lead Forms to minimise friction: homeowners and rural property owners could enquire with a single tap, without leaving Facebook or Instagram. The two campaigns tested different creative and audience approaches against each other.
The results were clear: the Filters campaign delivered a lower cost per lead ($23.99 vs $29.21), validating the more targeted audience strategy. That insight directly informs how the ongoing campaign continues to be optimised.
The results
Across 3 months on a brand new account with zero prior data, two campaigns generated 66 total leads at an average cost per lead of $26.44 (best CPL of $23.99 on the Filters campaign) from a total ad spend of $1,745 (AUD).
The campaigns delivered 59,489 impressions and reached 18,963 unique homeowners. Against a typical home & garden CPL of $40 – $80+ on Meta Ads in Australia, a $26.44 CPL from a brand new account is a standout result.
With product sale values ranging from $1,120 to $7,270+, every enquiry generated at $26 was worth 40–270× the lead cost, turning a business with zero paid advertising into a consistent lead pipeline in just 3 months.
