Case Study: How I Generated High-Converting Marketing Agency Leads Through X (Twitter) Ads - 12-Month Sales Funnel Results
Brad Smith • July 25, 2025
Key Takeaway
Case Study Overview: A complete sales funnel case study showing exactly how I helped a marketing agency generate more visitors, leads, and customers using X ads as the primary traffic source over 12 months.
Key Results:
- Average order value: $2,500
- Profit margins: 50%
- Time frame: 12 months of consistent growth
- Primary strategy: X ads (lowest cost per click) + strategic retargeting system
3. Method Used: Multi-channel sales funnel with X ads → landing page → sales page → order form → automated retargeting across platforms
- Tools Required: Data Shopper, Go High Level CRM, YouTube integration, email automation.
- Quick Context: Marketing agency wanted to scale lead generation using cost-effective advertising methods while maintaining high-quality leads and strong profit margins.
- Method Used: X ads-focused sales funnel with automated lead capture and multi-platform retargeting
- Time Required: 12 months for full optimization and consistent results
- Key Result: Strong return on ad spend with $2,500 average orders and 50% profit margins
Hey there, my name is Brad Smith, owner of Automationlinks. I've been doing this marketing stuff for the last 10 years and worked with over 2500 brands. What I like to do in my videos is share my screen, break it down, and show you how it's done so you can copy it for yourself.
In this case study, I'm going to show you exactly how we've been working with a marketing agency, helping them grow using X ads. X ads have been able to get them more visitors, leads, and customers, and I'm going to share the full blueprint of this sales funnel we've been working with for almost 12 months now.
What Was the Challenge?
This marketing agency came to us facing a common problem: they needed a cost-effective way to generate high-quality leads without breaking their advertising budget. They had tried various advertising platforms but weren't seeing the return on investment they needed to scale their business profitably.
The main challenges were:
- High cost per click on traditional platforms
- Difficulty maintaining profitable margins
- Lack of systematic follow-up process
- No integrated retargeting strategy
The X Ads Sales Funnel Strategy
- Case Study Insight: X ads provide the lowest cost per click, making them ideal for top-of-funnel lead generation
- What Happened: We built a complete sales funnel starting with X ads as the primary traffic source
- Time to Results: 12 months to optimize and achieve consistent performance
- Tools/Methods Used: X ads, Data Shopper, Go High Level CRM, YouTube integration
The sales funnel we've been working with has the majority of clicks and ads and marketing coming from X ads. We do a little bit of YouTube and a little bit of Google, but the most strategic thing we do is the X ads.
Here's how the funnel flows:
- X Ads (primary traffic source)
- Landing Page (lead capture)
- Sales Page (with YouTube video)
- Order Form (clear pricing)
- Retargeting System (the most important part)
Why X Ads Work Best for This Strategy
The reason we focus on X ads is simple: it's the lowest cost per click. This is why we're able to get this return on ad spend. We've been doing this for almost 12 months now for this client, and the strategy continues to perform.
When someone hits the landing page, you need to make sure you follow up with them by email. If they don't fill out the contact form, you can still follow up with them.
The Data Collection and Follow-Up System
- Case Study Insight: Capturing visitor data even when they don't convert initially is crucial for ROI
- What Happened: We implemented Data Shopper to collect visitor information and feed it back into our systems
- Time to Results: Immediate data collection, ongoing nurturing results
- Tools/Methods Used: Data Shopper, email automation, pixel retargeting
What we use is a software called Data Shopper that collects their data, puts them into the email flow, and also puts their data back into the pixel so we can retarget them.
This system ensures we're not losing potential leads just because they didn't convert on their first visit. The data goes directly into our pixel for retargeting purposes, creating a comprehensive lead nurturing system.
The Sales Page and Video Strategy
If they do fill out the form, we're going to show them the sales page, and I like to show them a YouTube video. So now they first found you on X, they saw one of your ads, they get to your landing page, then they see a YouTube video, and then we actually show them the price so they don't waste your time.
- Case Study Insight: Multi-touchpoint engagement increases conversion rates
- What Happened: Prospects experience the brand across X, landing page, and YouTube before seeing pricing
- Time to Results: Immediate qualification process
- Tools/Methods Used: YouTube video integration, transparent pricing strategy
If you're a business owner running your business, you don't want people to waste your time. When they are ready though, they'll call you because you're the one that's going to follow up.
The Complete Retargeting Machine
- Case Study Insight: Systematic retargeting across multiple platforms maximizes conversion potential
- What Happened: We created a 14-day intensive follow-up sequence followed by long-term nurturing
- Time to Results: First two weeks for intensive sequence, ongoing for relationship building
- Tools/Methods Used: X ads retargeting, YouTube organic and ads, email automation, Go High Level CRM
From the sales page, we want to set up retargeting pixels so we retarget them with another X ad to remind them to come back. We're going to retarget them with YouTube organic and YouTube ads. From there, we're going to send some education and valuable follow-up emails and then allow them to check out.
The Two-Week Intensive Strategy
If they're still not ready, we want to get all of this done in those first two weeks, then we're going to send them to a weekly or monthly newsletter getting them back to the website, getting them back to the blog.
After the email, we send them back to another video to try to get them to subscribe and watch your YouTube videos. We send them another email to try to remind them to either book a call or purchase, and then we push them back into the product page if they're ready.
Why This Strategy Outperforms Traditional Advertising
The strategy here is not spending too much on these clicks, and that's where you want to find low-cost attention. That's where we go from the X ads, and then the retargeting is actually lower.
- Case Study Insight: Starting with low-cost traffic sources enables profitable scaling
- What Happened: X ads provided cheaper initial traffic, retargeting costs even less
- Time to Results: Immediate cost savings, compounding over time
- Tools/Methods Used: Strategic platform selection, cost-effective retargeting
When we go and find a brand new audience that's never heard of us, if I'm just running Google ads only at the front of my sales funnel, that's going to be the most expensive. That's why we don't even run meta ads at the beginning of this flow for most businesses because that's going to be the most expensive.
So let's get those low-cost clicks in there, let's get them into the ecosystem, and then retarget them. Now you've got their data, you've got their email, maybe hopefully they followed you on social media based on watching a video or engaged with any of your posts or they subscribed to your YouTube channel.
The CRM Integration and Automation
- Case Study Insight: Proper CRM setup creates a self-sustaining retargeting machine
- What Happened: All UTMs, pixels, and data automatically flow into ad accounts for seamless retargeting
- Time to Results: Ongoing automated optimization
- Tools/Methods Used: Go High Level CRM, UTM tracking, pixel integration
I recommend using a CRM - we use Go High Level. It'll track all the UTMs, all the pixels, and automatically add this data back into the ad accounts. That way you just have a retargeting machine on your hands.
For more background on CRM setup and automation, see CRM & Emails.
The Conversion Optimization Strategy
Let's remind them with more reminder low-cost ads to come back to your sales page. Once they hit that sales page again, we want to just give them maybe a coupon code, give them an upsell, give them something to actually take action because it seems like they're probably interested.
This approach recognizes that prospects need multiple touchpoints before making a decision, especially for higher-ticket services like marketing agency offerings.
Case Study Results: 12-Month Performance
Case Study Insight:
Consistent system optimization leads to sustainable business growth
What Happened:
Revenue continued to increase while expenses remained stable
Time to Results:
12 months of consistent optimization and growth
Tools/Methods Used:
Complete integrated sales and marketing system
This client right here - they've been working with us for almost a year now. You can see their CPA, their average orders right around the $2,500 mark. We're killing the ROAS (return on ad spend), it's pretty awesome. Their profit margins are about 50% based on all of the ads.
When you see the yearly summary, their revenue has just continued to go up from there, and their expenses stay about even. What we don't want to do is spend more on ads - we want to just keep perfecting and dialing in this system.
Implementation Strategy for Your Business
- Case Study Insight: Focus on system perfection rather than increased ad spend
- What Happened: Maintained stable advertising costs while improving conversion rates
- Time to Results: Ongoing optimization for continued improvement
- Tools/Methods Used: Systematic approach to funnel optimization
What are you waiting for? Set up a low-cost ad retargeting strategy just like this, whether it's X ads, YouTube ads, or if you can find low-cost clicks organically with your organic channels. Build a system to automatically follow up and retarget people, and that's how you're truly going to grow your brand.
If you need any help with this, that's what my team does. We build the CRM, build all the advertising
channels so you can go scale and grow on your own.
For a complete breakdown of our advertising approach, check out our Social Sales System
methodology.
Case Study Summary
This 12-month case study demonstrates how strategic use of X ads combined with comprehensive lead capture and multi-platform retargeting can generate consistent, profitable results for service-based businesses. The key is focusing on low-cost traffic acquisition, systematic follow-up, and continuous optimization rather than simply increasing ad spend.
The marketing agency achieved $2,500 average orders with 50% profit margins by implementing this complete sales funnel system. The strategy proves that with proper automation and CRM integration, you can create a self-sustaining lead generation machine that continues to improve over time.
If you want this full system for yourself, comment "system" down below and somebody from my team will send it over. For ongoing case studies and marketing insights, subscribe to my YouTube channel where I break down exactly how these systems work so you can copy them for yourself.
Why do you recommend X ads over other advertising platforms for this strategy?
Keep it between 2-5 minutes. Long enough to provide value and build rapport, but short enough that people will actually watch it.
What type of survey questions work best?
Ask about their biggest challenge, timeline for solving it, budget range, and what they've tried before. This helps you customize your follow-up approach.
Should I gate the survey behind the video?
The first two weeks are intensive - we want to get all the immediate follow-up, retargeting, and nurturing done quickly. After that, we transition to weekly or monthly newsletters to keep them engaged long-term and drive them back to the website and blog.
Why do you show pricing on the sales page instead of hiding it?
We actually show them the price so they don't waste your time. If you're a business owner running your business, you don't want people to waste your time. When they are ready though, they'll call you because you're the one that's going to follow up.
How does the YouTube integration work within this X ads funnel?
After they hit the landing page from X ads, we show them a YouTube video on the sales page. This creates multiple touchpoints - they first found you on X, saw your ad, got to your landing page, then see a YouTube video, then see pricing. We also retarget them with YouTube organic content and YouTube ads.
What CRM do you recommend and why?
We use Go High Level because it tracks all the UTMs, all the pixels, and automatically adds this data back into the ad accounts. That way you just have a retargeting machine on your hands. The automation and integration capabilities are essential for this strategy.
How do you handle prospects who don't convert in the first two weeks?
If they're still not ready after the intensive two-week sequence, we send them to a weekly or monthly newsletter that gets them back to the website and blog content. The goal is maintaining the relationship until they're ready to purchase.
What's the typical timeline to see results with this approach?
We've been doing this for almost 12 months now for this client, with consistent optimization and improvement. The system works immediately, but perfecting and dialing in all components takes time and ongoing attention.
Why don't you recommend increasing ad spend instead of optimizing the system?
What we don't want to do is spend more on ads - we want to just keep perfecting and dialing in this system. The goal is to maintain stable advertising costs while improving conversion rates and lifetime customer value through better follow-up and retargeting.
Can this strategy work for businesses other than marketing agencies?
Absolutely. The principles of starting with low-cost traffic sources, comprehensive data capture, multi-platform retargeting, and systematic follow-up apply to any business looking to generate leads cost-effectively.
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