Scaling Pet eCommerce Profitably Across Google & Meta: How We Boosted ROAS While Reducing Waste

Industry: Pet eCommerce

Platforms: Meta Ads (Facebook & Instagram), Google Ads
Duration: June 2024 – February 2025

The Challenge

A niche pet eCommerce brand specializing in ergonomic feeders for flat-faced dogs had seen steady growth through Meta Ads but was beginning to experience diminishing returns. While profitability was still positive, scaling efforts were starting to dilute ROAS, and internal data discrepancies were causing reporting friction.

The brand’s goals were clear:

• Scale profitably across Meta and Google

• Maintain or improve ROAS

• Strengthen cross-platform attribution and funnel structure

Results Overview

Meta Ads: Strengthening Funnel Efficiency Through Strategic Campaign Structuring

The initial structure relied heavily on purchase-optimized top-of-funnel campaigns. However, we noticed a clear drop-off in add-to-cart and checkout activity among cold traffic. This indicated a mismatch between campaign optimization goals and audience intent.

Key Interventions:

• Multi-Objective ToF Campaigns:
  Introduced parallel campaigns optimized for Add to Cart and Initiate Checkout alongside traditional purchase objectives. This allowed us to match campaign optimization to varying levels of buyer intent, improving funnel progression metrics.

• Budget Rebalancing:
  Campaign variance was actively monitored to reallocate spend based on leading indicators (ATC and IC performance), not just purchases.

• Attribution Hygiene:
  Identified a significant issue: orders made on Amazon but manually entered into Shopify using 100% discount codes were being misattributed to Meta. These were flagged and filtered out of performance reporting to prevent budget misalignment.

Creative Performance Highlights

• Formats:
  Catalog and single-image creatives consistently outperformed videos and animated formats. These were rotated more aggressively across audiences.

• Themes:
  Humorous, utility-focused creatives that showcased product benefits for flat-faced dogs drove the highest engagement.

• Collaborative Creative Reviews:
  Regular insights were shared to inform future content shoots—bridging performance data and brand storytelling.

Notable Campaign Insight

A post-purchase campaign targeting recent buyers achieved a ROAS of 3.2 and a 10% conversion rate. It was paused solely due to budget limitations—highlighting the upside of deeper lifecycle targeting.

Google Ads: Structured Scaling Through Search and Shopping Precision

A clean Google Ads structure was deployed to capture both branded and non-branded intent. We separated Search and Shopping into distinct campaign types to better control targeting, bidding, and budget distribution.

Search Strategy

• Branded Search:
  High-intent keywords delivered a 16.71% CTR, a 6.26 ROAS, and a $10.78 CAC—validating strong brand demand and efficient capture.

• Non-Branded Search:
  Focused on long-tail, intent-rich queries such as “slow feeder dog bowl” and “elevated dog bowl for flat-faced breeds.” These keywords maintained efficient CPCs while contributing meaningfully to acquisition volume.

Shopping Campaigns

• Segmented Product Groups:
  Product sets were split based on price and popularity to optimize bidding against individual ROAS targets.

• Bidding Strategy:
  Target ROAS bidding was layered in with audience exclusions for branded queries to reduce cannibalization and improve margin control.

• Next Steps:
  A transition to Performance Max was recommended for better automation and audience targeting, supported by exclusions and structured signals to preserve control.

YouTube Ads Vision

While not activated during the engagement, we proposed a creative strategy for future YouTube campaigns, including:

• Humor-led product demos: Showing the pain of traditional bowls vs. the brand’s ergonomic solution.

• Testimonial storytelling: Focusing on health improvements and happier pets post-purchase.

Cross-Channel Coordination & Operational Insights

Budget Timing Optimization

We observed a predictable purchase slowdown during Week 3 of each month—likely linked to post-payday spending behavior. Media budgets were redistributed to front-load activity in Weeks 1 and 4, increasing revenue efficiency without increasing overall spend.

Attribution Alignment

Pixel inflation from rebill orders and manually entered Shopify transactions was creating misleading ROAS data, especially on Meta. Cross-checking platform data with backend systems allowed us to establish clean benchmarks and refine CAC/ROAS calculations.

Key Scaling Levers by Platform

Strategic Recommendations Delivered

• Transition Shopping campaigns to Performance Max with warm audience display extensions.

• Develop YouTube creative assets for future upper-funnel storytelling.

• Scale Search campaigns immediately post budget unlocks.

• Conduct periodic Microsoft Clarity audits and monitor inventory status to reduce funnel leakage.

Final Takeaways

Scaling in pet eCommerce isn’t just about ROAS growth—it’s about system resilience, channel alignment, and smart creative deployment. By pairing platform-native strategies with deeper performance analysis, we helped this brand grow both volume and efficiency across two major ad platforms.

The result: a leaner, stronger, and more scalable acquisition engine—ready for the next phase of growth.