'Free' offer fail to attract anyone? (10,000 Ad Impressions, 0 Applications) An SEO & GA4 Consulting Case Study
- Jeong Hyeon
- Jul 4
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 4
During a "Free SEO & GA Consulting" initiative, I once received over 100 applications in a single run. In another attempt, despite running ads that reached over 10,000 people, I didn't get a single inquiry.
A Memory of Success: The Explosive Response from a Community
Previously, I had offered my SEO skills on "Disquiet," a Korean startup community. Without any advertising budget, simply by posting an article, the results was good.
Total Views: Over 1,600
Total Applications: Over 100
I spent my days preparing and conducting consultations from the first morning train to the last one at night, sometimes handling up to five consultations a day.
Later, aiming for the broader global market, I began building a following on LinkedIn, a hub for professionals. This time, I even ran a paid ad campaign to offer SEO consulting to an international audience.
The Ad Results...: A Silent Outcome
Total Impressions: 11,000
Clicks: 2,700 (An impressive 24.5% CTR!)
Final Applications: 0
Although 2,700 people showed interest and clicked, not a single person proceeded to the final application stage. Why did this happen?
Analysis: The Difference in "Need Density"
A high click-through rate of 24.5% seemed to signal that 'there is a demand for SEO and GA.' People clicked thinking, 'Oh, this looks interesting,' but it didn't translate into action, into a 'I need this right now!' moment. After pondering the reason, I concluded it was the 'Nature of the Target Audience.'
['Nature of the Target Audience']
Disquiet: This is a community of startup CEOs, aspiring founders, and solopreneurs—people who are 'short on capital but desperate for growth.' For them, a 'free SEO consultation' that could pave the way for growth at no cost was like rain in a drought. The offer reached exactly the people who needed it.
LinkedIn: In contrast, LinkedIn is a much more diverse and broad platform. It includes people who are already part of large corporations with in-house marketing teams or those in professions where the need for SEO isn't strongly felt. My ad was essentially scattered across this undifferentiated mass.
The Clearest Lesson from Zero Applications
The foundation of marketing & service operation is the 'Target.'
I believe the era of "if it's free, it's good" has passed. We are now in a time where even 'free' has to be sold. Even for free services & products, you must find a target audience that desperately needs them and prove your value with accurate information.
The experience of getting 100 applications from Disquiet without spending a dime on ads, while getting zero from a paid campaign on LinkedIn, became incredibly significant data for me. It showed that simply finding the right target and market can lead to a performance difference of over 100%—a lesson taught by the silence of 2,700 clicks.
Based on these results, I didn't stop. I conducted a deeper, more systematic analysis with AI to understand why I failed. I plan to write a new free consulting post based on the report below.
SEO Free Consulting Failure Analysis Report (Summary)
It's understood that the failure of this LinkedIn campaign wasn't just bad luck, but stemmed from strategic errors in three key areas: the Offer, the Ad Campaign Objective, and the Targeting.
1. Analysis of Failure Causes
The Trap of a Vague 'Free' Offer The phrase "Free SEO Consulting" is too broad and ambiguous. From a potential client's perspective, it raises doubts like, "What exactly do they do for me?", "Isn't this a waste of time?", and "They're probably just going to try to sell me something in the end." Busy professionals, in particular, won't spend time on an offer that doesn't guarantee clear deliverables. This ended up deterring serious clients with the ability to pay, while only appealing to 'freebie hunters' and 'data collectors' who don't recognize the value.
Wrong Ad Campaign Objective (The Most Critical Mistake) Setting the campaign objective to 'Brand Awareness' was a decisive error. To achieve 'Lead Generation,' a 'Conversion' campaign that allows users to submit their information directly within the LinkedIn platform was necessary.
Inaccurate Targeting For an effective ad campaign, exposure should be focused on those who need SEO services or have purchasing authority. It's necessary to combine 2-3 or more criteria such as location, industry, job function, and seniority to concentrate the ad spend only on the relevant audience.
2. Core Strategy for a Successful Relaunch
Crafting an 'Irresistible Offer' Instead of a vague 'free consultation,' I need to change the name to promise a specific deliverable.
Before: "Free SEO Consulting"
After (Examples): "Free SEO Opportunity Analysis," "No-Cost Website Visibility Audit" I must clarify the value proposition using the 'Magnetic Messaging' formula: "I help [specific clients] solve [their problem] so they can see [the result they will get]."
Complete Overhaul of Content and Ad Strategy
(Organic Posts): Posts should be structured to start with a 'Hook' that grabs attention, followed by a body with short, readable sentences, and end with a clear 'Call to Action (CTA)'.
I don't know what results the new attempt will bring, but if I gain new insights and information, I will share them in another post.
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