Winning with PMax: Unlocking High-LTV New Customers for Clinique
Featured Services: Data Strategy, Paid SearchMore New Customers
Customer Acquisition Cost Decrease
Summary of case study
With lower brand pull and a concerning drop in returning customers, Clinique faced a pivotal challenge: how to drive new customer acquisition (NCA) at scale while improving overall lifetime value (LTV). The team needed a strategy that would not only acquire high-value first-time buyers but also address the issue of unattributed data in the Unknown customer category, which accounted for a staggering 68% of traffic. The solution lay in leveraging Google’s Performance Max (PMax) NCA feature, optimizing bid strategies to prioritize new customers with higher long-term revenue potential. The impact was undeniable—new customers surged by 1,242%, their LTV skyrocketed by 3,746%, and customer acquisition costs dropped by 75%.
Solution
As peak season approached, Clinique recognized an opportunity to capitalize on increased new-user traffic. Google’s algorithmic insights recommended bidding higher for NCA, emphasizing that these new users carried significant long-term value. This led to a breakthrough hypothesis: new users aren’t just immediate buyers—they are Clinique’s future high-LTV customers.
To execute this vision, Clinique activated PMax’s NCA feature, differentiating new customers from returning ones through advanced audience signals and customer match lists. By bidding aggressively for high-value new users, the strategy ensured that investments were directed toward the most profitable segments, optimizing revenue growth while reducing acquisition costs.
The Results
The activation of NCA transformed the campaign’s impact. New customer acquisition grew by an astounding 1,242%, rising from 535 to 7,178. Their LTV exploded, increasing by 3,746% (£217.7 vs £5.7), proving that prioritizing new users was a game-changer. At the same time, cost efficiencies improved dramatically—CPA dropped by 32%, and CAC plummeted by 75%
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This wasn’t just a performance uplift—it was a paradigm shift in how Clinique approached customer acquisition. By aligning bid strategies with long-term revenue potential, the brand successfully turned a challenge into a high-growth opportunity. With new customers now a key focus, Clinique is set to redefine its digital acquisition strategy for the future.
“The team liked the improved results on the New Customers metric and higher LTV. They are keen on bidding higher on the New Users."
-Clinique Team
