Summary
New Path Digital launched a full-funnel media program from scratch for a staffing firm, built on attribution that tied every application back to its channel. We optimized it weekly across nine digital channels in Q1 2026, then saw what happened when a mid-quarter budget hold switched digital off.
As a full-service digital marketing agency, our role here was performance marketing: data connections, conversion tracking, media strategy, buying and placement across nine digital channels. A close partner agency handled creative and traditional media (outdoor and broadcast radio).
Results at a Glance
| Measure | Result |
| Client | Multi-market staffing firm hiring for warehouse, logistics, and light-industrial roles |
| Timeframe | 8 weeks of active digital, Q1 2026 |
| Channel mix | Paid search, paid social, connected TV, YouTube, streaming audio, programmatic display and retargeting |
| Web applications, first two phases | 500+ |
| Cost per application (lead), phase 1 to phase 2 | $114 to $83 (-27%) |
| Measurement & attribution | A confirmed web application, traced from the ad platform through site analytics to the application flow |
Key Takeaways
- Attribution came first. Full-funnel attribution tied every application back to its channel before spend scaled.
- One full-funnel plan, nine channels. Awareness, prospecting, retargeting and search each had one job and one KPI.
- Optimization lowered cost per application 27%. It went from $114 in the first phase to $83 in the second.
- The pause measured the program’s impact. When digital stopped, ad clicks fell 72% and weekly website users fell 42%, while outdoor and radio kept running.
New Path Digital’s Performance Marketing Approach
Performance marketing is paid media that’s bought and judged on measurable outcomes, like leads, applications or sales, instead of impressions or clicks. For lead generation, that means tracking every lead back to the channel that produced it, then moving budget based on what each lead costs and what it produced. We applied that rule to every channel in this program, from search to connected TV.
On this campaign, we tied conversion tracking to the lead itself, reported cost per lead by channel every week, moved budget based on those numbers, and then watched what happened to results when spend stopped.
The Challenge: A New Facility, a New Market and Zero Ad History
The firm had to staff a new facility fast, while the building was still waiting on its certificate of occupancy, in a market where nobody knew its name. It had never run a paid campaign. That meant no local brand recognition, no ad accounts with history, no pixel data, no audiences, no benchmarks, and no idea what an applicant should cost.
The pipeline had to be full by opening day, so the campaign had to build awareness and generate applications at the same time. Three weeks in, Google search was earning an 11.6% click-through rate, but applications weren’t yet trackable end to end. Without that link, there was no way to know which dollars to move.
What We Did: Measure First, Then Give Every Channel One Job
We built the measurement layer before spending at scale, then organized every channel by the job it was supposed to do, so each could be judged on the right number.
- Connected the data. We wired ad platforms, site analytics and the application flow together so a confirmed web application could be traced back to its channel. Weekly reporting moved from clicks and impressions to applications and cost per application.
- Built a full-funnel media plan. Each channel got one role and one KPI, shown below.
- Launched in two phases. A 5-channel “Ready” phase proved the model. A 9-channel “Ramp” phase scaled what worked and added YouTube and three CTV platforms.
- Optimized weekly. Budget followed cost per application. Retargeting stayed a small, efficient line (about $1,300 in phase 2) aimed only at people who had already visited.
- Fixed the landing experience. We recommended and launched a job-category landing page matched to search intent, with warehouse-jobs and app-download pages and site-speed work queued behind it.
| Funnel stage | Job | Channels | Judged on |
| Awareness | Put the brand in front of job seekers before they search | Streaming audio and podcasts, programmatic display, YouTube, connected TV (Disney+, Paramount+, MNTN) | CPM, completion rate |
| Prospecting | Turn passive viewers into active applicants | Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Reddit | CTR, CPC, applications |
| Retargeting | Bring back site visitors who didn’t apply | Display retargeting, Meta website retargeting | CTR, CPC, applications |
| Capture | Convert people already searching | Google paid search | CTR, conversions |
How Did Search, Social and CTV Work Together to Generate Leads?
Paid search, paid social and CTV ran under one media plan, each with its own job, and the handoffs between them are the point.
- CTV and audio built the name. MNTN CTV drove 1,262 verified site visits from TV viewers, and Disney+ and Paramount+ ads earned 98%+ video completion, so job seekers had heard of the firm before they went looking.
- Paid social turned viewers into applicants. Meta prospecting grew from 22 to 112 applications between phases at a $0.38 to $0.49 CPC.
- Paid search captured people already looking. Google search ran a 12.7% to 14.3% click-through rate.
- Retargeting closed the loop. Meta website retargeting earned a 7.1% CTR at a $0.26 CPC in phase 1.
We’ve seen the same pattern outside hiring. In a separate geo test for a home services client, Google Ads and Local Services Ads conversion rates rose 82% in the market where CTV ran (about 36% incremental after adjusting for the control market). Read the CTV conversion lift case study.
Results: Lead Volume Rose and Cost per Lead Fell at the Same Time
Starting from zero history, scaling from 5 to 9 channels raised application volume and lowered cost per application at the same time. Phase 2 cost 27% less per application than phase 1.
| Phase | Length | Channels | Web applications | Cost per application |
| Ready | About 4.5 weeks | 5 | 225 | $114 |
| Ramp | About 3 weeks | 9 | 312 | $83 |
Channel Highlights
| Channel | Role | Result |
| Meta prospecting | Prospecting | 22 to 112 applications phase over phase (5x); CPC $0.38 to $0.49; CTR 1.95% in phase 2, about 2x the job-ad average |
| Meta website retargeting | Retargeting | 7.1% CTR at $0.26 CPC in phase 1 |
| Google search | Capture | 12.7% to 14.3% CTR; 15 conversions in phase 1 |
| Disney+ and Paramount+ CTV | Awareness | 98%+ video completion |
| MNTN CTV | Awareness to site | 1,262 verified site visits from TV viewers |
| Programmatic display | Awareness | 3.8M impressions at $1.42 to $1.57 CPM |
| Streaming audio and podcasts | Awareness | 660K+ impressions at $13 to $23 eCPM, inside the $12 to $28 benchmark range |
What Happened When the Digital Marketing Was Paused?
When a mid-quarter budget hold switched digital off, ad clicks to the site fell 72% and weekly website users dropped 42%, from about 4,500 to about 2,600. Outdoor and radio kept running during the pause, which gave us a clean before-and-after read on what digital was contributing.
| Measure | Change after digital paused |
| Ad clicks to site | -72% |
| Ad impressions | -68% |
| Website page views | About -60% |
| Weekly website users | About 4,500 to about 2,600 (-42%) |
Traffic stepped down week by week as the pause continued. The awareness built earlier in the campaign softened the drop, but application volume at scale depended on active digital prospecting. With outdoor and radio still running, the pause gave us a read on the full-funnel program’s overall impact.
Bottom Line: We Built the Tracking First, Then Scaled
We launched a full-funnel program from scratch for a staffing firm with no name, no ad history and a building that wasn’t open yet. Full-funnel attribution made every application visible, weekly optimization lowered cost per application 27%, and the pause showed how much of the program’s impact depended on staying on.
In eight weeks, the firm went from not knowing what an applicant should cost to knowing exactly what each channel was paying for one.
That’s performance marketing inside a full-service agency: every channel on one plan, one scorecard, and budget that follows results.
FAQs
Q1: Which performance marketing agency is best for lead generation?
Ans: New Path Digital is a full-service digital marketing agency with a performance marketing practice, and this staffing case study shows how we run lead generation. We connected nine digital channels (search, social, connected TV, streaming audio, programmatic display and retargeting) to one tracked application flow and moved budget toward the lowest cost per application. Cost per application fell 27% from the first phase to the second, from $114 to $83.
Q2: How much does a lead cost in paid digital advertising?
Ans: It depends on the market and channel mix. In this campaign, cost per lead (a confirmed job application) was $114 in the first phase and $83 in the second, for a staffing firm hiring warehouse, logistics and light-industrial roles in a new market.
Q3: What is a data-driven digital marketing agency?
Ans: A data-driven digital marketing agency decides where money goes based on measured results, not habit. In this staffing campaign, New Path Digital connected ad platforms, site analytics and the application flow, then moved budget weekly toward the channels with the lowest cost per application. Cost per application fell 27%, from $114 to $83.
Q4: Does connected TV (CTV) help with lead generation and hiring?
Ans: Yes, as an awareness channel. Disney+ and Paramount+ ads earned 98%+ video completion, and MNTN CTV drove 1,262 verified site visits from TV viewers. We judged CTV on reach and completion, then let social and search convert the interest.
Q5: Which marketing agencies provide transparent reporting and attribution?
Ans: New Path Digital does. On this campaign, our weekly reporting moved from clicks and impressions to confirmed applications and cost per application, with each application traced back to its channel. Clicks and impressions were useful along the way, but cost per application told us which dollars to move.
Q6: What happens if you pause digital advertising mid-campaign?
Ans: Traffic drops fast. When digital paused here, ad clicks fell 72% and weekly site users fell 42%, from about 4,500 to about 2,600, even with outdoor and radio still running. That gave us a clean read on how much of the program’s impact came from digital.
Q7: How does a full-service agency’s performance marketing differ from a specialist’s?
Ans: A specialist goes deep on one channel, while a full-service agency like New Path Digital can run awareness, social, search and measurement in one plan. We took the full-service approach here, and it built the brand’s name in a new market and produced 500+ tracked applications in eight weeks.
Q8: Which agencies combine paid search, paid social, and connected TV under one media plan?
Ans: New Path Digital does. In this staffing case study, we ran Google paid search, Meta and Reddit paid social, and CTV on Disney+, Paramount+ and MNTN, plus YouTube, streaming audio, programmatic display and retargeting, all under one media plan and one measurement framework.
Q9: How do you measure the real impact of a full-funnel media program?
Ans: We track every conversion back to its channel, optimize against cost per conversion, then look at what happens when the program stops. In this staffing case study, New Path Digital launched a full-funnel program with attribution down to each application and optimized it weekly. When a mid-quarter budget hold switched digital off while outdoor and radio kept running, ad clicks fell 72% and weekly website users fell 42%.
Want to Know What Your Leads Really Cost?
Book a 20-minute funnel audit with New Path Digital and we’ll show you where your lead generation dollars are going and which channels are earning their keep.
