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Startup marketing that finds what works, then scales it

Paid search and paid social for startups: small, disciplined tests to find your first profitable channel, then budget to scale it, measured on CAC and payback.

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CAC payback7 mo▼ 3 mo
New customers+52%

In short

Brightpace is a PPC agency for UK startups, from pre-seed to Series A. We find your first profitable paid channel on Google, Meta or LinkedIn, prove it on customer acquisition cost and payback, then scale it, without a big retainer.

Best for
Startups selling or signing customers up online
Channels
Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn Ads, TikTok
Pricing
A monthly management fee agreed up front, scaled to your ad spend and scope. No setup fee, 30-day rolling.
Typical ad budget
From £1,500 a month
How we work
AI-native: AI speeds up research, creative testing and reporting, and a senior specialist makes every call.

Startups don’t have money to waste on channels that might work. The job is to find the first channel that brings in customers at a cost you can sustain, prove it, then scale it, without locking into a long contract or a big retainer. As a PPC and paid social agency for startups, we run small, structured tests across search and paid social, judge them on cost per customer and payback, and put budget behind what works.

Whether you'd like us to run your paid media or strengthen your in-house team, explore our media management and consultancy services, or see the other industries we work in.

Test small, scale what worksSampleTEST 1Google searchCost per customer£38Target £45ScaleTEST 2MetaCost per customer£71Target £45ReworkScaling the winnerMonthly budget grows; cost per customer stays under targetM1M2M3M4M5M6CAC on target Test small, scalewhat worksSampleTEST 1Google searchCost per customer£38ScaleTarget £45TEST 2MetaCost per customer£71ReworkTarget £45Scaling the winnerBudget grows; cost per customer holdsM1M2M3M4M5M6
Illustration: test small, scale what hits target. Sample data shown.

Where we run your ads

Google AdsCapture existing demand
MetaCreate demand, test fast
LinkedInB2B startups
TikTokConsumer brands
Microsoft AdvertisingCheaper search clicks
RedditNiche communities
(01) Campaign structure

Campaigns built to find your first growth channel.

Early on, the job is learning fast without burning runway. We start with the channels most likely to work for your product, test them properly, and only scale what proves itself. This is the structure we’d typically build for a startup.

Paid search

Google Ads & Microsoft Advertising
01

Problem-aware search

Tight campaigns on the searches your customers make when they have the problem you solve, so early budget goes on real intent.

02

Focused keyword sets

A small number of well-structured ad groups instead of hundreds of keywords, so you get clear answers quickly.

03

Landing page tests

Simple page and offer tests alongside the ads, because early conversion rates move more from the page than the bid.

04

Brand protection

A low-cost campaign on your name as awareness grows, so competitors don’t take people already looking for you.

Paid social

Meta & TikTok
01

Creative & message tests

Several angles and hooks tested side by side to find what resonates, using a structured testing framework.

02

Broad prospecting

Broad targeting on Meta and TikTok, letting the algorithms find buyers once the creative is doing the work.

03

Creator-style video

Native, founder or creator-led video that feels like content rather than an ad, which often works best for new brands.

04

Warm-audience follow-up

People who engaged or visited shown proof, reviews and a clear offer to turn interest into customers.

Measurement & scaling

Tracking, testing & budgets
01

Tracking from day one

Conversion tracking, GA4 key events and server-side signals set up properly before spend scales, so every test is readable.

02

Small, fast tests

Budgets sized to reach a clear answer in weeks, not months. Plan yours with our ad budget calculator.

03

Unit economics first

Targets set from customer value and payback, so growth doesn’t outrun your margins. See our LTV:CAC calculator.

04

Scale what proves itself

Budget moved into the channel and message that wins, with new tests running alongside so growth keeps compounding.

The exact mix depends on your product, stage and runway. We agree it with you up front, then shift budget towards what wins the most customers for the money.

(02) What we solve

Built for startup challenges

01

Small budgets, no room for waste

Every pound has to teach you something. We start with the highest-intent searches and one or two tightly defined tests, rather than spreading a small budget across every platform.

02

No historical data

New ad accounts have nothing for the algorithms to learn from. We set up tracking properly from day one and structure campaigns to learn quickly, then hand more control to automation once there’s enough data.

03

Finding the right channel

Some products sell through search; others need paid social to create demand. Short, structured tests show which channel brings in customers at a cost you can sustain.

04

Scaling after a raise

When budget jumps, costs usually rise. We scale in steps, watching cost per customer, and add new channels only once the first one is working.

(03) What we run

Paid media for startups, stage by stage

  • Launch campaigns

    Search and paid social around your launch (waitlists, early-access offers and founder-led creative), with tracking in place from the first click.

  • First-channel tests

    Structured tests on Google search and one paid social platform, each with a budget, success criteria and a decision date, so you know what to scale. See our testing framework.

  • High-intent search

    Google and Microsoft search on the problems your product solves, competitor alternatives and your own brand. It’s usually the quickest route to early customers. See our PPC service.

  • Paid social to create demand

    Meta, TikTok or LinkedIn, chosen by who you sell to, with regular creative testing to find the messages that land. More on paid social.

  • Tracking from day one

    Conversion tracking, consent and server-side set-up done properly at the start, so every test is measured and the platforms learn from real customers.

  • Scaling after a raise

    A step-by-step plan for putting new budget to work: scale what’s proven, add channels one at a time and keep cost per customer in check.

(04) How it works

From first test to repeatable growth

  1. 01

    Work out what a customer can cost

    From your pricing, margins and early retention, we set a target cost per customer and payback period before spending a pound.

  2. 02

    Test two channels properly

    Usually high-intent search plus one paid social platform, with enough budget and time to read the results. Ten channels at once teaches you nothing.

  3. 03

    Scale what works

    Budget moves to the channel that hits target, and new channels are added one at a time as you grow.

How we measure it · Test → First customers → Proven channel → Payback

  1. Stage 1

    Test

    Two channels, clear budgets

    Search plus one paid social platform

  2. Stage 2

    First customers

    They sign up or buy

    Tracking in place from day one

  3. Stage 3

    Proven channel

    It hits your target CAC

    Budget moves to what works

  4. Stage 4

    Payback

    Customers earn back their cost

    Judged on CAC and payback

Startups can’t afford to guess. We test small, measure properly and scale what pays back. From the start, we set up server-side tracking and send sign-ups that become customers back to the platforms as offline conversions.

Small startup team laughing while reviewing results together
(05) Measurement

Numbers your investors understand

Early-stage growth gets judged on a few numbers: customer acquisition cost, payback period, and whether spend scales without costs running away. We report on those from your own data, instead of clicks or platform-reported ROAS. Work out your targets with our LTV:CAC calculator and ad budget calculator.

Because ad platforms double-count, we look at blended numbers such as MER alongside each channel’s results, and use simple holdout tests when it matters whether ads are genuinely adding customers. See MER vs ROAS vs POAS.

London skyline with The Shard and 30 St Mary Axe
(06) London & the UK

Marketing for startups in London & across the UK

Brightpace works with startups across the UK, remotely, from pre-seed products finding their first customers to funded teams scaling paid acquisition.

Selling software? See our SaaS approach and our guide to the best B2B SaaS marketing agencies in the UK. Selling online? See eCommerce. Running an established small business rather than a startup? See our Google Ads agency for small businesses. Planning your budget? See what Google Ads cost and what Meta ads cost in the UK. And when you’re ready to bring paid media in-house, our in-housing roadmap shows how.

In London? See how we approach the capital as a PPC agency for London businesses.

(07) Insights

Reading for startup founders.

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(08) FAQ

Startups questions.

01What does a PPC agency for startups do?

A PPC agency for startups, or startup marketing agency, runs small, structured tests on Google Ads and paid social to find the channel that brings in customers at a cost you can sustain, then scales it. The work is less about managing big budgets and more about learning fast: clear tests, honest cost-per-customer numbers and no long contracts.

02Is PPC worth it for startups?

Yes, once people are already searching for what you sell and you know what a customer is worth. Google Ads then puts you in front of buyers on day one, which is often the quickest way for a startup to win its first customers. If nobody searches for your product yet, start with paid social to create demand, and add search as it grows.

03How much should a startup spend on paid ads?

Enough to get a clear answer from a test. For many startups that’s around £1,500–£3,000 a month across one or two channels, worked back from what a customer is worth.

04Should a startup start with Google Ads or Meta ads?

If people already search for what you sell, start with Google search, which captures existing demand. If your product is new or visual and people don’t search for it yet, paid social on Meta or TikTok usually works better. Many startups test one of each.

05When should a startup hire a paid media agency?

When you have a product people can buy or sign up for, tracking you can trust, and enough budget to test properly. Before that, money is usually better spent on the product and on talking to customers.

06Do you work with pre-seed startups?

Yes, if you have a working product or service people can buy or sign up for online and can commit a test budget. If you’re still pre-launch, our consultancy can help you plan the launch instead.

07Do you run app-install campaigns?

No. We focus on web sign-ups, sales and leads. If your product is a mobile app, we can still run campaigns that send people to sign up on your website.

08Do you offer flexible contracts for startups?

Yes. Everything runs on 30-day rolling contracts with no setup fee and no minimum term, so you can stop at any time while you find what works. The monthly fee is agreed up front and scaled to your ad spend and scope, so it grows with you rather than starting at a big-agency retainer.

09Can you help us report to investors?

Yes. A weekly report and a live daily dashboard show the numbers investors ask about (customer acquisition cost, payback and how results change as spend grows) from your own data.

(09) Next step
Ready to find your first profitable channel? →