For luxury brands and jewelers, pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a powerful way to attract high-intent customers and drive sales. But one of the biggest questions business owners ask is:
How much should I spend on PPC? Too little, and you risk missing out on valuable traffic. Too much, and you could waste money without seeing a return.
Let’s break down the key factors to help you determine the ideal PPC budget for your business.
Define Your Advertising Goals
Before setting a PPC budget, it’s crucial to determine what you want to achieve. Your advertising goals will shape your budget and campaign structure. Here are the most common objectives for luxury jewelers:
- Brand Awareness – Display and video ads help introduce your brand to new audiences, particularly in competitive luxury markets.
- Lead Generation – Search ads target high-intent buyers looking for engagement rings, luxury watches, or fine jewelry. These campaigns are essential for brick-and-mortar stores wanting to attract foot traffic.
- Direct Sales – Shopping ads showcase your high-value products and drive immediate online purchases. However, selling fine jewelry online requires a significantly larger budget due to increased competition with major eCommerce retailers.
For local bridal jewelry stores, we recommend a minimum of $1,500 per brick-and-mortar location to remain competitive, as long as you’re not trying to sell online. If your goal is to drive online sales, you’ll need a substantially larger budget to compete effectively in the national luxury eCommerce space.
Understand Your Audience and Market
Luxury consumers have unique shopping behaviors, and competition in this space is intense. To compete effectively, you must consider these factors when setting your PPC budget:
1. Who Is Your Ideal Customer?
High-net-worth individuals don’t make quick purchasing decisions…they conduct extensive research before committing to a luxury item. Your ads must be visible consistently across search engines and social platforms, requiring a budget that supports sustained exposure. Remarketing campaigns are also essential to re-engage potential buyers throughout their decision-making process.
2. What Is Your Competition Spending?
If you’re competing with major luxury brands like Bluenile, Rolex, or Brilliant Earth, expect premium bids for high-intent keywords. In large metropolitan areas like New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, competition is fierce, meaning you’ll need a higher ad spend just to maintain visibility.
Additionally, large luxury eCommerce brands continue increasing their digital ad budgets every year. If your competitors are raising their spending, you’ll likely need to do the same to keep up.
Without enough investment, your ads may lose impression share, reducing your ability to attract high-value customers.
3. How Large Is Your Target Market?
Your geographic targeting plays a major role in determining your ad spend:
- Local campaigns – A single jewelry store in a smaller town can run effective campaigns with a modest budget.
- Major cities – Advertising in highly populated areas requires a larger budget due to increased competition and higher cost-per-click (CPC).
- Nationwide eCommerce – If you plan to sell fine jewelry online, expect significantly higher advertising costs due to the competitive nature of national luxury retail.
A local mom-and-pop bridal jewelry store can see results with $1,500+ per location, but if you’re targeting a larger city or expanding online, you’ll need a more aggressive budget to remain competitive.
Consider Industry Benchmarks
PPC costs vary widely in the luxury space, and understanding industry benchmarks will help you set realistic expectations:
- Cost-Per-Click (CPC) – Luxury jewelry CPCs typically range from $3 to $15 per click, depending on the keyword and competition level.
- Expected Conversion Rate – Since high-end jewelry buyers take longer to convert, expect lower conversion rates (1-3%) compared to lower-priced consumer goods.
- Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) – A strong ROAS for luxury brands is at least 4:1 (meaning you generate $4 in revenue for every $1 spent on ads).
By understanding these benchmarks and aligning your budget with your goals, market, and competition, you can create a PPC strategy that maximizes visibility and drives results.
Calculate Your Target PPC Budget
A simple formula to estimate your PPC budget is:
Budget = (Traffic Goal × CPC) ÷ Conversion Rate
For example, if you want 1,000 website visitors, with an average CPC of $5 and a 2% conversion rate, your estimated budget would be:
(1,000 × $5) ÷ 0.02 = $25,000
Other factors to consider:
- Seasonal trends: Bridal season and holidays drive higher traffic but also higher competition.
- Daily vs. monthly spend: Start with a manageable daily budget and scale based on performance.
Optimize for Efficiency: Maximizing Your PPC Budget
Increasing your ad budget almost always helps improve visibility, clicks, and conversions…but simply spending more doesn’t guarantee better results. If your budget is capped, there are ways to maximize efficiency and get the most out of every dollar before increasing spend.
Here’s how you can optimize your PPC campaigns to improve performance without necessarily raising your budget:
1. AI-Driven Bidding Strategies
Leveraging automated bidding strategies in Google Ads and Meta Ads can help maximize return on investment (ROI) by adjusting bids in real time based on user behavior, competition, and conversion likelihood. Some effective options include:
- Maximize Conversions – Automatically adjusts bids to get the most conversions for your budget.
- Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) – Optimizes bids to achieve a set return, ensuring you don’t overspend on clicks that won’t generate revenue.
- Enhanced CPC (ECPC) – Uses AI to adjust bids for clicks that are more likely to lead to conversions.
If you’re working with a fixed budget, AI-driven strategies ensure you’re bidding more aggressively when a sale is likely and conservatively when it’s not.
2. Landing Page Optimization
Getting clicks is only half the battle…if your landing pages aren’t converting, you’re wasting your ad spend. Ensuring a seamless experience after the click can drastically improve results.
Key landing page optimization tactics:
- Fast Load Times – A slow site leads to high bounce rates, causing wasted ad spend. Aim for a load time under 3 seconds.
- Mobile Optimization – Since many luxury buyers browse on mobile, your pages must be fully responsive and easy to navigate.
- Clear Call-to-Action (CTA) – Whether it’s “Book a Consultation” or “Shop Now,” your CTA should be clear, visible, and compelling.
- Trust Signals – Include customer reviews, security badges, and warranty information to build credibility.
Even with a limited budget, improving your landing page experience can increase conversion rates…allowing you to get more leads or sales without increasing ad spend.
3. A/B Testing for Continuous Improvement
Testing different ad creatives, headlines, and CTAs helps identify the highest-performing combinations, ensuring your budget is being used efficiently.
What to test:
- Headlines & Copy – Does a benefits-driven or emotional appeal work better?
- Images & Videos – Do lifestyle shots or product close-ups perform best?
- Call-to-Action (CTA) – “Schedule a Consultation” vs. “Get Started Today”
- Ad Formats – Carousel ads vs. single-image vs. video ads
- Even small changes can lead to significant improvements in CTR and conversion rates, allowing you to stretch your budget further.
When to Increase Your Budget
While optimization helps improve performance, there’s a limit to what you can do with a capped budget. If you find that:
- Your ads are consistently hitting budget caps early in the day
- Your impression share is low, meaning you’re losing visibility due to budget constraints
- Your conversion rate is solid, but you’re not getting enough traffic…then it’s likely time to increase your budget to expand reach and scale your results.
By combining budget optimization strategies with smart bidding, better landing pages, and A/B testing, you can maximize efficiency first…then scale strategically when needed.
When to Scale Your PPC Investment
Once you start seeing consistent results, it may be time to increase your budget. Look for:
- High-performing campaigns: If certain keywords or ads are driving strong conversions, allocate more budget.
- Low cost-per-acquisition (CPA): If it costs less to acquire a customer than their CLV, scaling is a smart move.
- Diversified strategies: Expand into display, video, and social PPC ads to reach a wider audience.
Final Thoughts
Determining your ideal PPC budget requires a balance of data, industry benchmarks, and ongoing optimization. By setting clear goals, understanding your audience, and leveraging smart strategies, you can maximize your ad spend and drive real results.
Need expert guidance? ARKTOP specializes in luxury PPC campaigns that deliver high-ROI results. Schedule a consultation today to refine your strategy and boost your digital advertising success.
