Papierkram
B2C/SMB SaaS, invoicing & accounting for freelancers
Papierkram had thousands of free signups every month from Google Ads. Their invoicing and bookkeeping tool for freelancers was attracting users, but less than 4% upgraded to a paid plan.
€8K Google Ads
No CRM (self-serve)
Freemium, self-serve purchase
B2C/SMB direct payment
The situation
Thousands of signups. Almost nobody paying.
The account optimized for signups, not purchases. Google found people who create free accounts to send one invoice, not people who need a recurring tool and will pay €8-24/month. Less than 4% upgraded to a paid plan.
What we found
4 structural problems in the account
Primary conversion was 'free signup' instead of 'paid plan activation.'
Broad match pulling 'free invoice template' and 'free accounting software' searches with zero purchase intent.
No remarketing for trial users who didn't convert within 14 days.
All traffic sent to homepage instead of pricing page with feature comparison.
What we did
From signups to paying customers
Conversion tracking overhaul
New conversion actions: trial start, paid activation, plan upgrade with values assigned to each.
Campaign restructure
Built campaigns around commercial keywords ('invoicing software for freelancers', 'accounting tool small business pricing'). Free-intent keywords killed.
Remarketing & landing pages
Remarketing launched targeting trial users at day 3, 7, 12. Dedicated landing pages with pricing and plan comparison.
Value-based optimization
tROAS bidding based on plan value. Continuous landing page A/B testing.
Results
After 90 days
All metrics measured against the 90-day baseline period before engagement.
“We went from celebrating signup numbers to celebrating paying customers. The cost per paid user dropped 41% and we didn't touch the budget.”
Co-founder
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