The Standard, a luxury condominium development in New Orleans, partnered with our team to maximize exposure and drive high-quality leads through a comprehensive paid media strategy. Over the course of two years, we implemented a highly targeted approach across paid search and paid social channels, ensuring a steady stream of engaged buyers. Through continuous optimization and strategic adjustments, our campaigns played a pivotal role in The Standard selling out all its condominium residences.
Why did we start the project?
The Challenge
- Competitive Market: The Standard competed against major real estate platforms like Redfin, Realtor.com, and local condo developments.
- Declining Search Volume: YoY search demand for New Orleans luxury condos decreased, requiring a more aggressive approach.
- Budget Fluctuations: Marketing budgets fluctuated, impacting campaign reach and engagement.
- Lead Quality Issues: Initial Meta lead-gen ads resulted in a high volume of low-intent inquiries, leading to a shift in strategy.
How Marcel Digital Helped
The Strategy
1. Leveraging Search Intent for Higher Conversion Rates
- Testing Different Funnel Levels for Keywords: Campaigns were structured to test high-intent keywords like “luxury condos New Orleans” alongside broader terms such as “New Orleans real estate” and “condos for sale near me.” This approach allowed us to understand user intent and allocate budget toward keywords that drove conversions rather than just traffic.
- Landing Page Optimization: Ads directed users to dedicated unit pages with integrated contact forms, streamlining the conversion process.
- Performance-Based Budgeting: Allocations were shifted toward the highest-performing keywords and campaigns to maximize efficiency.
Results:
- Consistently high impression share against competitors despite budget constraints.
- Bottom-of-the-funnel keywords (e.g., 'luxury condos New Orleans') consistently outperformed broader search terms in driving quality conversions.
- Landing page with forms drove the highest conversion rates.
- Paid search drove key conversions at a lower CPC than industry averages.
2. Pivoting Paid Social to Prioritize Lead Quality
- Meta Lead Form Experimentation: Early campaigns used in-platform lead forms, which produced too many unqualified leads.
- Landing Page Shift: We transitioned to traffic-focused ads that directed users to The Standard’s website, where they could explore listings before submitting inquiries.
- Refined Audience Targeting: CRM lookalike audiences outperformed interest-based targeting, helping to reach users with higher purchasing intent.
- Creative Testing: A/B tests compared lifestyle imagery (showing people enjoying the property) vs. interior-focused imagery (highlighting units). Interior-focused ads drove higher engagement and conversion rates, suggesting that potential buyers responded better to visuals that showcased the actual product rather than aspirational lifestyle elements.
Results:
- Lead quality improved significantly after shifting from Meta’s lead forms to on-site conversions.
- Traffic to the website increased, leading to more engaged prospects and better-qualified inquiries.
- Ad creative featuring unit interiors outperformed lifestyle imagery, reinforcing the importance of showcasing the property itself.
What Happened After Launch?
The Results & Key Insights
| Month | Paid Search Conversions | Paid Social Conversions | Key Change |
| Year 1 | Consistently high | Varied performance | Adjusted budget and audience focus |
| Year 2 | Optimized for efficiency | Improved lead quality | Full transition to landing page forms |
- Search ads maintained dominance in a competitive market.
- Social ads became a source of high-quality leads after strategic changes.
- Over two years, paid media efforts directly contributed to The Standard’s complete sellout.
Results and Takeaways
The Conclusion
- Search campaigns should remain core to real estate digital strategies, leveraging high-intent keywords and strong impression share.
- Social media lead-gen ads often require additional qualification, making a landing page strategy more effective for luxury sales.
- Ongoing budget flexibility allows for strategic shifts that maximize efficiency, ensuring continuous high performance.
- Continued creative testing is essential, with a focus on showcasing property interiors and using carousel formats for engagement.
The Standard’s paid media strategy was instrumental in driving engagement, improving lead quality, and ultimately selling out all available condominium units. By adapting to changing market conditions and continuously refining ad targeting and messaging, we helped The Standard maintain a strong competitive edge in the luxury real estate market.
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