Recruiters & Staffing - PPC
A single placement can be worth $15,000 to $30,000 in fees. Paid search that's built around that math, rather than treated as a generic lead-gen channel, is what makes staffing PPC profitable.
Employer CPCs in staffing typically run $4-$12, with niche technical and executive search terms running $15-$30 or more. Employer cost-per-lead usually falls between $100-$300, while candidate CPL runs $20-$80. Weighed against a $15,000-$30,000 direct-hire placement fee, or a percentage markup on every contract hire, that math works in your favor when campaigns are structured correctly.
Approach
Five components that keep employer and candidate campaigns performing on their own terms.
Employer and candidate searches have entirely different intent, cost structures, and conversion goals. We build them as separate campaigns with independent budgets and success metrics rather than blending them into one generic push.
Match types and negative keyword lists matter enormously in staffing, where "jobs near me" and "hire a recruiter" can look similar in a keyword tool but convert completely differently. We build lists that filter out low-intent traffic before it costs you money.
Employer ad copy speaks to placement quality, speed to fill, and industry expertise. Candidate ad copy speaks to opportunity, pay, and application ease. We never run the same ad copy across both.
Sending employer clicks to your general job board, or candidate clicks to your RFP form, kills conversion rates. Every campaign points to a landing page built for that specific searcher's intent.
We track employer form submissions and candidate applications as separate conversion events, so budget allocation decisions are based on real performance data for each audience.
Blending both audiences into one campaign wastes budget on the wrong searchers and makes it impossible to measure ROI accurately for either side of your business.
Broad "staffing agency" terms are expensive and low-converting. Campaigns built around your specialty vertical, like healthcare staffing or IT contract placement, convert at a meaningfully lower cost.
Expanding into a new service area or market is one of the fastest ways to use PPC. Campaigns can be geo-targeted precisely while your organic presence in that market builds.
Hiring volume shifts with budget cycles, seasonal demand, and industry-specific patterns. Budgets and bids should flex with your clients' hiring calendars, not stay flat year-round.
Budget framework
Ad spend estimates by program scope. Management fees are quoted separately from spend.
Branding / awareness
$500+/mo
Ad spend
Focused lead generation
$2,000-$5,000/mo
Ad spend
Dual-audience program
$5,000-$10,000/mo
Ad spend
Multi-market / multi-vertical
$10,000+/mo
Ad spend
These figures represent ad spend, not our management fee. Management is quoted separately based on the number of campaigns, audiences, and markets involved.
Send us your project and we'll scope it straight -- no pushy sales.
Deeper reads pulled from our blog, all written with recruiters and staffing firms in mind.
Good to know
Ad spend for staffing PPC typically ranges from $500/mo for light single-audience awareness campaigns up to $10,000+/mo for multi-market, multi-vertical programs. Management fees are quoted separately from spend and depend on the number of campaigns and audiences involved.
Employer and candidate searches have different intent, different costs, and different conversion goals. Running them together makes it impossible to measure ROI accurately for either audience, and typically wastes spend on the wrong searchers.
PPC can generate qualified traffic within days of launch, which makes it a strong complement to SEO while organic rankings build. Full campaign optimization typically takes 4-8 weeks as we refine targeting and conversion data accumulates.
Yes. Geo-targeted PPC campaigns are one of the fastest ways to generate visibility in a new service area while your organic presence and reputation in that market build over time.
We track employer form submissions and candidate applications as distinct conversion events, then report cost-per-lead for each audience separately so you can see exactly what's working and where.
Still have questions? We're happy to answer them, let's connect.
Tell us about your project and we'll take a look. No pushy sales, no wasted calls.