CapitalFirst NBFC: 3x Loan Applications via Google Ads

Client: CapitalFirst Financial Services (Mumbai, India) | Industry: Finance & BFSI | Service: PPC Advertising | Duration: 5 months

1. Executive Summary

CapitalFirst Financial Services, a Mumbai-based NBFC with strong lending capacity, was struggling to convert digital traffic into loan applications. Their Google Ads account was bleeding budget on generic keywords, with a CPA of Rs. 12,000 — far above the viable threshold. After a complete account restructure, landing page overhaul, and intent-based remarketing, we delivered a 3x surge in applications and slashed the cost per acquisition to Rs. 3,800. The campaign now generates over Rs. 28 Crore in monthly disbursements from digital channels alone.

2. The Challenge

CapitalFirst had a high loan disbursement capacity but was failing to attract quality applicants online. Their digital acquisition was plagued by three core issues:

• Poor keyword strategy: The account was bidding on high-volume, generic terms like "personal loan" and "instant loan" — dominated by big banks and fintechs with massive budgets. CapitalFirst’s ads were rarely seen above position 4, and clicks were expensive.
• Unoptimised landing pages: The application form had 12 fields, no EMI calculator, and loaded in 6+ seconds on mobile. Bounce rate exceeded 78%.
• No call tracking or call campaigns: Many high-intent users prefer to call, but CapitalFirst had no call-only ads or call extensions. Missed 40%+ of potential conversions.
• No remarketing: Over 85% of website visitors left without applying. Without a retargeting funnel, these users were lost forever.

The result? A CPA of Rs. 12,000 per loan — nearly 3x the target of Rs. 4,000. Monthly loan applications stagnated at ~1,200, and digital contributed only Rs. 8.5 Crore in disbursements. Competitors like Bajaj Finserv, Tata Capital, and IIFL dominated search results.

3. Our Strategy

AK Network Solutions deployed a four-pillar strategy combining account structure overhaul, landing page conversion optimisation, call campaigns, and layered remarketing. We used proprietary AI scripts for bid management and audience segmentation.

3.1 Loan-Specific Campaign Structure

We broke the account into 6 separate campaigns based on loan type and user intent:

• Personal Loan – Salaried (targeting salaried professionals with specific income brackets)
• Personal Loan – Self-Employed (ITR-based, business owner keywords)
• Business Loan (MSME, working capital, expansion)
• Loan Against Property (LAP, mortgage)
• Instant Loan – Urgent (high-intent, same-day disbursement)
• Brand + Competitor (defensive brand terms and competitor misspellings)

Each campaign had its own budget, ad schedule, and bid strategy. We used Target CPA bidding with a floor of Rs. 3,500 and ceiling of Rs. 4,500.

3.2 Landing Page & Form Optimisation

We redesigned the landing page with:

• Embedded EMI calculator (pre-filled with loan amount and tenure sliders)
• Reduced form from 12 fields to 5 (name, phone, loan amount, income, city)
• Mobile-first design with 2-second load time (AMP version)
• Trust signals: RBI registration number, 4.5★ Google rating, customer count
• Dynamic keyword insertion in headlines

3.3 Call Campaigns for Immediate Intent

We launched call-only ads and call extensions on high-intent keywords like "apply personal loan now" and "instant loan Mumbai". Calls were tracked via Google Tag Manager and call conversion tracking. We also added a click-to-call button on the landing page that triggered a call to CapitalFirst’s loan advisors.

3.4 Layered Remarketing Funnel

We built a 3-tier remarketing strategy:

• Tier 1: Users who visited landing page but didn’t apply → shown EMI calculator ad + "Complete your application" offer
• Tier 2: Users who started form but didn’t submit → shown "Get 0.5% lower rate" ad
• Tier 3: Users who applied but weren’t approved → shown "Alternative loan options" ad

All remarketing used RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads) and Display with frequency capping of 3 impressions/day.

4. Implementation (Step-by-Step)

Here’s exactly what we did, week by week, during the 5-month engagement:

Month 1: Audit & Restructure

• Audited existing account: 1,200 keywords, 8 ad groups, 3 campaigns → paused 78% of keywords (low CTR, high CPA)
• Built new campaign structure with 6 campaigns, 35 ad groups, 200+ high-intent keywords
• Added negative keywords: "free", "govt", "subsidy", "credit card" (unqualified traffic)
• Set up conversion tracking: form submission, phone call, click-to-call, and offline lead import
• Launched A/B test on landing page (old vs. new with EMI calculator)

Month 2: Launch & Optimise

• Went live with new campaigns on Feb 1, 2024
• Initial CPA dropped to Rs. 5,200 (from Rs. 12,000) within 2 weeks
• Added call-only ads for "personal loan near me" and "apply loan now" — generated 220 calls in first week
• Deployed AI bid adjustments: +20% for mobile, +15% for 6 PM–9 PM, -30% for tablet
• Set up remarketing lists: 4,200 visitors in first 10 days

Month 3: Scale & Refine

• Increased daily budget from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 45,000 based on positive ROAS
• Added 3 new ad groups: "loan for women", "loan for doctors", "loan for CA"
• Implemented call extensions with dynamic phone number based on user location
• CPA further reduced to Rs. 4,100; approval rate improved 15%

Month 4: Advanced Tactics

• Launched Smart Bidding (Target CPA) with 30-day conversion window
• Added audience segments: in-market for personal loans, affinity for finance
• Remarketing Tier 2 and 3 launched — recovered 18% of abandoned forms
• CPA hit Rs. 3,800; monthly applications crossed 3,200

Month 5: Stabilise & Report

• Fine-tuned bid adjustments: +10% for Mumbai, Pune, Delhi; -15% for tier-3 cities
• Added call-only campaign for business loans (high-ticket, high-intent)
• Final CPA: Rs. 3,800; monthly applications: 3,600+; disbursement: Rs. 28 Crore
• Delivered comprehensive report with 5-month trend analysis

5. Results & Metrics

All numbers are verified from Google Ads, CRM, and CapitalFirst’s internal systems. Here’s the full breakdown:

Detailed Metrics

• Impressions: Increased from 1.2 Lakh to 4.8 Lakh per month (4x)
• Clicks: From 4,500 to 18,200 per month (4x)
• CTR: Improved from 3.8% to 5.2%
• Conversion Rate (form): From 1.2% to 4.8% (4x)
• Phone Calls: 0 to 680 calls/month (with 32% conversion to application)
• Average Loan Size: Rs. 4.2 Lakh (up from Rs. 3.1 Lakh due to better targeting)
• ROAS: From 4.2x to 14.7x
• Cost per Lead: Rs. 1,100 (down from Rs. 3,400)

6. Key Takeaways

What worked and what we learned from this engagement:

• Loan-specific campaigns outperform generic ones. By segmenting by loan type and borrower profile, we reduced wasted spend by 55% and improved relevance scores.
• EMI calculators are conversion gold. Adding an interactive calculator on the landing page increased time on site by 2 minutes and form completion by 60%.
• Call campaigns capture high-intent traffic. 22% of all applications came from phone calls, with a 32% conversion rate — far higher than web forms.
• Remarketing recovers lost opportunities. Our 3-tier funnel recovered 18% of abandoned forms and 12% of non-approved applicants.
• Data-driven bid adjustments matter. Mobile, evening hours, and metro cities delivered 40% higher conversion rates — we allocated budget accordingly.
• Patience with Smart Bidding pays off. It took 3 weeks for Target CPA to stabilise, but once it did, CPA dropped 22% in month 4 alone.

7. About AK Network Solutions

AK Network Solutions is India’s leading AI-powered digital marketing agency, specialising in data-driven PPC, SEO, and conversion optimisation for BFSI, e-commerce, and enterprise clients. We have delivered 200+ campaigns with measurable ROI. Call us at +91-981802007