Case Study: Carly – Connected Car

Jan 15, 2025

+28% Revenue Growth Through Real-Time Profit-Based Scaling & Creative Simplification

Context: Real Growth, Not Attribution Guesswork

Carly was already an established brand in the connected car space. Our goal wasn’t to just “scale ads” — it was to scale profitably, using real company economics rather than vanity metrics or unreliable attribution models.

Over the course of the campaign period, revenue from performance channels grew by 28%, driven by a tightly controlled, insight-driven performance setup.

Key Results

Metric

Value

Performance-Attributed Revenue

+28%

Thumb-Stop Rate (META)

+58%

Click-Through Rate (META)

+30%

CPM Advantage on TikTok

-60% vs. META

What We Did

1. Built a Profit-Based Decision Framework

We didn’t rely on MMPs or data modeling. Instead, we developed Carly’s own profitability logic:

  • Performance Spend vs. Net Performance Revenue (Carly-internal logic)

  • Built real-time dashboards in Tableau to track contribution margin, not just ROAS

  • Decisions based on true business health, not modeled LTV guesses

2. Launched TikTok as a Scalable Performance Channel

To reach new audiences and diversify acquisition, we introduced TikTok with a UGC-first approach:

  • Recruited creators for native-style product content

  • Used Spark Ads and iterated quickly

  • TikTok achieved 60% cheaper CPMs than Meta

  • Direct contribution to performance revenue confirmed

3. Simplified Meta Ad System for Scalable Output

We revamped Meta campaign structure to cut creative complexity and improve learnings:

  • Reduced creative variation, focused on clear value props

  • Aggressive creative testing → identified high-impact formats

  • Resulted in +56% thumb-stop rate and +30% higher CTR

4. Set Up Intraday Automation for Reactive Scaling

We connected Tableau to automated campaign logic to create a reactive, real-time campaign operating system:

  • Spend scaled up or down depending on live performance

  • Weak hours/dayparts throttled automatically

  • Efficiency preserved even during aggressive scaling phases

Learnings & Strategic Takeaways

“At Carly, we didn’t just scale. We built a profit-first operating system that let us react in real-time, reduce waste, and grow revenue with confidence.”

  • Replaced attribution guesswork with real business control

  • TikTok became a reliable, scalable revenue channel

  • Meta performance improved via creative system simplification

  • Automation + live data = faster decisions, higher margins