1,768% ROAS: How Google Demand Gen Outperformed Traditional Search Ads
Google Demand Gen delivered 1,768% ROAS for a roofing company — outperforming traditional Google Search ads by 23x. Here's how we did it.
Book a Discovery CallResults from one client campaign. Not typical — your results will vary. See full disclaimer.
The Experiment: Three Channels, One Market
During April 2024, an Orlando roofing company was running ads across three channels simultaneously: Google Search managed by another agency, Google Demand Gen managed by Volume Up, and Facebook/Meta managed by Volume Up.
This created a rare apples-to-apples comparison between Google's traditional search ads, Google's newer Demand Gen format, and Meta's lead generation ads — all targeting the same market at the same time.
| Metric | Google Search (Other Agency) |
Google Demand Gen (Volume Up) |
Facebook/Meta (Volume Up) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ad Spend | $5,867 | $3,655 | $8,674 |
| Leads | 41 | 30 | 105 |
| Cost Per Lead | $143 | $122 | $83 |
| Sales | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Revenue | $4,500 | $64,624 | $143,072 |
| ROAS | 76.7% | 1,768% | 1,649% |
Why Demand Gen Worked
Google Demand Gen is a relatively new ad format that shows visual, intent-driven ads across YouTube, Gmail, and Google Discover. Think of it as bridging Facebook's visual reach with Google's intent signals.
Most roofing companies either run Google Search ads (high intent, high cost) or Facebook ads (low cost, lower intent). Demand Gen occupies the sweet spot: you are reaching people who have demonstrated interest through their search and browsing behavior, but you are reaching them with the kind of visual creative that works on social platforms.
Key Takeaway
Google Demand Gen delivered a 43% lead-to-candidate rate vs. 16% on Facebook. Fewer leads, but significantly higher quality. When you combine this with a $122 CPL, you get the best cost-per-qualified-lead of any channel.
The Quality Gap
The standout number is not the ROAS — it is the lead-to-candidate conversion rate. Demand Gen leads converted to qualified candidates at 43%, compared to 16% for Facebook leads. That means nearly half of every Demand Gen lead was a real homeowner with a real roofing need.
This is the power of intent-based targeting. Google knows what people are searching for, reading about, and watching on YouTube. When you layer roofing-specific creative on top of that intent data, you get leads that are further down the buying journey before they ever fill out your form.
What Happened to Google Search?
The other agency's Google Search campaigns spent $5,867 and generated 41 leads at $143 each. Only one of those leads turned into a sale worth $4,500 — resulting in a 76.7% ROAS, which means the client lost money on every dollar spent.
This is a common pattern we see. Search ads in competitive roofing markets are expensive and attract tire-kickers who are price-shopping multiple contractors. Without a feedback loop to optimize for the leads that actually close, the algorithm keeps finding more of the wrong people.
The Multi-Channel Advantage
The best results come from running both Facebook and Google Demand Gen together. Facebook generates volume at a low CPL ($83), while Demand Gen generates fewer but higher-quality leads. Together, Volume Up's two channels produced 8 sales and $207,696 in revenue from $12,329 in ad spend — a combined ROAS of 1,684%.
Meanwhile, the competitor's Google Search ads produced 1 sale and lost money.
The lesson: the channel matters less than the system behind it. Volume Up's Feedback Loop ensures every channel optimizes for closed deals, not just form fills.
More Proof
Every case study below uses real client data — ad spend in, revenue out.
How We Generated $675K More Revenue Than a Competitor — Same Client, Same Market
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Read case study →954% ROAS in Month 1: How a Startup Roofer Closed $29K from $3K in Ad Spend
Read case study →Results Disclaimer
These results are not typical, and your results will vary. This page describes what happened for one specific client over one specific period. It is not a prediction, promise or guarantee of what Volume Up Agency will produce for you. We make no guarantee of any number of leads, appointments, sales, revenue, cost per lead or return on ad spend.
Where the numbers come from. Ad spend comes from the client's ad accounts. Leads, appointments, sits, sales and revenue come from the client's CRM and the dispositions and sale amounts the client reported to us. Revenue means the gross contract value the client reported for closed jobs. It is not profit, and it does not account for materials, labor, commissions, our fees or other costs. Ad spend does not include agency management fees. ROAS is reported revenue divided by ad spend. We did not independently audit the client's sales figures.
Comparisons with other agencies. Any comparison to another agency is based on the data the client shared with us for the stated period, and the other agency is intentionally not named. Campaigns differ in budget, offers, targeting, lead handling and other factors, so a comparison shows the outcome for this client — not a controlled test of any agency's overall performance.
What drives results. Outcomes depend on things outside our control, including your market, season, weather and storm activity, competition, pricing, budget, reviews and reputation, how fast your team responds to leads, and how well your team sells. The clients featured here answered their phones, followed up quickly, reported dispositions consistently and had a sales process in place. Marketing generates opportunities. What you do with them determines your results.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. Figures may be rounded. Any specific terms of an engagement are set out only in a signed written agreement with Volume Up Agency.
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