“When we raise the budget, cost per order jumps.”
Raise budget in small steps and track marginal CAC: what the next 100 customers cost.
Home / Industries / D2C & ecommerce / Performance marketing
Industry · D2C & ecommerce · Performance marketing
Performance marketingfor ecommerce brands
Since 201565+ in-house teamKolkata office, 5 team bases
Meta and Google ads for online brands, judged on what each new customer costs and how fast they pay it back.
A strategist calls you in one working day.
/ 01 Ecommerce performance marketing agency
Sales are easy to buy.Customers who pay back are not.
For an online brand, the first order often loses money, and the profit comes from the second and third order. PromotEdge runs ecommerce performance marketing for D2C (direct-to-consumer) brands: Meta and Google ads, including Shopping and Performance Max.
The goal: every new customer earns back what it cost to win them, before your cash runs thin. We have worked with brands across India since 2015.
Three numbers run the plan. Contribution margin is what one order leaves after product cost, shipping, discounts and returns. CAC (customer acquisition cost) is the cost to win one first-time buyer. Payback is how many days that buyer takes to earn it back.
A made-up example: a first order leaves ₹600, and winning the buyer cost ₹900. If half reorder within 90 days, the average customer earns ₹300 more, and you are paid back. If only 20 in 100 do, you are not.
We plan on MER (marketing efficiency ratio: total sales divided by total spend) and new-customer CAC. Platform ROAS (return on ad spend, as Meta or Google counts it) only helps compare ads inside one platform.
Skincare, pet food and fashion need different maths. Our D2C marketing agency page covers the rest, and our performance marketing page covers other businesses.
- 2015working with Indian brands since
- 65+in-house team: strategy, creative, media and tech
- 4pillars under one roof: strategy, advertising, digital, on-ground activation (BTL)
- 6cities: head office in Kolkata, teams in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Guwahati and Bhubaneswar
/ 02 Services
Services forecommerce ad accounts.
All 6 services in one place. Tap one to see how it works.
Meta ads
New-customer, retargeting and past-buyer campaigns kept apart.
MetaInstagramFacebookGoogle Shopping ads
Ads run from a clean product feed.
Google AdsGooglePerformance Max
One Google campaign, with brand exclusions and a clear target.
Google AdsYouTubeAnalytics and tracking
GA4 and the Conversions API, matched to your order list.
Landing pages and CRO
Product pages that show delivery and COD costs early.
Email and WhatsApp
Reorders from buyers you already paid to win.
WhatsApp/ 03 Checklist
Brand basics checklist
Tick what you already have. The rest is where we can help.
The basics
11 items
- Logo and brand guidelinesOne set of logo files and a one-page guide to colours and fonts.
- Domain and business emailyourname.com and name@yourname.com, not a free mail address.
- A website that works on phonesFast, secure, with Call and WhatsApp buttons.
- Google Business ProfileCorrect name, hours, photos and category.
- WhatsApp BusinessCatalogue, quick replies and an away message.
- Social media handlesThe same name on each platform you use.
- Business cardsName, role, phone, email and website.
- Letterhead and invoiceYour legal name, address and tax details, with your logo.
- Company profile or brochureOne document you can send on WhatsApp.
- SignageMatches your logo and your Google listing.
- Photos and short videosReal work, real people, real premises.
For D2C brands running ads
6 items
- Ad accounts and pixel in your company's nameGood practice: the agency is added as a user.
- GA4 and Conversions API sending ordersMeta: it connects data from your server, site platform or app.
- Customer lists collected with clear consentDPDP Act, 2023, section 6(1): consent is free, specific, informed and clear.
- A product feed that matches your siteGood practice: titles, prices, photos and stock agree with the page.
- Delivery and COD costs on the product pageCCPA dark patterns guidelines, 2023: no drip pricing.
- Prior price shown on any announced price cutE-Commerce Amendment Rules, 2026, from 1 January 2027.
/ 04 Problems
What gets in the wayand the way through.
“Performance Max looks great, but it is mostly people searching our name.”
Use its brand exclusions, and run brand search as its own small campaign. Judge the rest on new customers.
“Meta stopped seeing half our orders after a checkout change.”
Connect Meta's Conversions API (application programming interface, a direct link that sends orders from your store's server to Meta). Check its count weekly.
“We cut Meta, and Amazon sales fell too.”
Read total sales across your store and marketplaces before cutting. Shoppers often see the ad on Instagram, then buy on Amazon or Flipkart.
“In the Diwali sale, orders cost far more.”
Set a sale-time CAC limit, warm up audiences weeks ahead, and pause when it is crossed.
“The report is full of ROAS, and COD parcels still come back.”
Report total sales, spend and new-customer CAC, with returned orders taken out. AI tools and simple automation fill the sheet and flag drift.
Does one of these sound like your ad account? Tell us which, and we'll say where we'd start. Tell us which one
Our beliefWe believe in process. Good results should repeat, not happen by luck.
/ 05 Client words
An ecommerce teamon our digital work.
“We are thoroughly impressed with the extensive knowledge and professionalism demonstrated by PromotEdge. Their adept management of our digital and creative requirements has significantly contributed to our satisfaction with their digital marketing services and expertise.”
Rahul MishraAssistant Manager Digital Marketing & Ecommerce, Magik Lighting“PromotEdge and their team did an excellent job with our website. They engaged with every team member, understanding their needs with great patience before collating them into a user requirement and a design spec. …”
Bimal ShahExecutive Director at Fine Organic Industries Limited“As a progressive and emerging digital marketing company, PromotEdge is doing something right to enhance the experience of companies associated with them. …”
Anish Basu MallikMarketing Executive at Unimark GroupNot sure your ads pay back? Tell us what's not working. We'll send you an honest one-page growth plan, free.
/ 06 How we work
From margin mathsto the next rupee.
- 01
1. Build the margin sheet, product by product
We work out contribution margin for each hero product (the few you most want to sell), including COD (cash on delivery) refusals. That sets your CAC and payback limits.
- 02
2. Make the tracking honest
Our analytics and tracking team sets up GA4 (Google's website report) and the Conversions API, and takes cancelled and returned orders out of the count.
- 03
3. Split the account by job
On Meta, new customers, retargeting and past buyers stay apart. On Google, brand search, Shopping and Performance Max get their own budgets.
- 04
4. Scale in steps, as fresh ads arrive
Our creative team or yours fixes how many new ads arrive each week.
- 05
5. Fix the page, and read marketplace sales
Delivery and COD costs belong on the product page. Hiding them until checkout is drip pricing, which the consumer regulator CCPA's 2023 guidelines bar. Our CRO (conversion rate optimisation) team tests the page, and our ecommerce marketing team reads marketplace sales beside it.
Customer lists need consent. Here is the rule, how shoppers move, and what is yours and ours to do.
D2C performance marketing in depth
The rule that matters
India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 says consent must be free, specific, informed, unconditional and clearly given, for a stated purpose. The Rules, published on 13 November 2025, start most of their duties, including the notice rule, 18 months later. Plan your customer-list consent now.
Source: Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (22 of 2023), section 6(1), MeitY (https://www.meity.gov.in/static/uploads/2024/06/2bf1f0e9f04e6fb4f8fef35e82c42aa5.pdf). Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, Gazette of India, 13 Nov 2025, rule 1(4), MeitY (https://www.meity.gov.in/static/uploads/2025/11/53450e6e5dc0bfa85ebd78686cadad39.pdf). Both read 10 Oct 2026
How buyers decide
Our view: a shopper sees the ad, often on Instagram, then searches your name, reads reviews and compares the price on Google or a marketplace. They drop out at a surprise delivery or COD cost, or a page that is slow on a phone. Your report should count the whole path, not the last click.
What you can do, and what is not ours
You can keep ad accounts in your company's name, share clean cost and return data, and send fresh photos and videos each week. Auction prices, ad approvals and the platform's choices are not yours or ours to set. Reorders depend on your product, and no ad can fix that.
How we would deliver, and why each step
We start with the margin sheet, because it sets the CAC you can afford. We fix tracking next, because ads cannot learn from orders they cannot see. We scale in small steps, because a jump in budget often raises cost per order. We stop when the next customer will not pay back.
Bodies to know
IAMAI: a not-for-profit industry body for the online and mobile sector, speaking for its members to government.
ASCI: the Advertising Standards Council of India, an independent, voluntary body that aims to keep ads truthful under its own code.
Source: Official sites of each body, read 10 Oct 2026
Not sure what a new customer should cost you? Let's work out your limit together. Work out my limit
/ 07 Cost
What affects the cost of ecommerce performance marketing.
No price list. These things move the number.
We don't publish a price list. Ad spend goes to Meta and Google at actuals, outside our fee.
What affects the cost
- Channels. Meta only, or Meta with Google.
- Catalogue size. A few hero products, or hundreds.
- Tracking work. Whether your tools and order data agree.
How we quote
- A free 30-minute strategist call, then a one-page plan. We take on a limited number, so we'll say honestly if yours fits
- We write the scope: channels, CAC and payback limits
- A written quote follows within 2 working days of the first call
What you get in the quote
- The tracking fixes, and who does them
- The campaigns, and the weekly sheet
How it is billed
| Way of working | When it fits |
|---|---|
| Monthly retainer | Meta and Google work and the weekly sheet; minimum 3 months, 30 days' notice |
| Festive-season plan | One sale period; we confirm the timeline in the quote |
/ 08 What happens next
What happensafter you ask.
For projects we think we can help, this is how it goes.
- 01
A strategist calls you
In one working day: a 30-minute call with one of our strategists about your business and what is not working.
- 02
You get a 1-page plan
A short, honest plan: what to fix first and what we would do. It is free.
- 03
A quote, if you want one
If you want to go ahead, we send a quote within 2 working days.
We confirm the timeline in the quote. Contracts start at 3 months, with 30 days' notice to stop.
Brands and people are named only as public examples. They are not PromotEdge clients or endorsers unless stated.
Keep exploring
Related pages.
The expertise that fits your business, and the places we work.
D2C & ecommerce
Related industries
Running ads for a D2C brand?
Tell us what's not paying back.We'll show you what each new customer really costs.
Straight answers.
-
We won't claim to suit every brand. Ask any agency, us included: Will you set targets on contribution margin and payback, or on platform ROAS? Will the ad accounts stay in our company's name? We meet clients in their city at least once every three months.
-
Ad spend goes to Meta and Google, and you decide the amount. Our fee depends on the channels, catalogue size, tracking work and sale periods. We don't publish a price list. The written quote follows within 2 working days of the first call.
-
Tracking and account fixes come first, then early tests. Payback depends on how often customers reorder, so the real answer comes after one full reorder cycle: short for a monthly refill, long for a yearly purchase. We confirm the timeline in the quote.
-
Yes, if you collected it yourself. Meta and Google both ask you to confirm you have the rights or consent. India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 asks for consent that is free, specific, informed and clearly given. This is general guidance, not legal advice.
-
The Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 cover single-brand online stores, not only marketplaces. From 1 January 2027, an announced price cut must show the prior price, the lowest in the 30 days before. So ₹999, was ₹1,999, works only if ₹1,999 really was that lowest price. General guidance, not legal advice.