LightWare LiDAR PPC

As a global innovator in microLiDAR® technology, LightWare designs and manufactures high-performance sensors for use in unmanned aerial vehicles, autonomous systems, robotics, and industrial sensing environments. Its compact, lightweight solutions are built to deliver precise distance and depth measurements, helping advanced technologies operate safely and effectively in complex, real-world conditions.

31.76%

increase in Clicks

411.93%

increase in Conversions

130.77%

improvement in CTR

Brief & Objectives

LightWare LiDAR partnered with Ruby Digital to support its growth objectives by increasing the volume and quality of leads generated, while also driving greater website visibility and traffic from key target markets through strategic paid advertising campaigns.

LightWare operates in a highly technical and specialised market, where customers require detailed, application-specific information to evaluate sensor performance, integration suitability, and real-world deployment fit.

This required a Google Ads strategy that focused on giving the user visibility into their products, their uses and generally their performance.

The primary business objective was to improve lead volume and traffic from target locations with a specific lead goal per month. To achieve this, our PPC strategy was designed around the following goals:

  • Primary: Improve the visibility of both the brand and the products for specific intent-based users and for users within the consideration phase.
  • Secondary: Build awareness for LightWare LiDAR by creating ads that focus on the features, USPs and abilities that set them apart from others in their field.

Challenges

When Ruby Digital began work on the LightWare LiDAR account, there were several challenges to factor at the time.

Competing in a highly saturated and brand-driven market

One of the primary challenges identified during the initial research and strategy phase was the highly competitive nature of the LiDAR market. Search behaviour within the industry is heavily influenced by established manufacturers, with many prospective customers searching for products using competitor brand names, model names, and proprietary product terminology.

This created a significant challenge from a paid advertising perspective, as many of the high-volume and highly relevant search terms were already closely associated with competing brands. As a result, directly competing for visibility on these terms would have required greater investment while potentially delivering lower efficiency.

To address this challenge, Ruby Digital developed a more targeted keyword strategy focused on identifying valuable search opportunities beyond competitor-branded queries. Rather than relying solely on broad industry terms, we concentrated on lower-competition keywords that reflected specific product capabilities, technical requirements, and real-world applications.

By aligning campaigns with common use cases, performance specifications, and problem-solving search intent, we were able to reach users actively researching LiDAR solutions without depending on competitor-driven search terms. This approach allowed LightWare to improve visibility among qualified audiences while maintaining more efficient advertising spend.

Our Solutions

To support LightWare LiDAR’s growth objectives, Ruby Digital developed and executed a structured Google Ads strategy focused on increasing product visibility, attracting high-intent prospects, and building brand awareness within specialised LiDAR markets. The strategy centred around promoting key products based on their unique features and applications, while also re-engaging users who had previously interacted with the brand through both paid and organic channels.

Product-focused campaign structure and ad messaging

Given the specialised nature of LightWare’s product offering, we developed a campaign structure focused on the company’s key LiDAR solutions. Rather than grouping products together, each core LiDAR model was supported by its own dedicated campaign and tailored ad set.

This approach allowed us to customise targeting, keywords, ad copy, and bidding strategies to the specific use cases and capabilities of each product. Campaigns were built around the search behaviours of potential customers, including feature-specific queries, distance requirements, industry applications, and technical specifications.

To improve relevance and engagement, ad copy was carefully crafted to highlight each product’s unique selling points, while incorporating the terminology and technical language commonly used within the LiDAR industry. This ensured that LightWare’s ads resonated with engineers, developers, manufacturers, and other highly qualified prospects searching for solutions that matched their specific requirements.

Building awareness through Display advertising

While search campaigns focused on capturing existing demand, we also implemented a Display campaign to support LightWare’s broader brand awareness objectives.

One of the key differentiators of LightWare’s products is their ultra-lightweight design. To showcase this advantage, we developed visually driven display ads that highlighted both the compact form factor of the LiDAR units and their key technical benefits.

The campaign imagery was strategically centred around the individual products and their practical applications, helping users quickly understand where and how the technology could be used. This approach increased visibility among relevant audiences and helped introduce LightWare’s solutions to potential customers earlier in their research and purchasing journey.

Leveraging remarketing to re-engage qualified audiences

As campaign and website data accumulated over time, we identified an opportunity to reconnect with users who had previously demonstrated interest in LightWare’s products.

Using behavioural insights gathered from both Google Ads and organic website traffic, we launched a remarketing campaign designed to re-engage high-value audiences. These audiences were built around users who exhibited characteristics and behaviours similar to those of previous converters, helping us reach prospects with a higher likelihood of taking action.

By keeping LightWare’s products visible to engaged users throughout their decision-making process, the remarketing campaign helped reinforce brand recall, increase touchpoints with potential customers, and create additional opportunities for conversions from previously engaged prospects.

Results

As the advertising campaigns only launched in March 2025, we compared performance across two eight-month periods (March 2025 to November 2025 versus December 2025 to July 2026). The results demonstrate that our strategy improved the quality of website visibility, generating more meaningful engagement through clicks while increasing the number of viable leads delivered.

  • Clicks increased by 31.76%, indicating stronger alignment between user search intent and language our ad messaging.
  • Conversions increased 411.93%, highlighting improvement in the volume of qualified lead opportunities generated through the campaigns.
  • CTR improved 130.77%, demonstrating stronger alignment between user search intent and our ad messaging, resulting in significantly higher engagement with the ads.

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