CREWSIVE WORKING BRIEF
PPC contribution and lead-cost brief

Publication: Best PPC Management Agencies
Reviewed: 8 November 2026
Original article: https://bestppcmanagementagencies.com/ppc-budget-and-break-even/

PURPOSE
Calculate an acquisition-cost range from job contribution, qualification and observed close rates.

WORK DETAILS
Business/project: ______________________________
Prepared by: __________________  Date: __________________
Review owner: __________________  Version: __________________

INPUTS
Collected revenue per completed job:
____________________________________________________________
Variable delivery costs, including applicable labor:
____________________________________________________________
Qualified inquiries and completed paid jobs in a defined cohort:
____________________________________________________________
Media spend, fees and other allocated acquisition costs:
____________________________________________________________
Fixed overhead/profit allowance and unresolved cost assumptions:
____________________________________________________________

WORK TO COMPLETE
1. Subtract variable delivery costs from revenue to calculate contribution per job.
2. Divide completed paid jobs by qualified inquiries to calculate the close rate.
3. Multiply contribution per job by that close rate for the zero-surplus acquisition ceiling.
4. Include media and applicable fees in actual acquisition cost per qualified inquiry.
5. Calculate a lower close-rate scenario and record the effect.
6. Choose the next investigation using actual costs and outcomes, not the platform lead count alone.

WORK RECORD
Revenue/job: ____  Variable cost/job: ____  Contribution/job: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Qualified inquiries: ____  Paid jobs: ____  Close rate: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Contribution x close rate: ____  Overhead/profit allowance: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Media: ____  Fees/other costs: ____  Total acquisition cost: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Total cost / qualified inquiries: ____  Comparison with target: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Lower close-rate scenario: ____  Missing costs/outcomes: ____
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

ACCEPTANCE CHECKS
[ ] The close rate and lead-cost denominator use the same lead definition.
[ ] Unresolved inquiries and missing costs are identified.
[ ] The estimate reserves room for overhead and desired profit.
[ ] Illustrative assumptions are not presented as a performance forecast.

RESULT AND NEXT ACTION
Observed result: _____________________________________________
Unresolved question: _________________________________________
Next action / owner / date: __________________________________

LIMIT
The calculated ceiling is conditional. It does not predict auction prices, lead volume or future profit.

SOURCES
US Small Business Administration: Break-even point
https://www.sba.gov/counseling/plan-your-business/break-even-point-calculator/

Google Ads: About average daily budgets
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/6385083?hl=en

Crewsive - Paid search management (company-published service scope)
https://crewsive.com/paid-advertising.html

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