The Enigma Scale blog

Marketing written down, not performed

What we have learned running search, ads, content, social, sites and brands. Plain answers with the numbers left in, published by the two people who do the work.

Two colleagues at a desk with a screen reading Digital Advertising, discussing Google Ads Ad Rank

Pay Per ClickAd Rank in Google Ads: what moves it and what does notTwo plumbers bid on "emergency plumber Brisbane". The first bids AUD 12 a click, runs a headline that says "Quality...19 September 2026 10 min read

Notebook with handwritten keyword research and SEO notes beside a keyboard

Pay Per ClickGoogle Ads Keyword Count: Why 8 to 20 Per Ad Group WinsUse 8 to 20 closely related keywords per ad group. For a small Australian account, that adds up to somewhere between...19 September 2026 11 min read

BrandingWhy your brand attracts the wrong customers, and how to fix itWrong-fit enquiries are a positioning symptom, not a lead generation one. The four causes, how to diagnose yours,...2 August 2026 6 min read

Designer desk with paper wireframe sketches, a graphics tablet and colour swatches

Web DesignWhat are you actually paying for in a website project?Why one quote is $4,000 and another is $35,000 for the same page list. Where the budget really goes, and how to...2 August 2026 6 min read

Hand holding a smartphone in a bright cafe while checking social media activity

Social MediaWhen does social media marketing start returning money?Organic and paid social run on different clocks. What happens month by month, which signals to watch at month three,...2 August 2026 6 min read

Writer desk with an open notebook, fountain pen and printed pages beside a bright window

Content MarketingDoes content marketing pay for itself, and how long does it take?When content marketing returns money and when it quietly wastes it, what a serious programme costs, and the...2 August 2026 7 min read

Hands on a laptop keyboard reviewing paid ad campaign performance in a dark office

Pay Per ClickWhat PPC management costs, and what the fee should coverPercentage of spend, flat retainer or hybrid: the three fee models, the four things that move a quote, and how to...2 August 2026 6 min read

Desk with an open notebook, calculator and coffee used to plan a monthly SEO budget

SEOHow much should a mid-sized company expect to pay for SEO per month?Ask five agencies to price the same SEO brief and you will get five numbers, often three times apart at the...11 June 2026 9 min read

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