Rush Digital: Winning High-Value Clients with SEO & Paid Search

123
increase in total conversions

100

User Count

50

increase in impressions

RUSH Digital is a leading design and software company known for creating innovative digital solutions for enterprises and the public sector and scaling startups. If you don’t know RUSH, you’ve likely used their work, from the NZ COVID Tracer app to Watercare’s self-service app and Z Energy’s ShareTank. The company’s reputation for delivering cutting-edge, user-focused software has made it a go-to partner for businesses needing bespoke digital solutions. But even the best companies need to ensure they’re visible to the right audience.

With its brand and a new website refreshed, RUSH was ready to level up its online presence. That’s where The Optimisers came in.

RUSH

Challenges

01

Newly launched website lacked search visibility.

02

Struggled to rank well and attract relevant traffic.

03

Needed to generate more high-value leads.

04

Required a structured SEO and paid search strategy.

05

Aimed to improve discoverability for decision-makers.

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The Challenge

RUSH had recently developed and launched a new website but needed to ensure it was fully optimised to attract the right audience. While their work was industry-leading, their online visibility didn’t yet reflect that. They sought a strategy to enhance search rankings and drive high-quality leads—businesses ready to invest in bespoke technology solutions. With a strong reputation in the industry, they understood that a well-executed SEO and paid search strategy could open the door to more of the right opportunities.

We partnered with RUSH to build a strategy around the launch of their new website and beyond, ensuring their digital presence was as strong as their reputation. Our approach focused on both foundational setup and sustained growth efforts to drive visibility, engagement, and high-value leads.

Audit, Ads, and Initial Setup

  • SEO Overhaul: RUSH’s new website leaned heavily on design, but critical pages were missing. Our SEO audit revealed that its information architecture was too shallow, requiring us to create dedicated pages for their industry sectors and core services. Throughout 2023, we built out targeted content pages within their Expertise section to strengthen organic visibility.
  • Search Ads Setup & Management: Initially, RUSH planned to manage its Google Search Ads in-house, but after seeing the complexities of setup and tracking, we took over to drive performance. By early 2024, paid search results had improved so significantly that RUSH approved doubling its ad budget.
  • Advanced Tracking & Analytics: In April 2023, RUSH set up a new GA4 property, and we configured conversion tracking to ensure accurate measurement of key interactions. We also delivered a clear reporting structure to help them monitor growth. This setup helped identify key user behaviours and optimise accordingly, ensuring that RUSH had the data needed to refine their digital strategy.

Sustained Growth & Optimisation

  • Landing Page Optimisation: From mid-2024, we honed in on refining RUSH’s Expertise section, ensuring each service had a dedicated and optimised landing page to improve discoverability and conversions.
  • Data-Driven Refinements: We continuously analysed their performance, focusing on improving request-for-proposal conversions, the key metric tied to serious business opportunities. By late 2024, we showcased RUSH’s digital marketing success in an NZ Business interview.
  • Content for AI Users: Recently, we’ve begun advising on how to optimise content to leverage AI-driven search and large language models (LLMs), ensuring RUSH stays ahead in an evolving digital landscape. In early 2025, we worked with them to improve internal linking and optimise pages for better AI traction.

Organic Traffic (Last 9 Months vs. Previous Year)

  • Sessions up 34%, increasing to 6,935 vs 5,165
  • Engagement rate up 4%, reaching a total of 64% in 2025
  • Average time on page increased by 15%
  • Key events up 30%

Google Ads Performance (YoY)

  • Impressions up 50% 
  • Clicks up 38% 
  • Conversions up 123% 

Key Conversion Metrics

 Goal: Submit Proposal Requests (high-intent leads)

  • Impressions up 50% 
  • Clicks up 38% 
  • Conversions up 123% 

Secondary Goal: General Enquiry Submissions

  • Event Count: 38 (up from 21, an 80.95% increase)
  • User Count: 38 (up from 19, a 100% increase)

Beyond the numbers, these improvements translated into real business impact. One of RUSH’s most valuable clients to date—a multimillion-dollar project—came directly through Google search. The request-for-proposal submissions, their most crucial conversion metric, continued to grow year over year, reinforcing the effectiveness of the combined SEO and SEM approach.

What RUSH Had to Say

“From the first engagement, not only were they very knowledgeable in their field of expertise, but really friendly and easy to work with.

“I never felt like a question was too silly. They walked me through the right strategy for my business and why, […] helping me optimise our website and really walking the journey with me. In a Business-2-Business Buying Journey, there are so many different touchpoints […] the impact that our new SEO and SEM strategy has made has been noticeable. […] One of the most valuable clients that we onboarded last year came directly through a Google search.”

Alaina LuxmooreDirector of Marketing at RUSH

The Takeaway

For a company like RUSH, where every new client is a major investment, having a digital strategy that delivers quality over quantity is key. Through a mix of smart SEO, strategic paid campaigns, and clear reporting, The Optimisers helped RUSH turn their website into a powerful lead-generation engine.

Looking for a digital strategy that drives real results? Let’s talk.

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