Mackay Advertising
Mackay advertising agency
Google Ads, Business Profile, SEO and AI search, websites, social media, radio, TV and print for businesses in Mackay, Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays.
What we run
Seventeen services. One team in Mackay.
Search, websites, social, radio, TV and print, planned together and run by the same four people. Every service has its own page with what is included and what it costs.
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: orchoholic (CC0), Kgbo (CC BY-SA 4.0), Tim Kossow (CC BY 2.0), Chris Olszewski (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Ray Mercer
Founder and director
Tim Axton
Operations, social media and video
Charlie Maruff
Digital lead
Lianne Scott
Account manager
Who we are
A multi-layered marketing team for a fraction of the cost of one employee.
Between the four of us there is a media buyer, a media sales veteran, a designer and producer, and a web developer. Hiring those skills in-house would take four salaries. Working with us, a Mackay business gets all of them on one plan.
Ray ran retail franchises for fifteen years and then a commercial radio station, so he buys airtime and runs Google Ads like the owner paying for it. Lianne has sold radio, newspapers, magazines, outdoor and television for more than 20 years, including across the Mackay market. Tim runs the social media, the video, the artwork and the production schedules. Charlie builds the websites, the SEO and the software that tracks where every enquiry came from.
- Ray MercerFounder and director. Media buying and Google Ads.
- Lianne ScottAccount manager. More than 20 years selling media.
- Tim AxtonOperations, social media and video.
- Charlie MaruffDigital lead. Websites, SEO and software.
Where to start
What does your business need more of?
Pick the one that matters most right now. Each answer points to the services that do that job, with the prices on them.
Photo: Torbenbrinker, CC BY-SA 4.0
People who need you today are searching on their phone. Google Ads puts you at the top of the page, and a complete Business Profile puts you on the map beside it.
Where is Mackay Advertising based?
We work with Mackay businesses by online appointment, or in person at our Townsville office when that suits. Every campaign for a Mackay business is planned for the Mackay market: the searches people type here and the stations they have on.
How much does advertising cost in Mackay?
It depends on the channel. Our published prices start at $550 a month + GST for Google Ads with $150 of ad credit included, $500 a month for three months + GST for Google, Apple and Bing maps, $950 a month + GST for Facebook and Instagram, and $100 to $300 a week of radio airtime on one station. Websites, SEO, television, print and design are quoted from a brief.
Is there a lock-in contract?
No. Google Ads, social media and LinkedIn run month to month with a month's notice. The Business Profile program runs for three months and then stops. Radio airtime is an upfront flat fee per campaign, with no lock-in with any station.
Which radio stations do you buy in Mackay?
In Mackay, Star 101.9, Triple M 98.7 and Hit 100.3. In Airlie Beach, Hit 94.7 and Triple M 92.3. The station and the session are chosen for who you sell to, and you see the schedule before it is booked.
Do you make the ads as well as place them?
Yes. Radio and TV commercials, Google ad copy, social artwork, print ads, brochures and websites are written and designed in house. The first 30 second radio commercial is free for a new customer.
Who owns the accounts and the website?
You do. The Google Ads account, the Business Profile, the social pages, the domain and the website data stay in your name, and every login is handed over if you leave.
Can you guarantee a first page ranking or a number of leads?
No. Google, Meta and the AI assistants decide rankings and reach. What you get in writing is the work: what we set up, what we changed each month, and a report showing what came in and from where.
Do you only work with Mackay businesses?
Mackay, Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays are this agency's area. The same team runs Townsville Advertising, Cairns Advertising and Sunshine Coast Advertising, so a business trading in more than one of those markets can run it all through one office.
What do you need from me to get started?
Ten minutes on what you sell, who buys it and what you have tried before. For Google Ads we pull a year of Mackay search volume for your services first, so the first thing you see is the numbers.