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Illia Filimonov / Performance Marketing

Built through referrals. I stay accountable.

Sarafunka grew without advertising itself. Clients came through referrals. I work with Google Ads, Meta and TikTok, choose the strategy and answer to the client for the results myself.

Discuss your projectSee the numbers

You talk to me directly. No account managers, no passing your brief through other people.

Illia Filimonov

$0spent on promoting myself. Clients come through referrals.

01 / Why Sarafunka

A practice built by word of mouth.

One client recommends me to the next. That is how Sarafunka grew.

I launched my first ad campaigns in 2018 for my own online store, on Google Ads and Prom.ua, a Ukrainian marketplace. My money, my mistakes. Then came SEO at an agency, freelance work, building marketing from scratch at KUBE Tech, and then agencies and national brands, where a mistake costs someone else's money, and a lot of it.

Today I work with clients directly. I dig into the task, choose the strategy and talk to every client myself. When a project needs design, video or development, I bring in specialists for that job.

Sarafunka comes from "sarafanka", slang for word of mouth. That is how clients found me before this site existed.

A referral only works while people trust you. So every number here comes with a period and context, and nothing here promises guaranteed growth.

02 / Scale and resultsProject numbers and a real account

Budgets, results and context.

Numbers from real projects. Each one says what was measured, for what period and where.

  • $150K+
    monthly ad spend across all projectsMore than ten projects
  • $106K
    largest account in one monthGoogle Ads, May 2026. Screenshot below
  • ×33
    Meta budget growthCompare The Carrier: $300 → $10,000/month in six months
  • 15% → 60%
    Compare The Carrier profitabilityGrew along with the budget
  • $10 → $7
    Google Ads cost per leadCompare The Carrier, after rebuilding the campaigns
  • ROAS 8-9
    MOMO Professional, gel polishMeta Ads, online store in Turkey. Case below
  • 50+
    projects over my careerRunning ads since 2018

One account, one month. It shows scale and stability. Results in another project depend on the product, the market and the budget.

03 / Advertising workChannels follow the task

I build campaigns around the business economics.

First we agree on what counts as a result: a sale, a lead, revenue or payback. Then I pick the channels, the campaign structure and the budget.

Channels

  • Google Searchkeywords, ads and negative keywords
  • Performance Maxsignals, feeds, channel control
  • Shoppingcatalogs and product priorities
  • Displayreach and remarketing
  • YouTubein-stream, Shorts, video funnel
  • UACinstalls and in-app events
  • Meta Adsvisual campaigns and remarketing
  • TikTok Adscreative for each format and funnel stage

Business goals

  • Salese-commerce tracking through revenue
  • Leadsforms, Direct, WhatsApp and Telegram
  • Reachfrequency control and a clear role for each channel
  • Personal brandfrom first inquiries to a steady flow
  • Retargetingseparate audiences for each funnel stage
  • Growth planhypotheses and budget for 3 to 6 months

Analytics

If a lead never reaches analytics, the ad account never sees it.

I set up tracking for leads, sales and revenue. GA4, GTM, Clarity, Hotjar and Looker Studio connect ad data with what happens on the site.

I completed a professional GA4 course at CXL.

  • GA4 e-commerceproducts, revenue, transactions
  • GTMtags, events, QA
  • Merchant Center / Meta Catalogfeeds and product catalogs
  • App eventsinstalls and in-app actions
  • Forms / messengersleads from forms and messengers
  • Server-side / cross-domaina fuller user journey
  • Clarity / Hotjarbehavior maps and heatmaps
  • Looker StudioKPI reports the business can read
04 / Brand experienceIn-house, agency and direct work

Brands and teams I have worked with.

The roles varied: in-house work, agency projects and direct work with clients. The timeline below shows where and in what role.

  • VAFO
  • Varus
  • YASNO
  • Ukrtelecom
  • USYK-17
  • BRSM-Nafta
  • WOG
  • Cemark / CRH
  • Suzuki
  • U4U
  • DTEK
  • FUIB
  • Rinat Akhmetov Foundation
  • Compare The Carrier
  • Consolline
  • KOSKA

Numbers and results are in the cases.

05 / Four casesChallenge → actions → outcome

Each case uses the metric that fits the work.

In logistics that means cost per lead, in an online store return on ad spend, at a clinic phone calls, in retail scale. Every case comes with a screenshot from the ad account.

Compare The Carrier

Google Ads + Meta Ads

Launched Meta from scratch: $300 to $10,000 a month in six months.

×33 Meta budget

Compare The Carrier Meta Ads screenshot for August 2026, the main one of three accounts: leads, cost per lead and daily budget for three active campaignsOpen the full screenshot
Meta Ads, August 2026, the main one of three accounts: 962 website leads at $6.30 on average.
Challenge
The company had no Meta ads. The job was to launch the channel and scale it without raising the cost per lead, and to bring the Google Ads cost per lead down.
What I did
Started with a $300 trial, then built a network of three ad accounts with the same cost per lead. In Google Ads I audited the account and rebuilt the campaigns.
Outcome
Meta budget: $300 → $10,000/month in six months. Google Ads cost per lead: $10 → $7. Profitability: 15% → 60%.

MOMO Professional

Meta Ads + website

Launched sales through Meta from zero. ROAS holds at 8-9.

8-9 ROAS

MOMO Professional Meta Ads screenshot for June 2026: ROAS for each campaignOpen the full screenshot
June 2026 as an example: 312 purchases on TL 80.7K in spend, average ROAS 8.1. The product catalog campaign reached ROAS 13.7.
Challenge
The gel polish brand had no website and no Meta ads. Online sales had to start from zero.
What I did
Organized the website launch, connected the product catalog and built the Meta advertising. I have run it ever since, and we have worked together for three years.
Outcome
Average ROAS holds at 8-9: every TL 100K in ads brings TL 800-900K in sales.

YMD Medical

Google Ads + call tracking

The clinic's first ads. Calls started in the first month.

161 inquiries

YMD Medical Google Ads screenshot for August 2026: conversions, cost per conversion and spendOpen the full screenshot
Google Ads, August 2026: 161 conversions at UAH 156, UAH 25.1K spent. In the full screenshot the chart starts at zero: the ads went live on August 3, 2026.
Open the breakdown: calls, callbacks and forms by campaign
Challenge
The clinic had never advertised before. We had to start from zero and see right away how many calls and bookings the ads brought in.
What I did
Chose the services to start with, gave feedback on the landing pages, set up call and form tracking, and built the campaigns. The ads went live on August 3, 2026.
Outcome
161 inquiries from August 3 to 27 at UAH 156 each: 84 tracked calls, 20 booking requests from the website, 4 callback requests and 53 inquiries from searches for the clinic's name.

Varus

Google Ads, agency contractor

I run Google Ads for the Varus supermarket chain.

245K UAH in 24 days

Varus Google Ads screenshot for September 1 to 24, 2026: spend and average cost per clickOpen the full screenshot
Google Ads, September 1 to 24, 2026. The full screenshot shows the account and my access. I don't publish the campaign table because the project goes through the agency.
Challenge
Bring shoppers to weekly promotions across regions and support new store openings.
What I do
I work as an independent contractor for an agency: the agency handles communication with the client, and I handle campaign setup and management. The work covers Performance Max for regional promotions and separate campaigns for store openings.
Scale
September 1 to 24, 2026: 9.26M impressions, UAH 245K spent, average cost per click UAH 2.62.

Screenshots come straight from the ad accounts. Account numbers are hidden, and for Compare The Carrier the campaign names are hidden too. Open any screenshot to see it in full.

06 / CredentialsGoogle Partner and Skillshop

Google Partner and active certifications.

You can check the Partner status and both certificates through the links. Validity dates are on the documents.

Google Partner

Google Partner

Sarafunka is a Google Partner. The badge links to the public profile in Google Partners.

  • Official Google Partners profile
  • Skillshop certifications: Search, Display, Apps and Shopping
  • Status verified through Google's link
Illia Filimonov's Google Ads Search certificateGoogle Ads SearchValid until September 24, 2027Verify certificate ↗Illia Filimonov's Google Ads Display certificateGoogle Ads DisplayValid until September 24, 2027Verify certificate ↗Illia Filimonov's Google Ads Apps certificateGoogle Ads AppsValid until September 21, 2027Verify certificate ↗Illia Filimonov's AI-Powered Shopping ads certificateAI-Powered Shopping adsValid until September 21, 2027Verify certificate ↗

All four Skillshop certifications were issued in September 2026 and are valid for one year.

07 / CareerSince 2018

Where I gained experience and what I owned.

From my own online store to national brands and direct work with clients.

Current roles

  • –presentin parallel

    Compare The Carrier

    Traffic Acquisition Manager. US logistics, Meta scaling and a large media budget.

  • –presentin parallel

    Vyava

    PPC Specialist. 30+ campaigns running at once for performers and events.

  • –presentin parallel

    Gradus Research

    PPC consultant. GDN, UAC and Meta for respondent recruitment.

Show earlier roles (8)

Earlier roles

  • –in parallel

    SAI - someartin

    Team Lead, PPC & Creative. Led an in-house team of 11.

  • –in parallel

    Media Partnership Buying

    PPC and programmatic for FUIB, DTEK, VAFO, Varus and other brands.

  • –in parallel

    YASNO

    Web Analyst & PPC Specialist. GA4, GTM and campaigns for a national energy brand.

  • –in parallel

    Ukrtelecom

    PPC Specialist. Google Ads and Facebook for B2B and B2C.

  • –in parallel

    Consolline

    PPC Specialist. Campaigns in Ukraine, Poland and Moldova, with GA4 and Looker Studio.

  • –in parallel

    KUBE Tech

    Head of Marketing. Built marketing from scratch: Google Ads, TikTok, Meta, CRM and chatbots.

  • –in parallel

    Freelance

    Local services, e-commerce, 3D printing and Usyk. Several projects at once.

  • –

    Site-OK

    SEO Specialist. Saw from the inside how an agency handles keyword research and client briefs.

Some roles ran in parallel: in-house work alongside projects.

I ran my first campaigns in 2018 for my own online store. In 2022 and 2023 I took short project contracts with the Inweb, Svitsoft and UAWC agencies.

08 / Working together

You talk to me, not a chain of managers.

I dig into the task, choose the strategy, make the budget calls and walk you through the results myself. When the work needs design, video or development, I bring in specialists for that specific job.

At an agencyThe brief goes through an account manager, and who runs your account depends on who is free.
At SarafunkaYou discuss the work and the results with the person running your ads. I don't hand off strategy or control.
09 / First stepStart with an audit

Start with a review of your current account.

Send a few lines about the product, the budget and what worries you. I will look at the trend, the tracking and the places where money goes out without results.

  1. 01

    Tell me about the task

    What you sell, which channels you use, your budget and what isn't working.

  2. 02

    I review the campaigns

    Within 2 to 3 days I go through the account, the trend and the conversion setup.

  3. 03

    We go over the findings

    A 20 to 30 minute call: what to fix now and what to test next.

Basic audit

A first look at the account

Free
  • Trend and anomalies over the last 3 months
  • Analytics and conversion goals check
  • Results compared with what you expected
  • What to fix now and what to test next

In-depth audit

Down to keywords and ads

From $100
  • Everything in the basic audit
  • Campaign, keyword and ad analysis
  • What is holding back growth
  • Growth ideas ranked by priority
Management from $350/monthThe exact price depends on the scope and the number of channels. I don't push a long-term contract.
Request an audit on Telegram
10 / QuestionsBefore you get in touch

What people usually ask.

A free audit. What's the catch?

There isn't one. A short review shows whether working together makes sense. You keep the list of issues and next steps even if we stop there.

How do I pay?

By invoice through my Ukrainian sole proprietorship, PayPal or Payoneer. Clients in Ukraine can also pay by card transfer. We agree on the method before we start.

Who handles design and video?

I bring in specialists for the job. I brief them and sign off on their work myself, and strategy and key decisions stay with me.

What if you go on vacation?

I let you know in advance. Together we decide what keeps running, what pauses and when I step in.

We already work with an agency. Why switch?

You don't need to switch right away. An independent audit will show whether there are problems and where results can improve. The decision is yours after that.

Can you handle a large budget?

I currently manage $150K+ a month. The largest account spent $106K in May 2026, and its screenshot is above.

What will the reports include?

GA4, Looker Studio and, if needed, a dashboard for your KPIs. We look at leads, sales, revenue and ROI when those events are tracked correctly. If they aren't, we start by fixing the tracking.

You run several projects. Will you have time for mine?

I take on only as many projects as I can run myself. If yours doesn't fit right now, I'll tell you before we start.

11 / Let's talk about your project

Show me the account. I'll tell you what I'd check first.

A few lines about the product, channels and budget are enough. I'll reply personally and suggest the next step.

Message me on TelegramWhatsAppor email: sarafunka.ppc@gmail.com

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