6 (Tactical) Ways to Improve LinkedIn Ad Performance
We set up a test campaign on LinkedIn. And we waited.
Lo and behold, a LinkedIn rep reached out and offered his tips and strategies for the best bang-for-buck. We totally took him up on it.
Thank you for your wisdom, Bret.
Here are 6 tips from our LinkedIn ad rep on optimizing your ad spend:
1) Aim for a target audience size between 50k and 500k
Like all modern day sophisticated ad platforms, there are a dizzying amount of targeting parameters. Based on what you select, LI’s ad platform will show you how it sizes the market in the right-hand column:
If your goal is to promote content like a recent blog post, Bret recommended adding parameters that limit your audience size to a range between 50,000 to 500,000 – with the caveat that more targeted within that range is better.
Should you check the box titled ‘Enabling Audience Expansion’?
Bret gave us this rule: it’s fine to start with this if you’re not totally dialed in on a good target audience. LinkedIn will take some liberties on who it shows your ads too.
As you get more specific and dial things in, it’s best to leave it unchecked so that you’re keeping things focused and targeted.
Bonus tip from Bret: Always use the LinkedIn’s full campaign manager tool. Even if you just plan on boosting an organic post, click on the target in the corner and use LI’s full ad suite vs. just boosting it on the spot.
2) Spend a minimum of $50 – $100 per day
(or at least $1k month)
Now, this is a tip from a LI sales rep. So take it with a grain of salt. Or two grains. Or two hundred grains.
But we’ve known for a while that LinkedIn is a pricier, premium PPC channel.
You can target based on job titles and industries on a platform that serves as a second resume for most B2B audiences – and those added perks mean more expensive.
In order to see good results, Bret recommended we spend in the range of $50 – $100 per day. Or zoomed out: between $1k – $2k per month.
Bonus tip from our PPC Managers: If you’re just getting started with PPC, Facebook offers a cheaper path to scaling PPC and seeing a healthy return (for most audiences). Run that for a few cycles first, then consider layering on spend for LI.
3) Upload & Target Your Email List
Like all reliable PPC platforms, LinkedIn offers retargeting.
Retargeting is an excellent way to provide additional marketing touches by showing ads to a warmer audience. They’ve heard of you. They know you. They’ll respond better to your ads.
>>Learn more about Retargeting<<
LinkedIn provides an easy way for you to retarget your email list with ads:
Find a full tutorial here.
By uploading your own list, you can use LinkedIn as a paid channel to put ads in front of your email subscribers, and remind them just how great you are.
4) Install LI Insight Tag
The Insight Tag is a little piece of Javascript code you can add to your website for better campaign reporting and actual conversion tracking.
If you’re trying to get people to your website or fill out a form, it’s a no-brainer for more transparency on how your ad spend is going.
Find out more about the Insight Tag
The LinkedIn Insight tag also allows you to retarget web visitors, which can dramatically improve the performance of your ads.
Grab a developer or add via Google Tag Manager, and you’re on your way.
5) Create and Test 5 Versions of Ad Imagery
This is not news to any marketers in the room. There’s always been pressure to A/B test, then A/B test that, then A/B test that, into infinity and beyond.
But when you’re spending a lot on ads, it’s worth finding what works best. You can add up to five different versions of creative to a campaign, and Bret recommended we use all five. His rationale:
It generates a higher frequency. It generates a better click-through rate (CTR). It lowers cost per click (CPC). It lowers our CPM (cost per mil). It essentially maximizes your ad’s potential reach each day and generates better results.
Bonus Tip: Keep your ad copy under 150 characters so that you avoid getting cut off by a “…” and “see more” like we first did.
6) Keep the same campaign running.
Just swap out the creative.
For a campaign focused on content promotion (and therefore: “Website Visits” as the LI goal), Bret recommends keeping the same campaign running, and swapping out the content and offers periodically.
That means you can keep your content in front of the same audience. You can keep the same targeting parameters. You can keep the same cadence. And you can still promote different content and offers when you publish them.
How’s your PPC going? Feel like you could be getting better ROI?
Spending money on pay-per-click advertising can be frustrating if it’s not pouring in new leads. You want results. You want your money to be spent wisely. You want your marketing to work. We want it to, too.
