Have you considered using LinkedIn as a way to promote your business? LinkedIn is an emerging network for business professionals to connect and share ideas. What’s great about using LinkedIn to advertise is that you can target specific industries, job titles, and companies by size. You can also narrow it down by location. Not sure if LinkedIn is right for your company? Check out this article that explains popular social media platforms and what companies will benefit the most from having those platforms. Here is a quick run through of creating your first LinkedIn Campaign.
You will need to decide if you are going to run an Ad or a Sponsored Update
What is the difference between the two?
1. LinkedIn Ad- Target an audience with an advertisement. You have a limit on characters and can add images. You usually see ads located in the bottom right of your LinkedIn news feed; highlighted in yellow on
the image below.
2. Sponsored Update- Promote a status update that you have shared on your company page. This will help you increase your followers and get social engagements on your post. You can distinguish a paid post by the sponsored text above the post; highlighted in yellow on the image below.
Because sponsoring a post is the same as posting an update and there are no real limitations, for this tutorial I will only be discussing the first option of a LinkedIn Ad. Depending on the goal of your advertisement with LinkedIn, one might be better suited. With sponsored post, you can target your audience that same way as an advertisement, so you can refer to this tutorial if you encounter any issues.
Step 1
Name the Campaign
The campaign name is what you will see when you look at your dashboard. This is only visible to campaign administrators. Don’t make the mistake of using a generic name such as “Advertisement 1”. Try using something that helps you identify what the ad was an who you are targeting. For example, if NetSource was going to advertise website redesigns to small businesses in FL, we would use “Small Business Owners in FL-Website Redesign”
Step 2
Identify Language and Media Type
Depending on your target audience, you might select a different language. Once you start a campaign, you will not be able to change the language, so make sure you are set in your selection.
You can also choose between an image or a video for your ad. The only variation of steps is to link to a YouTube video versus uploading an image.
Step 3
Create the Text for your Ad
Are you going to send them to your site, landing page, or your company’s LinkedIn page? This is determined by your goal of the campaign. You will want to send them to your LinkedIn page if you are trying to increase your followers. If you want to have them purchase or sign up for something, your website is a better fit.
Below is everything that needs to be filled out. This is also where you will insert the image for your advertisement. Play around with the description and headline. There is an Ad preview that allows you to see what your ad would look like.
You also have the option to create variations of your Ads. This is a great tool for A/B testing to get the best performance out of your money.
Step 4
Target the Audience for your Campaign
There are a lot of different options when you are deciding who to target. The first one is location. You can narrow it down by continents, country, and all the way down to a local geographical area. After you have selected your location, you then can target by company type and job type.
Company type lets your target specifically by a certain company or company category like industry or company size.
If you have a specific job title that your product or services fit, you have that option. When narrowing down by Job Title, you can choose a specific title or choose a category like job function and job level.
Because different companies assign different titles for different job duties, if you can’t find the specific job title, I would recommend using the category option like the example below. You can also see how many LinkedIn members your ad has the potential to reach.
Step 5
How are you going to be charge for the campaign?
You have two options to choose from when deciding how you want to be charged. Again, this is going to be based on your goal of the campaign.
- Cost per Click- If you are trying to have someone click to your website and purchase or sign up for something this is the best option. This way, you will only be charge when someone takes action.
- Cost per 1,000 Impressions- This is a great way to build brand awareness and LinkedIn followers.
You also have the option on how long your campaign should run.
Please note, LinkedIn does not give you the option to adjust your bid after you launch the campaign. This really limits you to make edits to your campaign. You need to be sure you are willing to pay that much for a click, but also that it is enough to have your ad shown to LinkedIn members.
Lead collection is another way to gather information about the people clicking your advertisements. This is optional, and is varies greatly by services and products. You can learn more here.
You can review everything that you just selected on the right hand of your screen If everything looks right, you can click “Launch campaign”. This will place your campaign under review. This usually take anywhere from 12-24 hours to either be accepted or rejected. If you campaign is accepted, it will just automatically start. The best way to keep track of your LinkedIn Ad’s progress is to book mark your dashboard and check back frequently.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions about this tutorial on LinkedIn Ads. NetSource Technology has experience in running successful LinkedIn campaigns and can assist you with starting your campaign, as well as proving strategy documents to help increase your campaigns effectiveness.
Our team can be reach at 1.800.709.3240 or email us at [email protected]