Whether we are talking about B2B or B2C, the aim is always the same: to acquire contacts from potential customers who show interest in the product or service. However, on social selling platforms , not all contacts lead to the expected results, therefore it is necessary to refine the aim of the business objectives. LinkedIn Ads , a well-known web marketing tool, does not hide its algorithmic power to reach a highly specific audience of professionals and decision makers from various market sectors.
“With these campaigns, we can know exactly who this job title is that’s in front of this ad, and what company they’re at. And it makes our job of finding these people much easier.”
Trey Buchanan Senior Manager at Metric Theory
LinkedIn, with its 850 million users from 200 different countries, stands as the social media with the largest user base available. Among its members, according to the latest estimate carried out by Digimind, there are 63 million decision makers , 10 million managers and 17 million opinion leaders . “Business-to-Business” already shows the affinity to a platform that is also suitable for professionals. In fact, the vast majority of decision makers allow companies to intercept and reach market segments of their interest and generate quality traffic and conversions . “Quality matters!” In order to develop a sales funnel and therefore channel the user’s interest into the funnel, companies implement that marketing process called Lead Generation .
The latter, known as a strategy set up by webmasters to generate profits, is much more: a constantly evolving conversion process which aims to generate qualified sales leads.
But, “all that glitters is not gold”…
In fact, not all contacts are qualified contacts . The meaning “qualified” implies: the customer’s interest in your product/service, the willingness to evaluate the offer, the presence of trust in you and in the benefits of your product or service, in response to your need.
Generating qualified leads means attracting and acquiring potential customers who have demonstrated a certain level of interest in the company or its sector, and can represent a real business opportunity. In this process, the user is attracted by a post or other action and begins his journey within the funnel. Subsequently, through lead acquisition and lead nurturing actions , the funnel narrows and the user not only completes the purchase but becomes loyal.
The main goal of generating qualified leads is to create a base of potential customers who can be converted into actual customers over time. For this reason, it is important that marketing efforts are always aimed at creating relevant content and offersand high quality , which respond to the needs and desires of the target audience.
By doing so, companies can build their reputation and retain their customers, thus generating a steady stream of revenue and long-term growth opportunities.
LinkedIn Ads: come fare advertising su LinkedIn
To set up a Lead Generation campaign on LinkedIn you need a paid marketing tool, made available by LinkedIn itself: LinkedIn-Ads. Ads are the panacea for every company’s marketing objectives, finding the ideal “prospects”. Only thanks to them, it is possible to exploit the algorithmic strength of the platform to direct it to business purposes.
Nonetheless, LinkedIn Ads should not be confused or associated with other social selling tools that facilitate lead generation such as Sales Navigator and LinkedIn Premium .
Sponsoring on LinkedIn means doing interruptive advertising, as happens on the other Meta platforms but with a substantial difference in the destination: the audience is more receptive, populated by people who want to network on a professional level.
It is no coincidence that it is defined as the ideal platform for B2B Lead Generation.
Modern B2B buyers will expect providers to be present and proactive at every moment of their journeys, in all of their preferred channels and touchpoints.”
Forrester Research, ”What B2B Buyers Crave, 2020
The adverts created within the platform, rather than redirecting the user to a website or landing page, allow you to collect valuable data directly from the LinkedIn Campaign Manager contained in the LinkedIn Business Manager. The information is collected via a contact form that appears as a pop-up once you have clicked on the advert. In this way, LinkedIn retrieves data directly from the user profile, thus knowing the name, surname, email address, company and job performed. Accepted and not granted, acceptance of checkboxes relating to privacy.
“The die is cast.”
And you and your company will have obtained a profiled lead. Detailed target profiling is the core of this professional platform.
How to obtain qualified leads: different types of strategies
In order to better analyze this type of strategy we must have a clear general overview: therefore let’s make a brief excursus on what marketing strategies can be implemented to generate qualified contacts.
Inbound marketing : Attract potential customers with useful and informative content, such as blog posts, guides, e-books, webinars, video tutorials, podcasts, etc. This content needs to be optimized for search engines and shared on social media to increase its visibility.
Online Advertising : Use paid ads on Google, social media like Facebook and LinkedIn, or other online advertising platforms to reach specific audiences. These ads can be targeted based on different criteria, such as age, gender, interest, online behavior, etc.
Email marketing: Send personalized, relevant emails to potential customers who have provided their email address. These emails may contain special offers, exclusive content, event invitations, and more, in order to drive recipient interest and engagement.
Lead magnet : Offer something of value for free in exchange for contacting the user, such as a guide, white paper, online course, etc. This allows you to acquire the contacts of people interested in your products or services, who could then be converted into actual customers.
If the question arises spontaneously as to why LinkedIn, continue reading…
The 15 Benefits of LinkedIn: Voices from B2B
The 58 million registered companies demonstrate numerous benefits:
Increased visibility : LinkedIn is a very popular social media platform among professionals and companies, who use it to search for information about other companies, to find potential business partners or to connect with other professionals in the sector. So, creating a company page on LinkedIn and posting relevant content can increase your company’s visibility and attract the attention of potential clients or collaborators.
Increase your online reputation : Being a professional platform, LinkedIn is a great place to build your online reputation. Companies can use LinkedIn to publish high-quality content, such as articles, videos or infographics, that demonstrate their expertise and know-how in certain industries. In this way, companies can build their online reputation, increasing the trust of potential customers and business partners.
Expanding the pool of potential customers : LinkedIn offers numerous advanced targeting options that allow companies to reach their target audience based on various criteria, such as industry, job title, company size, job role, level of experience and education and more.
Detailed target profiling , which allows companies to reach exactly the type of audience that might be interested in their products or services, increasing the chances of acquiring both new and qualified customers.
Lead generation actions : integrated lead generation forms are modules that allow companies to collect user contact data directly from the platform, simplifying the process of acquiring new customers and improving the chances of success. Additionally, LinkedIn Ads offers remarketing options that allow companies to reach users who have already interacted with their website or content on LinkedIn, increasing the chances of conversion.
Customer Loyalty : LinkedIn is a great tool for maintaining relationships with existing customers. Businesses can use LinkedIn to maintain contact with their customers, share updates on products or services, and offer them support. Additionally, LinkedIn offers numerous options to create discussion groups, where customers can share their experiences and suggestions, thus improving the overall customer experience.
Networking : LinkedIn is a great place to build relationships with other companies. By allowing us to enter companies and speak to managers directly, you can personally decide who to create connections with, not surprisingly called connections. The results that can be achieved only occur if a dense network of useful and effective contacts is built.
Updated data : LinkedIn is a professional social network that is mainly used by professionals and companies. This means that user data is up-to-date and accurate, which makes it easier for advertisers to reach the right audiences.
Better targeting for business users : Thanks to LinkedIn’s detailed user data, advertisers can precisely target to reach the right audience. You can target based on several factors, such as location, job title, industry, work experience, and more.
Business-minded : LinkedIn is a professional social network, which means that users have a business-oriented mentality. This means that advertisers can reach audiences who are more interested in business products and services, compared to other social networks.
High-quality leads : Thanks to the precise targeting and business-mindedness of LinkedIn users, advertisers can generate high-quality leads. These leads are more likely to be interested in the company’s products or services and are more likely to become customers.
Creating Authentic Ads : With so many connections promoting their business on LinkedIn day to day, an ad promoting a social event, webinar, or product can feel quite organic and authentic, and not like spam. This means that advertisers can create ads that are more engaging and attract users’ attention.
High Conversion Rate : LinkedIn is a professional platform that focuses on business users. This means that advertising campaigns on LinkedIn have a higher B2B conversion rate than other advertising platforms.
Increased purchase intent : LinkedIn users are more likely to be interested in business products or services, which means that advertising campaigns on this platform can increase the audience’s purchase intent.
Security and Reliability : LinkedIn is a secure and reliable platform that has a high reputation. Advertisers can be confident that their ads will be seen by a qualified audience and that there will be no security or privacy issues.
LinkedIn Ads per B2B: best practice
You write LinkedIn, you read opportunit-à: after the 15 benefits listed, are you still thinking if it’s worth it?
We don’t, so below you’ll find some best practices to follow for integrating LinkedIn Ads into your B2B strategy.
Define goals and budget
Before creating the advertising campaign, companies must define the marketing objectives they wish to achieve. For example, the goal might be to generate qualified leads, increase sales, or improve company visibility. Don’t forget to define the maximum amount that the company is willing to spend on the advertising campaign.
Identify your target audience
Who does your ad want to reach? Here’s the first question you need to ask yourself before even finalizing the ad. LinkedIn offers many advanced targeting options, including targeting by company, industry, job title, seniority, interests, and much more. This way, you can create an ad that speaks directly to the people you want to reach and who are most likely to be interested in your product or service.
Create effective ads
Ads must be created carefully, taking into account the needs and interests of the target audience. LinkedIn Ads can be of different types, including sponsored content, sponsored messaging, and sponsored InMail. It’s important to choose the type of ad (text, image, or sponsored video) that best suits your company’s goals and the desires of your target audience.
Define your ad placement
Select where you want your ad to appear, such as the LinkedIn homepage, profile pages, company pages, and other specific places on the platform.
Use retargeting
Retargeting is a marketing technique that allows you to reach people who have already interacted with your website or content. LinkedIn Ads offers the ability to create ads that are shown only to people who have visited your website or who
Use retargeting
Retargeting is a marketing technique that allows you to reach people who have already interacted with your website or content. LinkedIn Ads offers the ability to create ads that are shown only to people who have visited your website or interacted with your LinkedIn profile. This type of targeting is particularly effective because you are reaching an audience that already knows about your company and may be more inclined to take an action, such as requesting information or purchasing a product or service.
Test and optimize ads
As with any other form of online advertising, it’s important to test ads to see which ones work best. LinkedIn Ads offers the ability to create multiple variations of an ad and test them to see which generates the best conversion rate. It’s also important to regularly monitor your ad metrics, such as click-through rate, conversion rate, and cost per click, and make any necessary adjustments to optimize your campaign.
Coordinate ads with content strategy
LinkedIn Ads should be integrated into the company’s content strategy. This means that ads should coordinate with other content the company creates, such as blog posts or video tutorials. This creates a cohesive experience for your target audience, which can help improve the effectiveness of your ads.
Constantly monitor results and measure revenues
Measuring revenue and performance is important to evaluate the effectiveness of LinkedIn advertising campaigns. By measuring the impact of advertising campaigns on LinkedIn it is possible to make any changes to improve the results. The most used tools to measure the results of advertising campaigns on LinkedIn are:
LinkedIn Campaign Manager to understand campaign effectiveness: This tool provides a variety of useful metrics for evaluating LinkedIn advertising campaigns, including cost per click, cost per lead, click-through rate, and conversion rate.
Tracking code to measure revenue and performance of advertising campaigns: This code allows you to track user actions, such as purchasing a product or requesting more information, and associate them with the specific advertising campaign.
Site traffic analysisweb to measure the impact of advertising campaigns on website revenue and performance. Using traffic analysis tools like Google Analytics, you can monitor website traffic, conversions, and sales associated with LinkedIn advertising campaigns.
Final thoughts
In light of what you have just read, the boom that LinkedIn is experiencing in Business-to-Business companies is undeniable.
Its surgical ability to procure targeted and quality leads is unmatched by any other social media.
However, any action outside of an integrated strategy is fragmented and isolated. For the most competitive sectors, the secret weapon is certainly a personalized digital strategy .
Therefore, it’s time to start planning to boost your business.
We are ready to transform your expected results into real ones.
And you ?
