Advertising–no matter the medium used–is a delicate balancing act between art and science. LinkedIn, with 722 million members in 2022, is a large and powerful networking platform–and is particularly beneficial for companies whose target audience is professionals.
In this article, we’ll dive into the art and science of LinkedIn advertising and how you can use it to drive growth for your education company.
STEP 1: Choose your ad objective
Every successful marketing strategy begins with an intended end goal. Without establishing this goal, the strategies and performance metrics you put in place will likely end up lacking clarity and a definite purpose.
LinkedIn’s campaign manager offers 3 options:
Awareness
campaigns that are meant to introduce you and the value you offer to audiences who do not know you. Think of awareness campaigns as your elevator pitch.
Consideration
campaigns designed for leads that have already been exposed to your brand. Consideration campaigns are meant to get prospects to perform an action typically leading to an increase in:
- Website traffic
- Video views
- Engagement (likes, comments, shares)
Here, your focus should be on getting your prospects familiar with what you do (that’s relevant to the needs of your audience) and how you do it better than others.
Conversion
campaigns that are intended for lead generation and creating sales. These are more specific and targeted than others because they’re suitable for audiences who:
- already know of you and your services
- are aware of their need for said services
STEP 2: Choose your audience
Since you’ve already set a goal, the next step is to establish who you want to reach and see your ads. One of the biggest defining factors to your success in LinkedIn advertising is the quality of your targeting.
Here are LinkedIn’s recommended best practices for audience targeting:
Set up the right parameters
What about your ideal audience sets them apart from the rest of LinkedIn users? Is it their age, job title, skills, industry, or interest?
Test regularly
Zeroing in on what works and doesn’t with your ads involves having performance data. Conduct A/B testing and get information on your audience’s behavior and preferences by creating two campaigns that are the same except for one variable. This way, if one ad works better than the other, you’ll know exactly why.
STEP 3: Choose your ad type
LinkedIn offers different types of ad placement options including:
Sponsored Content
These are ads that show up in your audience’s feed, both on mobile and desktop. Sponsored Content lets you work with single-image ads, videos, or carousel-type content.
Sponsored Messaging
Previously known as Sponsored InMail, these are ads that your audience receives directly in their LinkedIn inbox. And because these ads are delivered in a less busy environment, you get more opportunities to stand out.
Dynamic Ads
Using a personalization tech, dynamic ads let you customize your creatives so they feature and involve your target audience.
As seen in the image, you’ll have very little room for text when using dynamic ads. This makes them the perfect vehicle for A/B testing to help you experiment with what message lands a homerun with your audience.
Text Ads
These are ads that appear on the top or right-hand side of users’ LinkedIn feeds. Text ads are best for boosting awareness and lead generation.
STEP 4: Measure and analyze performance
Hooray–your ads are live and running! Here’s where the actual work begins. Once your campaigns begin generating data, you’ll want to keep analyzing and adjusting your strategies to continuously create better results that will sustain your growth.
LinkedIn remains the superior social media platform for companies that are service-centric or targeting B2B customers. In fact, it’s been reported that LinkedIn is the primary revenue driver for B2B marketers using social media advertising.
Want to take your growth to the next level through LinkedIn ads? At Grow Enrollments, we specialize in tailoring highly-effective marketing strategies that fit you best. Talk to us today!
