LinkedIn conversation ads are an engaging and authentic way to get your brand in front of your target audience. They are also a great way to generate leads.
Before starting a conversation ad campaign, map out your customer journey and identify content that your prospects need throughout each stage. Then tailor your messaging based on that informational need.
1. Getting Started
LinkedIn conversation ads are a unique advertising opportunity that gives you the chance to start a personalized, one-on-one conversation with your target audience. Unlike traditional ads, conversation ads are sent automatically to users based on their interests and the content you share in your campaign. The messages are delivered in a chat-like experience on both desktop and mobile devices.
As a result, they’re often more engaging than other paid messaging formats because you can tailor the conversation to suit your business goals. Whether you’re trying to drive webinar registrations, generate website visits or share a product demo, conversation ads are a great way to reach your business objectives.
The first step is to set up your campaign and select the campaign objective you want to achieve. You can choose from a variety of objectives including website visits, lead generation, conversions or awareness campaigns.
Once you’ve selected your objectives, LinkedIn will guide you through the ad setup process. It will ask you to define your audience by selecting location, job titles, industry and more.
During this process, you’ll also have the option to add conversion tracking to your campaign. This helps you track valuable actions you want your audience to take on your website (like downloading a piece of content, signing up for a webinar or purchasing something).
After you’ve added your conversion tracking, you can start creating your ad. The ad will appear on the home page of LinkedIn and will include all the elements you’ve previously defined in your campaign, such as the message, image and banner.
Next, you’ll choose a sender. You can use a first-degree connection or someone from your own network. If you’re using a first-degree connection, make sure they have permission to send you messages on LinkedIn and that their profile is optimized for visibility.
Once your ad has been created, you’ll be able to see your campaign’s performance in the Campaign Manager dashboard. The dashboard will show you your overall impressions, click-through rate and engagement rate.
2. Identify Your Objectives
Before you start creating your LinkedIn campaign, it’s important to identify your objectives. These will determine which ad formats you should use, bidding strategies, and optimization goals.
Whether you’re looking to drive website visits, build brand awareness, or boost sales, LinkedIn conversation ads are an effective way to get in front of your target audience and increase engagement. These conversations can be extremely personalized and include multiple call-to-actions (CTAs), allowing you to reach your audiences in the most effective ways.
To get started, open Campaign Manager and click Create a new campaign. Select Lead Generation from the objective option and choose a target audience that fits your marketing goals. You can also choose to retarget website visitors or top-performing targets from other LinkedIn campaigns.
Next, you’ll need to define your ad’s name and sender. This is the person that your LinkedIn message will come from, so it’s critical to ensure that you pick someone who is familiar with your business and who will be able to answer any questions your target audience may have.
Finally, decide on the content you’d like to share in your ad. Keep in mind that you should use eye-catching and attention-grabbing visuals, language, and content.
While this may seem like a simple step, it can have a huge impact on the effectiveness of your ad campaign. This includes the copy you’ll use and the type of offer or CTA you’ll include.
Once you’ve defined your ad, the next step is to add your landing page URL and set up your conversion tracking. This allows you to track multiple leads, conversions and website events in one place, making it easier to identify the most effective ways to convert your audience.
Unlike LinkedIn Sponsored InMail, conversation ads are only sent to users that are actively online on the platform, so it’s important to strategically think through your audience targeting options before you begin building your ad campaign. This will help you achieve better results and a higher ROI.
The ad format is designed for real-time interaction and engagement, so it’s critical to test the various conversation ad templates to ensure that you’re getting the best results possible. You can also test the different body copy and offers to find what works best for your business.
3. Create Your Campaign
LinkedIn’s newest advertising format is the conversation ad, which provides a chat-like experience that engages and connects with your audience in real time. The ad is delivered through the LinkedIn Messenger app, and it’s designed to be displayed when the target audience is online on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Conversation Ads are a powerful way to drive leads from your target audience. They are customizable and can be used to increase brand awareness, convert leads into customers, or promote new products.
Before you get started, choose your campaign objective and the audience you want to target. Several targeting options are available, including industry, job function, and location. You can also use top-performing targets from other LinkedIn campaigns or retargeted website visitors.
You’ll also need to set your budget and bids, as well as decide when to start showing your ads. LinkedIn’s ad platform offers a forecaster so you can estimate your costs and performance based on different variables.
Whether you’re using a single-image, video, or carousel ad, it’s important to make sure the creative you choose is relevant to your objectives. For example, Grammarly uses a fun single image ad to generate new leads and show that they’re an expert in their field.
Another impactful LinkedIn ad example is from UiPath, a global software company specializing in automation technology. The ad shares a report that names UiPath as a leader in their field.
This ad is personalized to each user and includes interactive response options, such as clicking to download a whitepaper or requesting an email demo. The ad also displays a link to UiPath’s landing page.
When creating your ad, you’ll need to choose the type of ad (a single-image, video, or carousel), as well as the messaging and destination URLs. Then, write a description that’s relevant to your target audience and your offer or landing page.
When you’re ready to create your ad, you can do so in the LinkedIn Marketing Solutions platform’s Campaign Manager. To do so, click the “Create Campaign” button at the top of the screen. Once you’ve created your ad, you can review it and submit your order.
4. Create Your Ads
LinkedIn is one of the most popular social media platforms for B2B marketers, and conversation ads allow you to engage with your prospects directly in their inboxes. These ads are designed to start a conversation and guide your audience through multiple steps, providing them with a range of options that help you to direct them toward the actions you desire (such as signing up for an ebook or demo).
In order to get started, you will need to select a campaign objective, choose an ad format, and set your budget and bid. You can choose a daily budget for larger audiences or use a total budget for smaller groups. You can also change your bids and target parameters as you go, and LinkedIn will predict how your campaign is expected to perform based on similar campaigns.
As with other online advertising platforms, you can A/B test your ad copy and visuals to find which ones are most successful. This way, you can make changes to your ad one at a time, avoiding a drastic change that could affect the whole campaign.
Your LinkedIn Ad copy should include an actionable CTA that motivates your prospect to take the next step. This can be anything from “Click to download your free e-book” to “Sign up for our weekly email newsletter.”
Adding a strong image is a good idea for these types of ads, but only use desktop images as they will only appear on the platform’s desktop site. You can also leverage banner creative, which is a larger, more eye-catching image that will help your ad stand out from the other ones on the page.
Keep in mind that LinkedIn limits the number of times a member can receive your Sponsored InMail ad, so it’s important to target users who have shown an interest in your product or service. This can be achieved through warm retargeting, a feature that allows you to send targeted messages to people who have already interacted with your company on the platform.
To create a successful ad, be sure to research your target audience and their specific challenges. You can identify the most common issues your prospects face and use those as your basis for creating your messaging. Once you have a clear understanding of your target audience, it’s easier to craft compelling and relevant content that will inspire them to engage with your brand.
