AJ Wilcox, a recognized leader who's managed over $200 million in LinkedIn ads shared with us his playbook on how to optimize Linkedin ads.
AJ explained that LinkedIn’s defaults actively work against advertisers. Novice users who stick with the platform’s default campaign settings often face exorbitant costs per click, easily ranging between $20 to $40. AJ’s clients, by contrast, average around $7-8 per click, a stark testament to the need for expertise in navigating these settings. The takeaway here was crystal clear: LinkedIn requires intentional strategy.
One key story AJ shared early in our conversation resonated deeply. At his previous role in a pre-IPO SaaS company, AJ applied his existing Google Ads skills to LinkedIn advertising. The immediate success was palpable; his sales team reported fighting over leads within two weeks. This highlighted a key takeaway: while LinkedIn ads are expensive, the value of precise targeting means high-quality leads and ultimately, larger deals with higher lifetime value.
Diving deeper, AJ outlined a three-stage funnel strategy critical to successful LinkedIn advertising:
This multi-tiered funnel approach demands different metrics at each stage. At the top, engagement metrics—completion rates, video views—are key indicators of success. The bottom of the funnel, conversely, emphasizes cost per lead and conversion rates. This structured approach underscores the criticality of aligning ad objectives clearly with each stage in the buying journey.
However, AJ highlighted an important caveat: executing this strategy successfully hinges heavily on a company’s ability to produce genuinely valuable thought leadership content. Many businesses, he warned, struggle here. I appreciated AJ’s directness when he underscored that without meaningful content, LinkedIn ads simply wouldn’t yield worthwhile results.
The conversation naturally turned towards content strategies, highlighting AJ’s strong advocacy for ungated content at the top and middle of the funnel. He argued persuasively that gating content too early significantly limits reach and restricts relationship-building opportunities. Instead, he recommended broadly distributing ungated content to establish trust and foster a positive association before asking for deeper commitments. This aligns with a fundamental truth in marketing: building trust precedes successful selling.
An intriguing development AJ highlighted was LinkedIn’s shift towards "thought leader ads." Historically, LinkedIn ads originated from companies, resulting in minimal engagement—less than half a percent click-through rate on average. Now, LinkedIn allows advertisers to boost posts from individual leaders within a company. AJ cited astonishingly improved results, seeing engagement increase tenfold when content originated from individual executives rather than corporate accounts. This reinforced my own belief in the power of authentic human connections in business marketing.
AJ emphasized precision in targeting. He detailed LinkedIn's unmatched ability to target specific job titles, seniority levels, skills, industries, and even specific companies—perfect for account-based marketing. AJ’s example of uploading precise lists of ideal companies and targeting only relevant decision-makers within them was particularly eye-opening. Such refined targeting inevitably leads to higher quality interactions, albeit at higher upfront costs.
Yet, this targeting precision comes with its own financial trade-offs. AJ clearly articulated the balance businesses must strike between hyper-specific targeting, which can drive costs higher, and broader targeting, which reduces costs but risks inefficiency. AJ advised finding a sweet spot—typically an audience size between 20,000 to 100,000—to optimize both cost-efficiency and engagement.
Addressing the ever-important issue of attribution, AJ highlighted the necessity of comprehensive tracking, such as using UTM parameters and integrated CRMs like HubSpot, to measure campaign success. However, he acknowledged the complexity of attribution in a multi-touch environment, emphasizing that successful campaigns require companies to invest in holistic data analytics infrastructure to truly understand cross-channel effectiveness.
Our discussion also touched upon AI’s growing role in marketing. AJ candidly shared his reservations, especially regarding AI-generated "talking heads" and automated messaging. While acknowledging AI’s utility, he passionately argued for the power and authenticity of human-driven content, especially on a platform built for professional connections.
Looking ahead, AJ advised marketers to view LinkedIn as a long-term investment rather than a quick fix, suggesting starting budgets between $5,000 and $10,000 per month for meaningful data insights. He emphasized that iterative optimization across targeting, messaging, and bidding strategies, coupled with consistent, valuable content, is the formula for success.
Our conversation concluded with AJ’s forward-looking perspective, expressing cautious optimism about LinkedIn’s future. He anticipated ongoing enhancements in measurement and attribution tools, driven by LinkedIn’s need to prove its value amidst rising competition and tighter budgets. He encouraged marketers to embrace ongoing experimentation, staying flexible as user behaviors inevitably evolve.
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