1. What is LinkedIn Ads?
LinkedIn Ads is a self-service advertising solution that allows you to create and place ads on prominent pages on the LinkedIn.com website. People click on your ads and visit your website. You specify which LinkedIn members view your ads by selecting a target audience: by job title, job function, industry, geography, age, gender, company name, company size, or LinkedIn Group. Control your advertising costs by setting a budget and only pay for the clicks or impressions that you receive. Get started today.
2. How do I get started?
All you need is a LinkedIn Account and a credit card to get started:
- Create an ad – write your ad in minutes using a LinkedIn account
- Select a target audience – determine which LinkedIn members should see your ad
- Set your budget and bid – set a maximum amount you want to spend and how much you’re willing to pay for clicks or impressions
Your ad will be reviewed by a member of our customer support team, usually within 24 hours. If your ad meets our guidelines and is approved, it will become active on the LinkedIn.com website.
3. How will my ads look?
Ads consists of these elements:
- Headline (up to 25 characters of text)
- Description (up to 75 characters of text)
- From: (your name or any company)
- Image: (50x50 pixel image)
- URL (website people visit once they click on your ad)
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Example ad:
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A text-only version of the ad may be shown in locations such as the top of the LinkedIn.com home page. For tips on how to create effective ads, review our Best Practices.
4. Where will my ads be shown?
Your ads will be eligible to appear on a variety of prominent pages on the LinkedIn.com website. Your ads may appear in various positions on any or all of the pages listed below:
- Profile Page (when users view the profile of other LinkedIn members)
- Home Page (the page that users see when they log in to LinkedIn)
- Inbox (the page where users see messages and invitations to connect)
- Search Results Page (the page that results when you search for a member by name)
- Groups (on pages in LinkedIn Groups)
An Example: On a user's Home Page, (1) your ad text may appear in a single line across the top of the page or (2) both your image and ad text may appear with up to 2 other ads in the rectanglular ad unit in the right column of the page.
The number of times your ad will be displayed depends on a variety of factors including your budget, bid, and your ad’s click-through rate (CTR).
5. Who will see my ads?
Your ads will be displayed to LinkedIn members who meet your targeting criteria. Targeting an advertisement means narrowing the scope of members that are eligible to view your advertisement. Your targeting options include:
Target By: |
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Examples: |
Job Title |
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“Patent Attorney” or “Sr. Laboratory Technician” or "Registered Nurse" |
Job Function |
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“Sales” or “Engineering” or "Marketing" functions |
Industry |
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“Banking” or “Biotechology” industries |
Geography |
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“United States” or “Netherlands” or “Toronto” |
Company Size |
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"1-10" or “500-1000" people |
Company Name |
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"GE" or "Hewlett-Packard" or "FedEx" |
Seniority |
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“Vice President” or “Owners” |
Age |
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“18-24” or “35-54” |
Gender |
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"Female" or "Male" |
LinkedIn Group |
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"Business Intelligence Group" or "Corporate Real Estate" |
Tip: To explore the various targeting options, sign in to create an ad. (Your ad can be a draft ad. It will not be posted to the website until you enter a valid credit card). On the next page, you'll be able to see the various targeting options and an estimate of the audience size you'll be able to reach.
6. How much does it cost?
Controlling your costs
You control how much you spend each day by selecting a bid and setting a daily budget, which represents the most that you’re willing to spend each day. You can set your budget as low as $10 or as high as $1,000 or more. You can start and pause your ads at any time.
Pay per click (CPC) or per 1,000 impressions (CPM)
There are two options for how to pay for your ads: Pay per Click (CPC) and Pay per 1,000 Impressions (CPM). Most people choose CPC, which means that you pay when someone clicks on your ad. This payment method allows you to specify a bid – the maximum amount you’re willing to pay for each click (for example, $3.00 per click).
Each click will cost between $2.00 (the minimum cost per click) and your bid.
As you are creating your ad, we will show you a Suggested Bid Range that represents an estimate of the current competing bids by other advertisers targeting the same audience. In general, the higher you bid in the Suggested Bid Range, the more likely you are to receive impressions and clicks. Because you’re competing with other advertisers for impressions and clicks, there isn’t a set cost for LinkedIn Ads.
If you’re less interested in clicks and care more about the number of times your ad is shown, you can choose to Pay per 1,000 impressions (CPM). In this payment option, you pay a set cost for each 1,000 times your ad is shown, no matter how many clicks you receive. We only recommend this bidding option for people with past experience advertising on a CPM basis.
Estimating your costs
You can estimate your costs after you create your first ad and select a target audience. When you reach the page: “Set your budget and bid,” you’ll see a Suggested Bid Range for the target audience you’ve selected. Look at the Suggested Bid and determine how much you’re willing to spend for a click. Multiply that amount by the number of clicks that you’d like to receive each day to determine your approximate Daily Budget.
For example, if you want 10 clicks each day and want to spend at most $3.00 per click, you would set your daily budget at $30/day.
7. How will I be charged?
We require a credit card to bill you for the advertising charges that you incur. As you accrue ad charges on your account, your credit card will be charged on a periodic basis. You will not be billed in advance for advertising charges. The frequency that we charge depends on your daily budget and the accumulation of those charges, which may vary day to day. You may see charges on your credit card on a daily or weekly basis.
8. How will I be charged if I have a promotional coupon?
If you start advertising with a promotional coupon, LinkedIn Ads will deduct your advertising charges from the promotional credit balance until the credit has been fully used. You are responsible for all charges in excess of the promotional credit.
Note: Customers that redeem promotional coupons are still subject to the one-time $5 activation fee for starting a LinkedIn Ads account.
9. Is there a minimum spending requirement?
There is no minimum weekly, monthly or annual spend requirement. There are no long-term contracts. You are in control over how much you spend and how long your ads run. At any time, you can log into the LinkedIn Ads Dashboard to Turn Off or Turn On your campaigns. You can also set a campaign end date and your ad campaigns will stop on that date.
10. Is there an activation fee to get started?
To get started, we charge a one-time $5 activation fee that is intended to cover the initial clicks/impressions that result after the ad has been approved and posted. Once the $5 credit is depleted, you will be billed periodically for the clicks/impressions that your ad incurs. Please note that fees will be assessed for clicks/impressions through the end date of the advertising campaign or until you manually turn your campaign off through the LinkedIn Ads Dashboard.
11. In what languages can I place my ads?
Currently, we only allow ads to be written in English. However, these English-language ads can be targeted and shown to LinkedIn members in over 50 countries including North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.
12. How do I learn more about LinkedIn Ads?
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