Linkedin Advertising Kitchener - Waterloo

In this article I take a look at what advertising I have done on Linkedin over the five seven months and the corresponding key measures like click through rate and cost per 1000 impressions or CPM.

I have conducted 3 linkedin advertising campaigns to date. The below data is a summation of the data for all 3 campaigns.

Total Impressions = 100,005

Total Clicks = 8

Click Through Rate = 0.008%

Target Audience = 8,867

Impression Per Person = 11.3 times

Total Cost = $97.65

Avg Cost Per Click = $12.21

Cost Per 1000 Impressions = $0.98

Although the above are micro test campaigns and the total amount invested in each is low I think it is clear to see a few things.

1. It is easy to get high ad repetition with your target audience

The simple reason for this is because Linkedin allows you to target by so many factors (location, company size, position, industry, title, seniority, groups, gender and age). This is definitely one of Linkedin's strengths. By allowing for such targeting it can allow you to ensure you only spend marketing money on your target market. There is no waste as a result of your message going to someone who is not within your target.

2. Average cost per click will be high if you are looking for a high number of impressions or clicks

In order to get the impressions for my campaigns up I needed to drastically increase my click bid. When I had a low bid of $2-$4 per click I was only getting about 5,000-6,000 impressions per month. When I was in the $15-$20 dollar range I was getting 35,000-40,000 impressions a week.

3. The average CPM for Linkedin is very low

Take a look at low Linkedin compares to other advertising mediums in terms of cost per 1000 impressions....

Source: Average Infoarcs - Average CPM

It looks like Linkedin may be a low cost advertising method that could have good returns. This is especially true given the high level of targeting you get. The thing is it is hard to know for sure what quality of impact a Linkedin impression really has.

4. The average CPM is better when bidding lower

The other interesting thing is the CPM at different click bids. When I was bidding $2 a click I got 6,000 impressions roughly in a month and spent a total of $2, for a CPM of $0.33. When I was bidding $15-$20 a click I got 38,000 impressions and spend $46.03 in a week for a CPM of $1.21. It appears bidding lower is a better way to get a lower CPM.

The Conclusion

I am skeptical to the amount of people that look at the ads on Linkedin given I don't even hardly notice them. I am also skeptical given the small size and content restrictions. I am not sure given the restrictions that the ads can be very effective at communicating any sort of brand message that will be of any value......but then again the advertising is a bargain when looking at CPM. I think the only way to tell for sure would be to run a campaign over a long time period (like a year) and see what kind of results you get in terms of actual customers generated directly from Linkedin.

I think for me I am not writing Linkedin off as an effective marketing tool, but I am also not convinced that it is effective either. I guess only time will tell.

I help various B2B small businesses in Waterloo and Kitchener generate new customers. If you are interested in keeping up to date on issues related to generating new customers for B2B small businesses consider subscribing by email to this blog.

I hope you have found these results on Linkedin advertising useful. If you are a B2B business in Kitchener or Waterloo I am sure you can expect similar results. I think to get a complete picture on Linkedin advertising effectiveness you would have to test it for a full year. This would allow you to really gauge the results given the main benefit appears to be that it is a low cost method to increase brand awareness.