#HeroConf

1

The Red-headed Stepchild of B2B PPC

AJ Wilcox

#HeroConf

2

About AJ Wilcox•8 years of PPC and SEO experience•Began heavy B2B focus 4 years ago•Stumbled onto LinkedIn Ads•Saw awesome successes•Quit my full-time job to start B2Linked.com•Live in Utah, USA with my wife and ~4 kids•Triathlete, exotic car lover, soulless ginger

#HeroConf

3

B2B Challenges• B2B marketers have to be more

sophisticated• Offline conversion events on delayed

sales cycles• Gives rise to #PipelineMarketing• eCommerce analysis much simpler

• 72% of the Fortune 1000 are B2B

#HeroConf

4

#PipelineMarketing

• My data journey• Make optimization decisions based on

real results• Return On Ad Spend is the real metric

• $/Opportunity can by used as surrogate• $/SAL can be used on insufficient Opportunity data• Etc.

#HeroConf

5

Keyword Targeting is…

• Paid Search (Google Adwords/Bing Ads) keyword-based targeting• Intent-based• CEOs type the same keywords as janitors

• How do you ensure your dollars are spent on someone with BANT?• Budget• Authority• Need• Timing

#HeroConf

6

B2B Ad Options• Industry Publications

• Advertise in industry rags (ChiefExecutive magazine)• AdTech Vendors

• Bizo• Quantcast• DemandBase

• Paid Social• Twitter – Weak B2B targeting• Facebook – Decent B2B targeting, personal focus• LinkedIn – precise targeting, business focus

#HeroConf

7

LinkedIn Advertising• Up to date (self selected)• Robust targeting• Near-unlimited traffic• Business mentality• Self-service

#HeroConf

8

LinkedIn AdWords

Account

Campaign

Ads

Campaign

Ads Ads

Campaign

Adgroup

Adgroup

Keywords

Ads Keywords

Account

MCC

#HeroConf

9

LinkedIn Ads 101• Go to: LinkedIn.com/Ads• Average CPC between $5-$8/click• CPM or CPC Bidding• Auction based on audience

#HeroConf

10

LinkedIn Ads 101 cont’d• Ad Units• Text Ads – Right rail

• 50x50px image• .04% CTR is good• 25 char headline• 75 char adline

#HeroConf

11

LinkedIn Ads 101 cont’d• Ad Units• Sponsored Updates – News feed

• 180x110px image• .4% CTR is good• Character limits

• 150 char intro• 55 char title• 155 char description

#HeroConf

12

LinkedIn Ads 101 cont’d• Targeting (profile completeness dependent)

• Job Title (Project Manager)• Job Function (Marketing)• Seniority (Manager)• Company Name (Microsoft)• Category/Industry (Hi-tech, consumer goods)• School Name (Stanford)• Skills (nunchuck, MySQL)• Group (Project Management R Us)• Gender (M/F/Both)• Age (55+)• Company Size (51-2000)• Geography (San Francisco Bay Area)• In any combination• & Exclusions!

#HeroConf

13

LinkedIn Ads 101 cont’d• 4 Methods of Targeting

• Titles• Job Function + Seniority• Skills + Seniority• Groups (+ Seniority)

#HeroConf

14

CMO

Groups

Job Functio

n

Titles

Skills

15

Why the Red-Headed Stepchild?

#HeroConf

#HeroConf

16

Why the Red-Headed Stepchild?• Lacking functionality• Conversion Tracking• Dayparting• Hourly Reporting• Device Bidding• Retargeting• Opaque Relevancy Score• Ignored by LinkedIn

#HeroConf

17

LinkedIn Wins• Conversion Rates• Business Reach• Mindset• Deal Size• No Gatekeeper

#HeroConf

18

Let’s say…• You’re running 2 ads. • A has a CTR of .61% and a CPA of $48• B has a CTR of .40% and a CPA of $41

Which ad is better?

#HeroConf

19

Content Marketing Funnel

Trial/Demo

Blog Post/Infographic

Guide / Whitepaper

Ebook

Webinar

Low Friction

High Friction

Retargeting

Email Nurture

#HeroConf

20

Glorious Retargeting• Paid Search retargeting = Building

audience around keyword• LinkedIn retargeting = Building persona!• Deliver content tests to your ideal audience• At a fraction of the price of LinkedIn

advertising• UTM parameter tagging allows for

separate audiences in GA

#HeroConf

21

Q&A!

• AJ@B2Linked.com• @WilcoxAJ• www.B2Linked.com