10 ways to drive killer roi with your linkedin sponsored updates
TRANSCRIPT
WEBINAR
Selin Tyler (@selingt)Senior Product Marketing Manager, LinkedIn
Jaime Pham (@jaimelynn09) Content Marketing Evangelist, LinkedIn
Questions? Send them via Webex Q&A Feature
Recorded? Of course!
Before we get started…
Shout outs? Tweet them via #LinkedInContent
Feedback? Survey will be available at the end of the Webinar
Today’s Agenda
ONE TWO THREEContent Management Best Practices
Campaign Set up Tips & Tricks
Top Sponsored Updates of 2015 (so far)
B2B Buyers are consuming anaverage of 10.4 pieces of content
on their way to a purchase decision.
Source: Zero Moment of Truth Study, Google
Nearly half of B2B buyers start their solution research with a web search, and 72% of buyers will use Google at some point in the research stage
Source: 2014 B2B Buyer Landscape, Demand Gen, Pardot
That same percentage of buyers using search will also use social media
Asked for suggestions/
recommendations from users
Connected directly with potential
vendors
Connected with individual thought
leaders for opinions
Did not use social Browsed existing discussions
“How do you take your Sponsored Updates from Great to Outstanding?”
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ONEContent Management Best Practices
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Source: LinkedIn Internal Study May 2015
Followers and target audiences want different things:Here’s what followers want to hear, tailor your content accordingly
Provide a steady stream of content for your followers: Best inclass marketers post one to three updates per day on their
Company or Showcase Pages.
• Sponsor two to four updates at any time to maximize your reach to your target audience. • Proactively optimize or cycle out the updates that aren’t achieving your key performance indicators (KPIs).
1 Followers and target audiences want different things:Here are topics some of the popular target segments consume on LinkedIn
2 Pick content for the full marketing funnel:Build trust first, then ask for contact information
Infographics, blog posts, industry trends, influencercontent, “behind the scenes” and exclusive content
Best practice guides, case studies, product reviews,analyst reports, webinars, blog posts
White papers, research briefs, product demos, trials,product reviews and comparisons, analyst reports
Newsletters, recommendations, case studies, productnews, tutorials
You have 10+ opportunitiesto publish Sponsored Updatesthat effectively introduce your
brand, build trust, provide helpfulinformation, and ultimately inform
a purchase decision. Deliverrelevant content at every step
of the buyer’s journey.
2 Pro Tip:Clear calls to action will maximize your clicks and conversions to gated content
This CTA from Hortonworks for a whitepaper download couldn’t be more direct:
3 Boost your content ROI through repurposing
Make the most of your gated content by repurposing it in a varietyof full funnel pieces such as blogs, infographics, webinars
and SlideShare presentations.
4 Leverage your employee network to scale up your reach
Employees are a valuable secretweapon in scaling your SponsoredUpdates campaign.
In a recent Sponsored Updates case study, Dutch Bank ABN AMRO revealed that their “secret weapon” for scaling always-on content is their people.
The Bank’s social media team distributes a content calendar to all employees every week, explaining what they’ll be posting to their Company Page and when.
Now they have 600 people who can share ABN AMRO’s content with their connections. Results: Engagement rates as high as 3.25% on their content.
Over 28,000 visits to ABN Amro Insights site in one month.
The Helpful Advisor The Conversationalist The Cliffhanger
Start by explaining howyour piece of content willhelp your target achieve
professional success.
Make a bold statement or aska question to spark a conversation
and get your audience to react.
Tell your audience just enoughto pique their interest but not somuch that they aren’t compelled
to learn more.
5 Create content that is helpful, informative and/or entertaining
Try writing from these perspectives:
6 Optimize your content for mobile
For best mobile performance make sure:
Your intro copy is fewer than 150 character or eliminate it all together
Your CTA is clear
Your landing page is optimized for the small screen
7 Use images to drive engagementLet your images stand out in the feed
• Adhere to published specifications to ensure your image is the proper resolution.
• Use the image to expand on the contentor emphasize the CTA.
• Make sure you choose an image that accuratelyreflects your content. Consistency between imageand story conveys the topic before the membereven reads a word.
8 Test and improve performance with Direct Sponsored Content
At any time, test 2 to 3versions of your contentto continuously improveperformance.
Think Simple:Consider testing personalizationor variations of your CTA.
9 Pro Tip: For content, think always on content strategyDon’t miss out on the opportunity to impact your prospects’ buying decision
Make sure your solutions are always in the consideration set of yourtarget audience by adopting an always-on Sponsored Updates strategy.
*The 2014 B2B Buyer Behavior Study, Demand Gen, January 29, 2014
10 Expand your reach to similar audiencesUse Audience Expansion to discover audiences similar to your target
Make your content last longer:
Before you retire a campaign that’s showing fatigue,consider enabling the Audience Expansion function.It’s a great way to reach new audiences similar to your target audience, and expose them to your brandmessage.
Remember, these audiences haven’t seen your content, so it’s new to them.
Best Practices Cheat SheetOptimizing content
• Always ask, “why would my audience read this?”
• Use concise and compelling intros and headlines
• Ask compelling questions to involve the target audience
• Include a clear call to action, regardless of the objective
• Make sure your landing pages are optimized for mobile traffic
Managing updates
• Plan your editorial calendar, but also react to timely events
• Respond to comments regularly
• Consider keeping updates running through the weekend
• Test to see what works with your audience and then refine
Optimizing visuals• Always include an image, presentation, or video• Ensure your image is relevant to your content
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BID ONLY AS MUCH AS YOUR WILLINGNESS TO PAYBID
Pricing model options:CPM (cost per thousand impressions)
CPC (cost per click)
In both cases, you only pay enough to beat the next highest bidder in the 2nd price auction
$
START BROAD, CHISEL DOWNTARGETING
Chisel, don’t piece-togetherRun-of-professionals (ROP) doesn’t mean “no targeting” it means “all targeting”Pay for your target audience at ROP rate!
Let the robots work their magicWhile marketers are great at understanding “who”
their audience is, optimization algorithms “know” who clicks and optimize accordingly
Top Updates- Q2 2015
• Stands out from the rest of the news feed by using a casual tone and incorporating a meme
• Uses a short-form article format for easy engagement
• Uses the intro copy to deliver an upbeat message as a hook
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Top Updates- Q2 2015
• Provides a lot of upfront value with the use of statistics in the intro copy and an infographic for visual engagement
• These tactics are effective ways to tease out longer content like survey results or a research report
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Top Updates- Q2 2015
• The post optimizes mobile engagement by eliminating the intro copy
• Taps into a very broad desire to be more successful: the main reason professionals use LinkedIn. The message is appropriate to the platform
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Top Updates- Q2 2015
• Niche content finds a place on LinkedIn with the use of an effective targeting strategy
• The image adds context to the post
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Top Updates- Q2 2015
• What makes it engaging?
• It keeps content social by using human stories and peer learning
• The intro copy is concise and clear and adds to the image and title
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