Four Considerations for B2C Campaigns on LinkedIn
While very much seen as the go-to B2B channel, there is a place for a certain kind of B2C marketer on LinkedIn. But, before launching yourself in, here’s a few things to keep in mind.
1. Is the Audience There?
Consider if your audience is likely to spend their time on the platform. As a general rule, we’ve found it a great place to target the C-Suite, which means that if your B2C brand is looking to target those with higher earning power, LinkedIn could be the place for you.
2. Consider Your Targeting Options
With Facebook continually amending the level of job title and industry targeting available, and with GDPR removing the ability to target by such useful data as household income, LinkedIn offers an attractive alternative to target high earners.
This can be done in the form of job titles, seniority level, or years of experience, all of which paint a picture of a user with the demographic most suited to your product. Add to that, the fact that LinkedIn targeting is based on first-party data (i.e. data the users inputs themselves), and you have a more robust audience that is likely to fit your profile.
3. Could You Achieve Cut-Through?
In much the same way that B2B ads on Facebook may attract a certain degree of standout, the same is true of B2C on LinkedIn. This allows you to capitalise both on the ‘surprise’ element of a brand appearing where you don’t expect to see it, and the relatively lower percentage of consumer ads you’ll be competing with. While you do risk potentially irritating people for entering their work-related space, the flipside could well be true, and they may welcome a distraction from their business browsing.
4. Try Out Ads on a Weekend
Our LinkedIn account manager let us know that ads deployed on a weekend have been shown to generate stronger results than those shown during the working week. While this is something that would require a degree of split testing, it lends weight to the idea that business people are using the platform during their leisure time, and may well welcome an ad that is relevant to them – relevant being the key word of course.
Cartier and Audi are two names that LinkedIn tells us have seen great success on the platform, and it’s an interesting consideration that may never have entered the typical B2C marketing team’s conversation. While some brands may see success, LinkedIn won’t automatically qualify as the right channel for your brand, so it’s important not to take the leap before careful consideration of whether this is the right space for your audience – as well as a degree of testing.
If you’d like to talk through how LinkedIn could work for your brand, or have any other queries, feel free to connect with me.
The author: Alex Mansell is Social Media Account Director at WPR Agency, specialising in using LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook for B2B brands.