How to Run Ads on LinkedIn in 2025: A Step-by-Step Guide

Running ads on LinkedIn in 2025 can be a powerful way to reach a highly targeted professional audience. Whether you're promoting your business, increasing brand awareness, generating leads, or driving traffic to your website, LinkedIn offers robust advertising tools to help achieve your marketing goals. Below is a comprehensive guide to help you run LinkedIn ads in 2025.

Step 1: Set Up Your LinkedIn Campaign Manager Account

1. Create or Log In to Your LinkedIn Account:
• If you haven’t already, create a LinkedIn profile and company page.
• Visit LinkedIn Campaign Manager and sign in with your LinkedIn credentials.
2. Create a LinkedIn Campaign Manager Account:
• Once logged in, click on Create Account in Campaign Manager.
• Enter details about your business, such as the company name, industry, and country.
• Select the LinkedIn page you want to associate with the ad account.
3. Billing Information:
• Provide your billing information, including payment methods (credit/debit card or LinkedIn Ads billing).

Step 2: Define Your Campaign Objective

LinkedIn offers a variety of campaign objectives to align with your marketing goals. These are categorized into awareness, consideration, and conversion objectives. Choose an objective that fits your business needs.

• Brand Awareness: Increase visibility of your brand or services.
• Website Visits: Drive traffic to your website.
• Engagement: Boost post engagement (likes, comments, shares).
• Lead Generation: Collect leads directly on LinkedIn using forms.
• Website Conversions: Drive specific actions on your website, such as signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase.

Step 3: Choose Your Target Audience

One of LinkedIn’s greatest strengths is its precise targeting options. You can reach specific groups based on their professional data, including job titles, industries, skills, companies, or locations. Follow these steps to set up your audience:

1. Location: Select the geographic region where you want your ads to appear.
2. Company: Target individuals based on company size, name, or industry.
3. Job Title: Choose specific job titles you want to target (e.g., CEOs, Marketing Managers).
4. Skills and Interests: Filter by the skills and interests relevant to your campaign.
5. Education: Target individuals based on their level of education or institutions.
6. Gender and Age: Further refine your audience by selecting gender and age groups (optional).

You can also use Matched Audiences to upload lists of current customers, leads, or website visitors to retarget or find similar people.

Step 4: Choose Your Ad Format

LinkedIn offers several ad formats to choose from. Each format is designed to achieve different objectives, so select the one that best suits your campaign goals:

1. Sponsored Content:
• Appears directly in the LinkedIn feed as a native ad.
• Formats include single image ads, video ads, carousel ads (multiple images), and event promotion ads.
2. Text Ads:
• Simple, small ads that appear on the sidebar of LinkedIn pages.
• Best for generating quick leads with minimal creative effort.
3. Sponsored InMail:
• Delivers personalized messages to LinkedIn members' inboxes.
• Great for direct outreach or exclusive offers.
4. Dynamic Ads:
• Personalized ads that use profile data to create dynamic content (e.g., your name, job title).
• These ads are eye-catching and have a high conversion rate.
5. Lead Gen Forms:
• LinkedIn’s integrated lead capture forms that allow users to submit contact details without leaving LinkedIn.
• Ideal for gathering leads efficiently.

Step 5: Set Your Budget and Bidding

1. Budget Type:
• Choose between Daily Budget (the amount you're willing to spend per day) or Total Budget (the overall amount you want to spend on the entire campaign).
2. Bidding:
• You can choose between automated bidding (where LinkedIn optimizes bids for the best results) or manual bidding (where you control how much you are willing to pay for clicks or impressions).
• CPC (Cost Per Click): Pay when someone clicks on your ad.
• CPM (Cost Per 1,000 Impressions): Pay when your ad is shown 1,000 times, regardless of clicks.
• CPL (Cost Per Lead): Pay when a user submits a lead form.

Step 6: Create Your Ad

1. Write Compelling Copy:
• The copy should be clear, concise, and persuasive. Highlight the key benefits of your product or service.
• Use a strong call-to-action (CTA) such as “Download Now,” “Learn More,” or “Get Started.”
2. Use Engaging Visuals:
• Include high-quality images or videos that align with your brand and message.
• Ensure your visuals are optimized for LinkedIn’s specifications (e.g., 1200x627px for image ads).
3. Preview Your Ads:
• LinkedIn provides an ad preview so you can see how your ad will appear on different devices (desktop, mobile).

Step 7: Launch Your Campaign

Once your targeting, budget, bidding, and ad creative are set, it's time to launch your campaign. Click the Launch Campaign button, and LinkedIn will start delivering your ads to your target audience.

Step 8: Monitor and Optimize Your Campaign

1. Track Performance:
• Use LinkedIn Campaign Manager to track key metrics such as impressions, clicks, conversions, and engagement.
• You can view detailed reports on how well your ad is performing and which segments are engaging with it.
2. Make Adjustments:
• If an ad isn’t performing well, consider adjusting your targeting, changing your ad copy, or experimenting with different visuals.
• A/B test different versions of your ads to see which ones perform the best.
3. Optimize for Better Results:
• Use LinkedIn’s recommendations for improving campaign performance.
• Experiment with different bidding strategies or increase your budget for better exposure.

Best Practices for LinkedIn Ads in 2025:

1. Personalize Your Approach:
• LinkedIn users are professionals, so your messaging should be direct, informative, and value-driven.
2. Focus on High-Quality Content:
• Your ads should provide something of value, such as insights, useful information, or a solution to a problem.
3. Use Clear CTAs:
• Make sure your call-to-action is clear and actionable, encouraging users to take the next step.
4. Utilize LinkedIn’s Advanced Targeting:
• Take advantage of LinkedIn’s in-depth targeting options to ensure you’re reaching the most relevant audience.