Yes, LinkedIn does have an ads library that allows advertisers to view their current and past ad campaigns. The LinkedIn ads library provides important insights into ad performance by showing metrics like impressions, clicks, spend, and more. It’s an invaluable tool for optimizing LinkedIn ad campaigns over time.
Some key things to know about the LinkedIn ads library:
- It shows data for both active and inactive ad campaigns.
- Metrics are provided at both the ad set and ad level.
- Data can be filtered by date range, campaign, ad set, and more.
- Granular conversion metrics are shown for leads and other goals.
- Ad performance can be compared across time periods.
In this article, we’ll take a deeper look at how to access the LinkedIn ads library and leverage its data to improve your advertising results.
Accessing the LinkedIn Ads Library
The LinkedIn ads library can be accessed from the “Campaign Manager” section of a LinkedIn ad account. Here are the steps to view it:
- Log into LinkedIn Campaign Manager.
- Go to the Campaigns tab.
- Click on “See all campaigns” to view a drop-down list of current and past campaigns.
- Click “View report” next to any campaign to see its ad library data.
This will bring up an overview of metrics for that particular ad campaign, including impressions, social actions, clicks, spend, CTR, CPC, and more. You can apply filters to view data for specific date ranges, ad sets, ads, and other attributes.
It’s also possible to export LinkedIn ads library data to a CSV file for further analysis. On the overview page, click the “Export” button and choose either daily or hourly data. The exported CSV file will contain detailed metrics for every single ad and time period.
Key Metrics in the LinkedIn Ads Library
Now let’s explore some of the most valuable metrics you’ll find for each ad in the LinkedIn ads library:
Impressions
This shows how many times your ads were displayed to LinkedIn members. It’s a measure of reach and visibility. Reviewing impressions over time can indicate whether your targeting and bid strategy is working to get your ads seen.
Clicks
The number of clicks on your ads by unique LinkedIn members. Higher clicks indicate an ad’s messaging is resonating. But clicks should be evaluated relative to impressions, using the clickthrough rate (CTR).
Unique Impressions
The number of individual LinkedIn members who saw your ads. This avoids multiple impressions of ads by the same people. Unique impressions indicate real reach.
Social Actions
When LinkedIn members engage with your ads through likes, comments, shares and more. Social actions demonstrate engagement.
Clickthrough Rate (CTR)
Calculated as Clicks / Impressions. CTR measures ad relevance. Ads with a high CTR are appealing to viewers. Strive for CTR above 0.5%
Cost Per Click (CPC)
This shows the average amount you paid each time someone clicked your ad. Lower CPC indicates greater ad efficiency.
Spend
Your total advertising spend over any selected time period. Monitor spend to stay on budget.
Conversions
When LinkedIn members take a desired action after seeing your ad, like visiting your website, signing up for a demo, etc. Track conversions to gauge ROI.
There are many additional metrics to comb through in the LinkedIn ads library, like impressions by device, bid type metrics, engagement demographics, and more. The key is knowing which data points are most meaningful for your goals and using those to refine your ads.
Getting Actionable Insights
Simply looking at metrics in the ads library isn’t enough. To fully leverage the data for improvement, you need to understand what the metrics mean for your ads and turn those insights into actions. Here are some ways to do that:
Benchmark Metrics
Set reasonable expectations for metrics like CTR and conversion rate based on your industry and objectives. Use benchmarks to evaluate ad performance.
Segment by Ad Set
Compare metrics for different ad sets focused on specific audiences, messages, etc. See which approach is most effective.
Analyze Trends
Look at daily or weekly trends to see how metrics like CTR trend up or down over the ad’s lifetime. Determine what changes impacted performance.
Check Conversions by Ad
Some ads will convert users better than others. Compare conversion rates and costs to focus spend on your best-performing creative.
Review Relevance Scores
LinkedIn ranks ad relevance on a 1-10 scale using member engagement. High relevance means your targeting is on point.
Optimize Based on Insights
Finally, take actions like refining targeting, creating new ad copies, bidding adjustments, and more based on the data insights.
By regularly analyzing your ad metrics and taking optimization actions, you’ll see improved LinkedIn advertising results over time. The ads library provides the key data to make this possible.
Using Filters to Go Deeper
Applying filters when looking at your LinkedIn ads library data allows you to dig deeper into the performance of specific campaigns, ad sets, ads, and other dimensions. Here are some of the ways filters can be leveraged:
- Date range – Compare metrics week-over-week or month-over-month.
- Campaign status – Inspect results for active campaigns vs. inactive ones.
- Campaign name – View performance for different initiatives.
- Campaign objective – See how campaigns optimized for awareness vs conversion compare.
- Ad set – Analyze results for particular audiences and strategies.
- Ad description – Check which specific ad copies and creatives convert best.
Segmenting your ads data reveals insights you’d otherwise miss in the aggregate view. For example, filtering by ad copy could show one particular ad driving the majority of conversions. Or you may find a specific ad set focused on engagement metrics like clicks and impressions rather than direct-response.
The ability to filter on device, time of day, demographics, and more provides further ways to get a detailed understanding of your LinkedIn ads performance. Take the time to explore different filters and unlock additional opportunities to improve.
Comparing Metrics Against Benchmarks
Optimizing LinkedIn advertising performance isn’t just about looking at metrics in isolation. It requires comparing your metrics against established benchmarks to know how your ads are really doing.
Here are some top LinkedIn ad benchmarks to use:
Clickthrough Rate (CTR)
- All ad types: 0.5%+ is considered good
- Sponsored content: 0.3%-0.6%+ range
- Message ads: 1.0%+ for visually compelling copy
- Dynamic ads: 0.4%+
Conversion Rate
- Lead gen: 2-3%
- Sales contact: 0.5-1%
- Sign up: 1-2%
- Download: 2-4%
Cost Per Lead (CPL)
- IT software: $100-$200+
- HR SaaS: $50-$100
- Education programs: ~$30
These benchmarks provide reasonable targets given broader industry averages. If your ads fall short, it indicates opportunities to improve targeting, creative, and overall strategy. Exceeding benchmarks signals your ads are well-optimized.
However, keep in mind that benchmarks vary significantly across industries and companies. Develop custom benchmarks over time based on your own advertising results and business objectives.regularly compare your metrics against those goals.
Optimizing Campaigns Based on Insights
The true value of the LinkedIn ads library comes from turning data insights into action. Making regular optimizations improves your advertising ROI over time. Here are some ways to act on insights:
- Pause poorly performing ads and ad sets.
- Increase bids for top performing ads to drive more volume.
- Launch new ad sets targeted to your best customer demographics.
- Test new ad creatives inspired by your best ads.
- Adjust campaign budgets based on performance and seasonality.
- Change ad scheduling if data shows optimizations.
- Refine target audiences to increase relevance.
Optimizations should happen at both the ad set and ad level. For example, you may discover engagement ads focused on awareness metrics do better targeting a wide audience. While conversion-focused ads perform best when targeting high intent segments.
Take time to analyze data, form hypotheses about what changes could improve performance, and then test those hypotheses. Continually refine based on the results. Over time, your LinkedIn ads will become highly tuned for your unique business goals.
Best Practices for Using the LinkedIn Ads Library
To help you get the most value from the LinkedIn ads library, here are some recommended tips:
- Export data frequently for analysis – don’t just rely on the in-platform reporting.
- Leverage filters to analyze and segment ad performance.
- Regularly check metrics like CTR, conversion rate, CPC, etc.
- Graph metrics over time to spot trends.
- Compare metrics to benchmarks and past performance.
- Review at both the ad set and ad level.
- Incorporate insights into a regular optimization schedule, like monthly.
Having a comprehensive picture of your LinkedIn advertising data leads to making better optimization decisions. Avoid just checking top-line metrics without segmentation. Diagnose the reasons behind performance changes.
Set aside time at least monthly to thoroughly analyze the ads library, identify opportunities, and implement updates across targeting, creative, budgets, and other levers. Continually improving LinkedIn ad results takes work, but pays off dramatically.
FAQs
How far back does LinkedIn ads data go?
LinkedIn provides ad data reaching back several years. However, exports only include the most recent 18 months of historical data. Beyond that, you’ll need to rely on the reporting dashboard.
How frequently is LinkedIn ads data updated?
Metrics in the LinkedIn ads library are processed and updated on a daily basis, providing access to recent performance. Data for the current day is usually available within the last 24 hours.
Can I see conversion metrics for website visits?
Unfortunately LinkedIn’s ads reporting does not provide visibility into website visits or other conversions that happen off their platform. You’ll need to compare LinkedIn metrics with your own analytics.
What’s the difference between CPC and Avg. CPC?
CPC (cost-per-click) averages all clicks vs spend over a period. Avg CPC just averages clicks and spend separately. Use CPC when optimizing to calculate true costs.
Should I be checking LinkedIn’s ads library every day?
There’s no need to analyze the ads library daily, as metrics don’t change significantly over 24 hours. But do review on a consistent weekly or monthly basis to spot trends and make optimizations.
Conclusion
The LinkedIn ads library provides a powerful hub of data to optimize your advertising efforts on the platform. By leveraging metrics across impressions, clicks, conversions, relevance, and more, you can gain insights to boost campaign performance over time. Analyze trends, compare to benchmarks, segment data, and turn insights into optimization actions.
Consistent use of the LinkedIn ads library as part of your advertising workflow will enable you to get the most value from your investment. Focus on the metrics most aligned to your campaign goals. Continually refine targeting and creative. The result will be greater reach, engagement, conversions, and ROI from your LinkedIn ads.