The destination URL is one of the most important settings to configure when creating LinkedIn ads. It determines where your ad viewers will land when they click on your ad. The destination URL should align with the goal of your ad and provide a relevant experience for your target audience.
What is a destination URL?
The destination URL, also known as the landing page URL, is the specific web page that opens when someone clicks on your ad. It is the final click-through destination that you want to drive traffic towards with your LinkedIn ad campaign.
The destination URL can be a page on your company website, a landing page on your website, an external website, a file such as a PDF, a form, a Lead Gen form, or any other web-based resource you want readers to access. When setting up a LinkedIn ad, you will paste the destination URL into the ad campaign settings.
Why is the destination URL important for LinkedIn ads?
The destination URL is important for several reasons:
- It impacts the user experience – The destination page should be relevant to ad viewers and provide a logical next step after they click on an ad.
- It affects ad relevance – LinkedIn evaluates the destination URL to determine an ad’s relevance for certain audiences. A relevant landing page can improve your ads’ Quality Score.
- It can influence costs – LinkedIn ads with highly relevant landing pages tend to achieve better results and lower costs.
- It’s part of ad compliance – LinkedIn reviews destination URLs to ensure they comply with LinkedIn’s advertising policies.
- It impacts conversions – An optimized destination page is more likely to convert visitors into leads and customers.
In short, the destination URL plays a critical role in the performance and results of LinkedIn ad campaigns. It should always align closely with your ad creative and campaign objectives.
Best practices for LinkedIn ad destination URLs
Here are some best practices to follow when setting your LinkedIn ad destination URLs:
Use a relevant, specific landing page
Send traffic to a targeted landing page that is highly relevant to the specific ad creative and campaign. Generic homepage URLs are less likely to convert visitors. Create dedicated landing pages for your campaigns whenever possible.
Make sure the page loads quickly
Test that your destination URL loads fast. Speed is important – sites taking over 3 seconds to load will result in high bounce rates. Use page speed tools to optimize landing page performance.
Mobile optimize your landing pages
With much of LinkedIn usage happening on mobile, it’s critical that destination pages are mobile-friendly and render well on smaller screens. Review pages across different devices.
Include relevant, clear calls-to-action
Landing pages should have clear CTAs that encourage the desired visitor action, such as “Download eBook”, “Register Now”, “Start Free Trial”, etc. Align CTAs with your campaign goal.
Avoid broken links
Broken landing pages or 404 errors create a poor experience. Double check that your destination URLs are valid and working as expected.
Use UTM parameters
UTM codes allow you to track traffic sources and keywords. Append campaign attributes to your destination URLs using UTM parameters.
Test different landing pages
A/B test different landing pages to see which one performs best. Try sending a portion of traffic to a new page and monitor conversion rates.
Keep destinations within your account
It’s recommended to use landing pages that are hosted in the same account as your ads. Outside URLs may result in lower Quality Scores.
Avoid promotional destinations
Landing pages should not be purely promotional or focus solely on conversions. They should provide value and relevant content.
Types of LinkedIn ad destination URLs
Here are some of the main types of landing page destinations you can use in your LinkedIn ad campaigns:
Website landing pages
Send traffic to targeted landing pages on your company website. These are pages you have direct control over optimizing.
Lead generation forms
Use LinkedIn’s embedded Lead Gen Forms to collect lead information like name, email, phone number, etc.
External websites
Drive traffic to reputable external sites. This can include partner, media, or industry websites.
Documents and files
Link to PDFs, presentations, whitepapers, ebooks or other documents hosted on your website or LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Pages
Destination URLs can link directly to your LinkedIn Company or Showcase Page.
More options
You can also link to content portals, video pages, newsletter signup forms, contact pages, or any relevant online resource.
Tips for choosing a LinkedIn ad destination URL
Here are some tips to help select an effective destination URL for your LinkedIn ads:
- Identify your campaign goal – Is the aim to generate leads, drive website traffic, increase awareness, etc? Choose a URL that supports the goal.
- Review your customer journey – What is the logical next step or call-to-action for your target personas after viewing your ad?
- Assess your website or landing pages – Which pages are best aligned with your particular ad creative?
- Consider using UTM parameters – These allow you to track clicks and analyze landing page performance.
- Test different options – Try using different landing pages to see which one has the highest conversion rate.
- Check page load speed – Faster loading pages typically perform better.
- Ensure a seamless user experience – Preview clickthrough flow to confirm it is smooth and consistent.
Common LinkedIn ad destination URL mistakes
Here are some common mistakes to avoid when setting your LinkedIn ad destination URLs:
- Using your homepage as the default landing page for all ads. Specific, targeted landing pages usually convert better.
- Not having a mobile-responsive destination page, leading to high bounce rates.
- Using a “Contact Us” page that requires too many steps. Opt for simpler, more targeted landing pages.
- Sending traffic to a page with multiple call-to-action links and no clear direction. Simplify your CTA.
- Failure to test new landing pages against better performing pages.
- Directing clicks to outdated or irrelevant pages. Ensure your site is up-to-date.
- Not tracking landing page performance with UTM tags and LinkedIn analytics.
- Slow loading speeds for destination URLs. Optimize page speed.
- Not aligning landing pages closely to the ad copy and messaging.
- Broken links! Always double check your URLs work before launching a campaign.
How to add a destination URL in LinkedIn Campaign Manager
Adding a destination URL to your LinkedIn ads only takes a few steps in Campaign Manager:
- Access Campaign Manager and click into the desired ad campaign.
- Click on “Assets” from the top navigation.
- Select the ad creative you want to edit.
- Scroll down and locate the “Destination URL” field.
- Enter your desired landing page URL into this field.
- Optional – Use UTM parameters to track clicks.
- Click “Save” to update the ad creative.
- The updated ad creative with new destination will now be active.
Once your ad creative is running, you can check LinkedIn reporting to view metrics on clicks, landing page views, and more based on the destination URL you set.
Conclusion
Choosing an optimal destination URL is one of the most important components of maximizing LinkedIn ad effectiveness. By directing clicks to a landing page that is highly relevant to each specific ad and campaign goal, marketers can provide a seamless user experience and ultimately drive more conversions from their LinkedIn ads.
With the range of landing page options available, savvy advertisers will test different destination URLs against each other to determine which pages best resonate with their target audiences. Aligning the entire clickthrough journey – from initial ad visual down through relevant landing page – creates the ideal path to turning interested LinkedIn visitors into valued customers.