Highlights:
- What are Thought Leader Ads? Learn how they differ from traditional ad formats.
- How They Work: Discover how to amplify personal posts and boost engagement.
- Ideal Use Cases and Limitations: Find out when to leverage Thought Leader Ads for maximum impact and what the limitations of the format are.
- Strategic Implementation: Get Samba Scientific’s expert insights on integrating Thought Leader Ads into your overall biotech marketing strategy.
What are LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads?
LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads are powerful new ads from LinkedIn that allow you to promote content directly from individual users, such as your company’s executives or key opinion leaders (KOLs). Want to get your CEO or Lab Director’s content pushed out to a wider audience to showcase their expertise? Thought Leader Ads are the perfect format for you.
Unlike traditional LinkedIn Ads that promote posts from a company’s account, Thought Leader Ads amplify personal posts from key individuals, helping you build credibility, increase engagement, and establish authority within your industry and the broader LinkedIn network.
This personal touch is the key feature – in a feed full of sponsored content from company pages, Thought Leader Ads from a personal profile can stand out as an honest and engaging break from the norm. For life science and biotech companies, these ads offer an opportunity to highlight groundbreaking research, industry insights, and leadership perspectives in a way that resonates with your highly targeted audiences.
When to Use LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads
While traditional LinkedIn Ads are great for promoting your company’s products, events, or services, Thought Leader Ads shine when you’re looking to increase your brand’s reach and recognition. Here are some key goals that can be achieved by using LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads:
- Establishing Industry Authority: Position executives, researchers, and other experts as credible voices in niche areas of biotech and life sciences.
- Sharing Research and Innovations: Promote original research, posters from conferences, whitepapers, and other key findings that reinforce your brand’s expertise.
- Amplifying Thought Leadership Content: Ensure high-value insights and commentary reach the right professionals in the field.
- Driving Engagement and Awareness: Engage decision-makers, including CEOs, laboratory directors, and clinical research heads, with meaningful content.
Limitations to Consider
As powerful as they are, LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads do come with a few limitations.
First, remember that this ad format is limited to individual profiles. Your company’s posts cannot be boosted directly. This requires cooperation and permission from key personnel, which may take time.
Second, content quality matters. It’s important to choose posts are naturally interesting, insightful, and engaging without paid promotion.
Successful organic posts make for successful paid posts, and overall engagement depends on this high-quality, thoughtful content. So, if you’re hoping to add LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads to your marketing strategy, be sure to leave time up front for brainstorming and creating authentic content that will resonate with your audience.
Integrating LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads in a Biotech Marketing Strategy
To maximize the impact of Thought Leader Ads, biotech companies should:
- Identify your KOLs: Choose individuals with credibility and a strong voice in the industry, such as CEOs, researchers, and lead scientists.
- Develop High-Quality Content: Create insightful, engaging posts that provide value to the audience. This content should focus on industry trends, innovations, and expert opinions. You can’t include CTA buttons in these ads, but you can link out to other technical content, blogs, or events like conferences and webinars.
- Leverage LinkedIn’s Targeting: Use LinkedIn’s robust audience filters to reach professionals based on job title, industry, and company size.
- Track and Optimize Performance: Monitor engagement metrics and refine messaging based on audience response.
Tip: It’s important to take advantage of the increased visibility and engagement on your boosted posts while your Thought Leader Ad campaign is running. Consider encouraging your KOL to craft a post that includes an invitation to schedule a meeting or to reach out directly on LinkedIn to continue to the conversation.
Partnering with Samba Scientific
Navigating LinkedIn’s advertising landscape can be complex, especially in the highly technical and regulated fields of biotech and the life sciences. Our team of scientists-turned-marketers specializes in B2B digital marketing strategies tailored to your niche industry.
We’ll ensure that your Thought Leader Ad campaigns are crafted with precision, targeted effectively, and optimized for maximum impact.
Ready to harness the power of these exciting new ads and boost your brand’s engagement on LinkedIn? Contact us today to get started.
