To understand the true value of LinkedIn and Google advertising for B2B SaaS brands, we took a deep dive into a sea of data-driven insights.
By analyzing $55 million in Google and LinkedIn ad spend from leading B2B SaaS players like Outreach, Super Metrics, and AWS—we unearthed some pretty eye-opening insights.
Drilling down into this level of ad spend has certainly refreshed our perspective on paid media for B2B SaaS brands, and we’re going to share our discoveries with you right now.
1. Cost per conversion (CPC) insight
As you may well know, CPC is a critical metric for B2B SaaS brands as it has a direct correlation to ad performance and the efficiency of your budget.
Now, one of the most significant discoveries we made during our analytical journey is that cost per conversion on brand search through Google ads is 212% more expensive for sales-led companies than product-led companies.
This may seem like a steep figure—but it does make sense. Why? A free trial or subscription offer on an ad is far more enticing than the prospect of attending a demo or meeting with a sales rep to experience a product before you even make a buying decision.
As a result, sales-led model companies can learn from product-led brands and to make their offer more conversion-worthy and user-friendly. Working with actionable product-led CTAs (including free trials, links to succinct landing pages with demo videos or access to live product testing pages) will help you to optimize your CPC for your paid demand generation campaigns.
2. The challenges of monetizing non-branded search
Another big discovery we made concerns non-branded search. Here’s what we found out:
If your average order value (AOV) range is above $500K+ or less than $50K, you should choose your keyword sets with due care and consideration. This is because your costs can literally double compared to a $50K to $500K AOV range.
To mitigate the situation and earn a healthy return on investment (ROI) from your non-branded search ads across LinkedIn and Google, should narrow your efforts down to high intent keywords—with modifiers—to help searchers self-qualify.
Taking this measured approach will empower your SaaS business to interact with the prospects most likely to engage with your content, optimizing your click-through rates (CTR) and non-branded ad performance in the process.
3. Competitor campaign performance (or lack thereof…)
Many B2B SaaS marketing leads scream about the lead generating value of competitor ad campaigns on the likes of LinkedIn and Google. But let us play devil’s advocate for a moment.
Competitor campaigns are probably burning a giant digital hole in your ad budget. Yes, we’ve discovered that competitor campaigns are the most expensive type of campaign on Google Ads. Here’s the hard truth:
Not every B2B SaaS company can, or should, run competitor campaigns for commercial growth or demand generation.
Why is this the case? This is because some of the competitor keywords you use may not have a clear cut intent.
Despite a poorer performance (an undesirable pairing of high costs and a low ROI), the results we’ve seen suggest that you can still drive a solid level engagement from your audience—if you deploy your competitor campaigns correctly.
Monitor high-performing key terms with a fine tooth comb is the best way to derive growth from competitor campaigns should you want to walk that route.
Here are some insider tips for your consideration…
- Exclude ‘login’ as a negative
- Exclude your competitor’s brand name as a negative
- Add exact match keywords for:
- “Competitor Name” + pricing
- “Competitor Name” + reviews
- “Competitor Name” + alternative
- “Competitor Name” + integrations
Read: How to spy on competitor’s keywords with SpyFu
4. Leading with lead gen forms
Without any shadow of a doubt, performance data suggests that lead generation forms outperform landing pages by three times (x3). That’s pretty significant, to say the least.
That said, you should always look to leverage lead gen forms on Linkedin. One of the main reasons for this is that LinkedIn lead gen forms keep users on-platform rather than sending them away to another domain. In turn, an effective and highly-targeted lead gen page can streamline the user experience (UX), hold engagement, and conversion-driving action.
By using the data that users have already served up to LinkedIn when creating their account, you can convert at a higher rate with lead gen forms—utilizing fewer resources for landing pages + tracking in the process.
FYI: Responsive LinkedIn lead gen forms with clearly defined input fields and a definitive CTA are the most likely to convert. Free trial sign ups, video-based product walk-throughs, service signups, quote requests, and practical tools are among the most effective types of lead gen forms on the platform.
5. LinkedIn conversion ads open rates
Another striking discovery we connected with during our $55 million ad spend analysis is the fact that LinkedIn conversion ads have an average open rate of 50%. A toss of the coin figure that sparks a slew of noteworthy results.
With a $400 cost per conversion and a 50% open rate, we always directly test the performance of SDR teams against conversation ads. This is one of the most underutilized tactics in SaaS marketing today and a surefire way to optimize your paid ad strategy while earning consistently healthy conversion rates.
Key takeaways and final thoughts…
To drive consistent success from your LinkedIn and Google advertising strategy in today’s B2B arena, you have to match your campaigns with your existing business models. Sweating the data is also paramount to sustainable success.
Offline tracking and data integration is key
Optimizing your Google Ads with offline conversion tracking and consolidating your most potent insights into a solid data integration CRM will give you the analytical scope to drive a consistently high performance from your efforts. It’ll give you the edge you need to stand out in your niche and ultimately, build a roster of high-quality customers or clients.
Benchmark your ad performance
By making performance benchmarking a core part of your paid advertising strategy, you’ll gain a clear understanding of what works and what doesn’t. As the likes of BlackBerry and General Motors (pre-bankruptcy) found out (the hard way)—there’s no room for complacency in business.
So, identifying your strengths and weaknesses will give you the insight required to optimize your paid advertising campaigns while continually evolving your efforts in a tech-driven landscape that moves at warp speed.
Working with valuable data from HubSpot and Salesforce, you can set actionable benchmarks and keep working towards constant growth. Defining your specific B2B SaaS business goals clearly will help you define the KPIs and metrics that will maximize your Google and LinkedIn marketing efforts. In turn, you’ll earn a healthy ROI from your paid ad initiatives (which is the aim of the game here).
Gain greater direction with Directive
To date, we’ve utilized our data-driven discoveries and insider paid advertising practices to generate growth and cement success for some of the brightest brands in the SaaS world, including Zapproved and edenhealth. Now we want to give you the tools to thrive.
Book a call with our in-house experts and we’ll work with you to align innovative thinking with your business’s core strategies and drive better results from your paid advertising campaigns. We’re here to help you thrive.
For a deeper dive into the current state of the industry and connect with a treasure trove of invaluable insider insights, download The Verdict—our definitive B2B SaaS report—today.
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Team Directive
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