What Are LinkedIn Video Ads: Best Practices Guide [Latest]

LinkedIn ran its first ads in 2005, barely two years after its launch. The debut of LinkedIn video ads in 2018 marked a significant milestone in how businesses communicate with their audiences.

While you may immediately associate LinkedIn with individuals celebrating a new job or digital networking, it can be a crucial part of your video marketing plan for both B2B and B2C businesses.

Let’s explore the best practices for LinkedIn video ads!

LinkedIn video advertising

What Are LinkedIn Video Ads?

LinkedIn Video Ads are part of LinkedIn's Sponsored Content offerings, which enables businesses to promote articles, updates, photos, videos, or slideshows to a larger audience than their targeted followers.

Unlike pre-roll and post-roll video advertising, which interrupt content, video ads for LinkedIn are embedded directly into the user's feed, making them more engaging and less intrusive.

Video ads in LinkedIn provide the same targeting potential as other LinkedIn advertising types.

They assist brands in achieving their objectives by creating captivating visual storytelling, driving qualified visitors to websites or landing pages, and collecting leads through CTA buttons or lead generation forms.

Video ads on LinkedIn

Video ads LinkedIn is available through a Sponsored Content campaign that promotes video content on your Company page or a Direct Sponsored Content campaign that personalizes video advertisements for targeted audiences without publishing them to your page.

► Read more: Types of video for marketing

Types of LinkedIn Video Ads

LinkedIn offers several video ad formats to help businesses engage with a professional audience. These formats include:

LinkedIn Video Ads Specs

Below are the official requirements for LinkedIn video ads. 

These specs are designed to ensure the best viewing experience across various devices while maintaining compatibility with LinkedIn’s ad placement formats.

• File Format: MP4

• Aspect Ratio: 16:9 (landscape), 1:1 (square), 4:5 (vertical)

• Resolution: Minimum 360p, Recommended 1080p (HD)

• File Size: Up to 200 MB

Specs for LinkedIn video ads

• Video Length: 3 seconds to 30 minutes (recommended duration: 15-30 seconds for optimal engagement)

• Frame Rate: 30 frames per second (FPS) recommended

• Pixel & Aspect Ratio Requirements:

• 360p (480 x 360; wide 640 x 360)

• 480p (640 x 480)

• 720p (960 x 720; wide 1280 x 720)

• 1080p (1440 x 1080; wide 1920 x 1080)

• Ads with a 1:1 aspect ratio should have a minimum resolution of 600 x 600px and a maximum resolution of 1080 x 1080px

• Audio Format: AAC or MPEG4

• Audio Size: Less than 64KHz

► Related: Video formats for Facebook Ads

How to Get Started With LinkedIn Video Ads?

It's simple to set up your first LinkedIn video ad campaign. Here are a handful of checklists you'll need before you get started: 

• Create a LinkedIn Company Page

• Ad copy for your intro text 

• A sponsored content poster for the page 

LinkedIn ads explained

• A video with mp4 format (If necessary, you can use a mp4 converter online)

• A destination (Where you want to send your traffic to)

• A call to action

• Prospect persona

Got the above ready? Take a look at the step-by-step guide on how to set up your LinkedIn video ad. 

Step 1: Log into your Campaign Manager Tool

LinkedIn Campaign Manager Tool

You can design and manage your video ad campaign using the campaign management tool. There are two options for getting there.

• Go to your LinkedIn profile’s home page. On the top right, click on “Work” and then “Advertise”. 

• You can also save and use this direct URL to access your ad account.

Step 2: Create a Video Campaign

This is assuming you have created a LinkedIn ad account. It’s different from your LinkedIn page. 

• You can utilize the LinkedIn-provided Default campaign group, but you cannot delete it. I recommend starting a new campaign group if you choose to use one.

•  When you’re in the campaign group, choose “Create a campaign”

•  After choosing a goal, you can begin adding your video content.

Step 3: Select your target audience

Choose your target audience

The next step is to select your audience targeting and forecast results. If you're just getting started, you can use both Job Functions and Seniority.

For a new campaign, aim for an audience of 80-120k people. Add extra AND boolean options if the audience size is still too large due to a large geographic size. Another helpful filter to put to the test is job skills. 

LinkedIn Video Ads Best Practices

Here's a list of best practices you may use to make sure your LinkedIn video ads is on point. These will improve your ad outcomes, whether you're trying to raise brand awareness or generate leads.

Define the main objective

Before creating a LinkedIn video ad, it's essential to identify your primary goal, whether it's brand awareness, website visits, interactions, video views, lead generation, or website conversions. 

Tailoring your video content and call-to-action (CTA) to meet these objectives will help you achieve better results.

Select Your Audience Targeting Wisely

Choose your audience targeting wisely

LinkedIn offers robust targeting options based on job title, industry, location, company size, and more. 

Be specific about your audience to ensure your video reaches the right professionals who are most likely to engage with your content and drive conversions.

Use Storytelling

Engage viewers by telling a compelling story. 

Whether it's showcasing customer success, highlighting a product's impact, or sharing a brand journey, storytelling helps make your message relatable and memorable, building stronger connections with your audience.

Include Captions

Use captions for your ads

Adding captions ensures that your message is accessible to a broader audience, especially those watching without sound. 

It also improves engagement, as users are more likely to watch a video with captions in noisy environments or when multitasking.

Start with a Strong Hook

Capture attention within the first few seconds of your video. A strong hook, whether it's an intriguing question, surprising fact, or bold statement, will prompt viewers to continue watching, ensuring higher engagement and video completion rates.

Optimize for Mobile Viewing

Optimize your ads for mobile viewing

Since many LinkedIn users access the platform on mobile devices, it’s crucial to optimize your video for mobile viewing. 

Use a vertical format, ensure fast loading times, and make the content visually compelling to ensure a smooth experience on smaller screens.

► Read more: Best tools to create video content