The best LinkedIn video ad examples for 2020

LinkedIn is becoming far more than an online résumé. It’s becoming a resource not only for finding a job, but discovering great industry-related content, as well. 

A year ago, it would have been hard to write a post about LinkedIn video ads examples because the platform didn’t even feature native video until August of 2017. But today, savvy brands are cleverly taking advantage of this new advertising channel with sponsored content that’s tailored to the audience of more than 500 million working professionals, job seekers, and students. 

Before we dive into some of the best LinkedIn video ads we’ve seen, let’s take a closer look at the case for video in digital advertising. 

Are you ready to jump right into video creation for LinkedIn? 

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Why video ads

To put it bluntly, video content has become the most effective form of advertising available. And within LinkedIn specifically, there are some outstanding features that make video a great choice for marketers, and especially those in B2B, according to research from LinkedIn: 

• 62% of B2B marketers rate video as the most important format for content.
• 78% of B2B marketers believe that video “helps them identify higher quality leads.”
• 57% of B2B marketers say that it drives a higher volume of leads overall.

There’s also a drastic difference when you compare the targeting options of LinkedIn to Facebook or YouTube. For example, let’s say you wanted to show a 5-second pre-roll video to high-level executives. 

On Facebook, the targeting options for “Job title” are notoriously sketchy because Facebook doesn’t require it’s users to provide that info. Your best bet would be to target the interests or possibly income level of executives, and it’s unclear how accurate that may be. 

On YouTube, you’ll need to use keyword targeting. This works great in some cases, but you won’t be able to know if it’s a CEO watching your video or an office admin. 

LinkedIn has more reliable targeting options when you’re segmenting by job titles, industries, or even companies. So while it may be more expensive to run video ads on LinkedIn, if you’re targeting a more professional crowd, you’re virtually guaranteed a higher quality audience. Check out our step-by-step guide to creating your first LinkedIn ad for more info. 

But do you need to use video for LinkedIn? Why not just use static images? We’re so glad you asked! 

Video vs. photo

If you’ve read our post LinkedIn Advertising: The Complete Guide (and we highly recommend that you do!) you know that there are eight different types of ads you can use on LinkedIn. 

From LinkedIn’s own research, users spend three times longer looking at video ads than their static image counterparts. While this is an impressive statistic from a viewership standpoint, we’re also interested in how video ads perform further down the funnel.

B2B marketing agency Ledger Bennett sought to find out if the sponsored content with videos would have a significant effect on their results for lead generation when tested against images. 

Spoiler alert: Video had a massive positive effect on virtually every metric for online lead generation: 

“… video ads performed at a 254% higher form completion rate, 276% higher conversion rate, and a 68% lower cost per lead. We went into the test imagining video would perform better, but we had no idea HOW much better. And to all the naysayers that are thinking, “probably from 1,000 impressions and low spend”, this was from almost 75k impressions and over $7k spend.” (Ledger Bennett)

Let’s take a look at some examples of LinkedIn video ads that move the needle! 

Examples

Squarespace 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhNVb7Gp0MQ

Why it works

The scene starts out in a pitch-black forest with only a headlamp illuminating the scene and the sounds of nature. While the text shows that it’s a Squarespace ad within seconds, the video still stands out in a sea of software demo ads you see everywhere on LinkedIn. 

Rather than get right in your face with the primary message of ‘Squarespace is easy to use,’ they chose to weave a unique, intriguing, and hilariously deadpan storyline. The Dude’s idea for a website is as ridiculous as the plot of this video ad, which helps it stick out in your mind and encourages brand recall. 

This ad works great for a LinkedIn audience because while it is focused on a business topic—building a website—it stands out from all the other website builders who focus on showcasing features. 

Fifth Story

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdj7QasT25k

Why it works

The ad opens with a businesswoman power-walking away from us with an energetic soundtrack that matches her pace. As she shoves the glass doors open and seemingly invites us into her office, we understand that Fifth Story is a content marketing agency. 

From there, they use vernacular that professional marketers and communicators are familiar with, speaking to their audience at an expert level while explaining their offering clearly and directly. The quality of the footage and energy keep the audience engaged as they deliver the unique selling proposition of their business. With the right target audience chosen through LinkedIn, this video as is a home run. 

Slack

Why it works

Sandwich is a well-known video production agency with a huge list of top-tier clients, but this ad for Slack is in a league of its own. Beyond the humor, the catchy graphics, and the slick soundtrack, this video looks more like a mini-documentary than an ad. Rather than just run through the messaging apps features and integrations, this video tells the story of how Slack solved a business problem for a growing company. 

So while a 15-second ad may be great for brand awareness, if you want to use LinkedIn for demand generation (as many marketers do), you’re going to want to develop a more detailed explanation of your offering. Note just how many different features, and they’re associated benefits, Slack was able to list in this video while maintaining an engaging story. 

Well done, Slack! 

Fragrance from Promo.com

Why it works

Think you can’t sell B2C on LinkedIn? Think again! 

This ad uses beautiful imagery and minimal text to build brand awareness for a fragrance. The highlight of the ad is the high-quality footage and bright colors that contrast the typical color palette of blues, greys, and muted colors you see with many corporate videos. 

Kickass marketing from Promo.com

Why it works

One great way to capture attention quickly is to create a situation where things don’t go as expected. You don’t expect a man dressed in a business suit to childishly run up to another man and kick him in the, well, behind, but that’s exactly what happens here. The music matches the light mood and the play on word drives home the simple message. The ad is so memorable you just know that it would be brought up by anyone responding to it.

Gentleman’s fashion from Promo.com

Why it works

Another B2C example, what better place to sell business attire than the largest social networking platform for business? The short video exudes professionalism and style with a clear, direct message. With the right targeting, this consumer ad could be highly effective on LinkedIn. 

LinkedIn Video Ads Best Practices

Before you start advertising with video on LinkedIn, take a quick look at these LinkedIn ads best practices. 

1. Identify your marketing objective

Similar to Facebook, LinkedIn will ask you what your objective is as you go through the ad creation process in its Campaign Manager. But before you even get to the stage where you’re actually creating your ads, you want to make sure that your video creative matches your objective. 

Videos for brand awareness should focus on the problem of your target audience. Consideration-stage ads can dive deeper into the range of solutions available to solve the problem. Lastly, ads at the conversion point should focus on price, scarcity, and benefits to drive the decision home. 

2. Your goal should determine the length of your video 

While LinkedIn allows you to run videos that are up to 30 minutes, the most effective ads for brand awareness are usually under 15 seconds long. In general, your video ad should be as short as possible while still getting your point across in a creative, engaging manner. 

However, while short videos are great for creating brand awareness and driving top-of-the-funnel actions, such as web visits and video plays, longer videos, such as showcased earlier, do well to foster brand consideration and to bottom-of-the-funnel actions like demo requests and other conversions. 

3. Try LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms

Most advertisers are drawn to the LinkedIn advertising platform for its ability to convert high-quality leads, especially in the B2B space. With that in mind, LinkedIn introduced the Lead Gen Form ad unit in October of 2017 specifically for that purpose. Instead of sending a prospect to a landing page after clicking your ad, the Lead Gen Form ad unit displays a form directly on LinkedIn. This ad unit helps drive higher conversion rates while cutting down on cost-per-lead. 

So what do you think—do you have the tools you need to start advertising on LinkedIn? Take a running start at your video production with Promo.com!!