How to Design Strategic Budgets for Major Clients in Paid Media

When creating budgets for major clients with significant investments, the approach must be meticulous, strategic, and aligned with the client's objectives. This process is not just an administrative task; it lays the foundation for building a solid professional relationship and establishing clear expectations.

The first step is to identify the Paid Media channels to be used. Each channel has unique characteristics and plays a distinct role within an integrated strategy. For instance, Google Ads may be ideal for capturing existing demand, while Meta Ads might work better for demand generation and audience building. This initial analysis not only defines the scope of the budget but also demonstrates a deep understanding of the tools available.

Calculating the budget is more than just crunching numbers. It requires basing decisions on historical data, industry benchmarks, and clear objectives. A significant investment demands well-founded justifications, including return expectations and risk analysis. For example, if the client plans to spend over €100,000 per month, a detailed breakdown of costs by channel and campaign type, along with an optimization plan, is essential.

Defining the overall strategy is a crucial aspect. This step involves structuring a clear approach that the client can understand and visualize. High-investment clients seek transparency and clarity, so it is vital to show how each component of the budget contributes to the campaign's success. This could include the distribution between upper and lower funnel activities and the expected frequency of creative updates.

The campaign structure should be detailed yet flexible, including the investment allocated to each channel and the selected ad formats. Additionally, it is important to explain concepts that the client may not be familiar with, such as the importance of the first 3 seconds of a video or how lookalike audiences work.

Another critical element for large budgets is calculating the time required for management. Managing high-investment projects demands more constant oversight, so including estimated hours and the need for additional team members, such as designers, reflects professionalism. If the budget’s scale requires it, having a second manager dedicated to the project ensures that all aspects are monitored appropriately.

Finally, everything must be presented in a high-quality document. This document serves as a reference and enhances the perception of professionalism. Presenting the budget in a clear, organized, and visually appealing format makes a significant difference in conveying confidence.

Creating budgets for large clients is an exercise in strategy, communication, and foresight. It is an opportunity to establish the groundwork for successful projects and long-lasting relationships.

LinkedIn Ads: Is It Really the Holy Grail for B2B?

When it comes to LinkedIn Ads, especially in B2B, the expectations are often high: reaching decision-makers directly, generating quality leads, and boosting branding strategically. But is LinkedIn Ads the magic solution for all B2B campaigns?

The short answer: it depends.

LinkedIn stands out for its unique targeting capabilities, allowing you to focus ads on specific roles, particular industries, and even individual companies. However, it’s not a channel for quick results. LinkedIn is not a short-term lead generation engine. Instead, it’s a tool for building long-term relationships, educating your audience, and strengthening brand authority.

So, when does it make sense to use LinkedIn Ads?

Launching campaigns for products or services that require market education.

Promoting webinars and events that provide value to your audience.

Remarketing campaigns for audiences that have already engaged with your brand and are advanced MQLs.

By advanced MQLs, I mean those Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs) that match your buyer persona, have interacted with the brand or its content, and show commercial interest because they’ve visited BOFU pages (product pages, offer pages, add to cart, etc.).

On the other hand, if your goal is immediate conversions, it may be better to consider other platforms. LinkedIn excels when you have resources for long-term investment and a focus on value-driven content.

Why is LinkedIn Ads still important for B2B businesses?

The true strength of LinkedIn Ads lies in its ability to target with hyper-precision: roles, industries, professional experience, and specific companies. This makes it an ideal channel when the goal is to reach highly specific and qualified professional audiences. However, this also comes at a price: the cost per click is usually higher than on other platforms like Google Ads or Meta Ads.

What can you really achieve with LinkedIn Ads?

Long-term demand generation and branding: LinkedIn is perfect when the goal is to educate your audience before selling to them. Think of informative content that solves specific industry problems, like whitepapers, case studies, or webinars that help to strengthen brand authority.

Smart remarketing: This is where things get a bit sophisticated. Retargeting on LinkedIn allows you to re-engage those who have already shown interest in your content or visited your site. That said, LinkedIn remarketing tends to work better for audiences already advanced in their buying journey, rather than cold prospects.

More complex offers require more elaborate creatives: Video ads can work quite well, especially when they feature participation from key members of senior management. This generates a more personal and trustworthy connection with the audience.

What LinkedIn Ads is NOT:

It is not the ideal channel for quick lead generation or direct sales if your audience is cold. LinkedIn requires patience and continuous investment in education and trust-building—something many brands overlook. If your product or service is highly disruptive and there’s demand, you could try direct conversion. Otherwise, it’s best to focus on building long-term relationships.

So, is LinkedIn Ads a good solution for B2B?

It’s a strong channel, but not a magic solution. Optimise for the long-term, educate your audience, and don’t underestimate the value of high-quality content. If used with the right mindset, it can be one of the best tools for positioning your brand and generating qualified demand in the B2B space.

What do you think? What’s been your experience with LinkedIn Ads in B2B?

How Conversion Events Drive Brand Building and Engagement in Your Paid Media Campaigns

When we talk about conversions, we often think of the user’s final action: a purchase, a subscription, or a lead. But what about those “intermediate” events that also contribute to brand building and interaction? These types of conversion events can be an excellent way to improve the measurement of your brand strategy.

Consider this: events like spending 3 minutes on the page or scrolling 50% down are signals that you’re generating interest and real user interaction with your content, not just with the ad. These micro-conversions may seem small, but they add up to something bigger: the perception of your brand and the connection you build with your audience.

Think about it. If a user takes the time to explore a project on your website or interacts with your blog, it’s a sign of something important: trust and curiosity. These are the foundations upon which a brand is built. This type of event is key to nurturing long-term relationships and encouraging interaction with your content.

How do you optimise a campaign to maximise these events?

1. Define and measure interaction points: Use data such as time on page, scroll depth, and visits to key sections of the site. You can also measure events that combine several of these interactions.

   
   

2. Apply the appropriate attribution model:

• 1-day click, 0-day view: Ideal for engagement-type conversions or customised events on your website.

• 1-day click, 1-day view: Recommended for non-commercial leads, such as free content exchanges and referrals from Google.

The goal of choosing the right attribution model is to best represent the impact and relevance of these events. A broad attribution window may generate less relevant conversions and cause the events to lose their original purpose.

Conclusion: These methods will help you better understand how your audience connects with your brand and refine your content and creative strategy to further encourage these interactions.

💡 It’s never too late to integrate these events and attribution methods into your advertising goals.

🔍 Want to delve deeper into how these events can affect your paid media strategy? Leave a comment or send me a message, and we’ll discuss it.