Paid Advertising

Paid Advertising

Overview

Paid advertising is a dial, not a switch. Start small, measure everything, double down on what works. B2B advertising is fundamentally different from B2C — smaller audiences, higher CPCs, longer conversion cycles. Platform selection matters more than budget size.

This skill covers platform selection, budget allocation, campaign structure, and measurement across the four major B2B ad platforms plus programmatic.

Authoritative Foundations

• Meta Advantage+ Framework — Shapes deliverables for this skill — Paid advertising is a dial, not a switch.
• Google Performance Max — Shapes deliverables for this skill — Paid advertising is a dial, not a switch.
• LinkedIn Campaign Manager — Shapes deliverables for this skill — Paid advertising is a dial, not a switch.

When to Use

• "Launch paid ads"
• "Which ad platform should I use?"
• "Set up LinkedIn Ads"
• "Allocate ad budget"
• "Optimize Google Ads for B2B"
• "Run Meta ads for SaaS"
• "Measure ad ROI"

Step-by-Step Process

Phase 1: Platform Selection

For most B2B SaaS, stack priority: LinkedIn (targeting) → Google (intent capture) → Meta (retargeting). Add TikTok and programmatic when the first three are profitable.

Phase 2: LinkedIn Ads Deep Dive

LinkedIn is the highest-intent B2B ad platform. Targeting by job title, company size, industry, and skills means you reach exactly your ICP.

Ad formats:

• Sponsored Content: In-feed single image, carousel, or video. Best for awareness and content promotion.
• Message Ads (InMail): Direct message to prospects. Higher engagement, higher cost. Best for event invites and demo offers.
• Text Ads: Small sidebar/dashboard ads. Low CPC, low volume. Best for ongoing brand presence.
• Document Ads: Lead gen forms attached to downloadable content. Highest conversion for gated assets.

Campaign structure:

1. Top-of-funnel: Sponsored content promoting educational content. CTA: "Read more" or "Download guide." Target: ICP title + industry.
2. Middle-of-funnel: Retargeting website visitors with case studies. CTA: "See how [similar company] achieved [result]."
3. Bottom-of-funnel: Message Ads to decision-makers who engaged. CTA: "Book a demo."

Budget: Start at $3-5K/mo. LinkedIn minimums are higher than other platforms. Test for 6-8 weeks before judging ROI.

Phase 3: Google Ads for B2B

Search campaigns: Bid on keywords your ICP searches: problem phrases ("[problem] solution"), competitor names ("[competitor] alternative"), category terms ("best [category] software").

Performance Max: Google's AI-driven campaign type. Combines search, display, YouTube, discovery, and Gmail. Feed it audience signals (customer lists, website visitors) and conversion goals. Works well for B2B when fed quality conversion data.

Budget: Start at $2-5K/mo. Monitor search terms report weekly. Add negative keywords aggressively — B2B search terms leak to consumer intent quickly.

Phase 4: Meta Ads for B2B

Meta's strength is audience building and retargeting, not intent capture.

Campaign types:

• Lead Ads: Native forms within FB/IG. Lowest friction for gated content.
• Retargeting: Website visitors, content engagers, video viewers.
• Lookalike audiences: Seed from customer list or LinkedIn followers.

Budget: Start at $1-3K/mo. Meta needs 50+ conversions/week for algorithm optimization. Below that, manual bidding outperforms automated.

Phase 5: Measurement

Track everything. Every ad dollar must be attributable.

Platform pixels: LinkedIn Insight Tag, Meta Pixel, Google Ads conversion tag, TikTok Pixel. Install all four on your website.

UTM parameters: Standardize across all campaigns. utm_source=linkedin utm_medium=cpc utm_campaign=product_demo_q1. Consistent naming prevents attribution chaos.

KPIs by funnel stage:

• Top-of-funnel: CPM, CTR, CPC (efficiency metrics)
• Middle-of-funnel: Landing page conversion rate, lead quality
• Bottom-of-funnel: Cost per demo, cost per opportunity, pipeline generated
• ROI: Revenue attributed ÷ ad spend. Target: 3:1+ for B2B, but expect 6-12 month payback on enterprise deals.

Attribution: B2B sales cycles are 3-12 months. First-touch and last-touch both matter. Multi-touch attribution is ideal. At minimum: track UTM source through CRM to closed-won.

Output Format

Paid advertising plan with: platform selection rationale, budget allocation by platform and funnel stage, campaign structure per platform, creative requirements, pixel/tracking setup, and KPI dashboard.

Quality Check

• Platform selection matches ICP and budget
• All four major pixels installed (LinkedIn, Google, Meta, TikTok)
• UTM parameters standardized across all campaigns
• Campaign structure has clear funnel stage per campaign
• Budget allocation per platform with rationale
• Measurement: cost per demo, pipeline, closed revenue (not just leads)

Common Pitfalls

1. LinkedIn as the only platform. LinkedIn gets you targeting but misses intent capture (Google) and retargeting (Meta). Run all three.

2. Not enough budget to test. LinkedIn at $1K/mo won't produce meaningful data. Minimum $3K/mo for 6-8 weeks to validate.

3. B2C metrics for B2B. Cost per lead is meaningless if those leads don't become pipeline. Measure cost per opportunity and revenue.

4. No retargeting. 97% of first-time visitors don't convert. Retargeting captures the other 97%.

5. Creative fatigue. Same ad for 6 weeks burns out. Rotate creative every 2-3 weeks. Test multiple variants simultaneously.

Execution Artifacts

• references/framework-notes.md — named frameworks, citation anchors, and operating assumptions
• templates/output-template.md — copy-paste deliverable structure for the user
• scripts/check-output.py — local checklist validator for required sections This skill includes lightweight artifacts the agent can load on demand: Use the artifacts when the user asks for an implementation-ready deliverable, a repeatable workflow, or a quality check rather than generic advice.

Related Skills

• ad-creative-strategy: Creative development and testing
• a-b-testing: Experiment framework for ad tests
• attribution: Multi-touch attribution models
• gtm-metrics: Revenue attribution and ROI