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In today’s cutthroat digital landscape, B2B businesses are fighting tooth and nail to maximize their advertising budgets. With a myriad of platforms vying for their attention, decision-makers are left wondering whether to invest in Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, or hedge their bets on both. In an effort to understand this better, we conducted a survey with 48 respondents, 44 of which identified themselves as agencies or consultants working for B2B businesses.
To help you plan your own budget better, we will delve deep into the advertising preferences of these B2B professionals, uncover the various ways they exploit each platform, and examine the efficacy of each channel. With data from our recent survey, we aim to provide invaluable insights that will help you devise the ultimate strategy for allocating your $2,000 monthly budget for social media advertising.Let’s dig in:
When it comes to allocating advertising budgets for Facebook Ads and LinkedIn Ads, B2B businesses have varying approaches. Our survey reveals interesting insights into how these businesses distribute their monthly advertising spend on these two platforms.
For Facebook Ads, over a third of our respondents (36.36%) have a monthly budget between $1,000 and $2,000. A significant portion (20.45%) spends $1,000 or less, while 11.36% invest between $2,000 and $3,000. 9.09% of respondents allocate between $3,000 and $5,000, and 13.64% spend over $5,000 on Facebook Ads per month.
Related: No Ad Budget? 20 Marketers Share How to Grow Your Audience on Facebook for Free
As for LinkedIn Ads, the responses are more dispersed. 25% of respondents spend $1,000 or less, and 18.18% allocate between $1,000 and $2,000 monthly. 11.36% of B2B businesses invest between $2,000 and $3,000, while 13.64% spend between $3,000 and $5,000. Only 6.82% have a monthly LinkedIn Ads budget exceeding $5,000.
Comparing these results to our Facebook Ads Benchmarks data, we can see that the average B2B monthly investment in Facebook Ads was $1,406.64 in February (524 contributors), while in January, it was slightly higher at $1,566.
This benchmark was calculated from anonymized data from close to 600 companies. Are you a B2B company and want to benchmark your Facebook advertising performance, including Frequency, clicks, CTR, CPM, CPC, Amount Spent, Purchases, Impressions, and more, against other companies like yours? Join the benchmark group for free now.
For LinkedIn Ads, the average B2B monthly investment in February was $1,676.30 (233 contributors), with January seeing a slightly higher investment at $1,897.
This benchmark was calculated from anonymized data from over 200 companies. Are you a B2B company and want to benchmark your LinkedIn advertising performance against hundreds of other companies like yours? Join the Benchmark Group for free.
These findings indicate that B2B businesses tend to have a similar monthly advertising budget for both Facebook and LinkedIn Ads, with most investing up to $2,000 per platform. While Facebook Ads seem to be more popular among our respondents, LinkedIn Ads still hold a significant share of the advertising budget, particularly for businesses targeting professional audiences. It’s clear that B2B decision-makers have to carefully evaluate their advertising goals and target audiences to determine the optimal allocation of their monthly advertising budget across these two platforms.
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In our quest to understand the advertising preferences of B2B businesses, we asked survey participants which platforms their businesses use for advertising. The results, depicted in the chart below, show a clear preference among B2B businesses when it comes to platform selection.
As you can see, the majority of respondents (over 65%) use both Facebook and LinkedIn ads for their B2B advertising needs. This indicates a strong inclination for businesses to leverage the strengths of both platforms, thus maximizing their reach and targeting capabilities.
On the other hand, over 25% of B2B businesses choose to focus exclusively on Facebook ads, likely due to the platform’s larger user base and lower advertising costs compared to LinkedIn. The fact that only 2% of respondents use LinkedIn ads exclusively speaks to the platform’s niche appeal and higher advertising costs. Finally, a small minority (2%) of respondents indicated that they do not use either platform for advertising.
This data demonstrates that B2B businesses predominantly invest in both Facebook and LinkedIn ads, seeking to capitalize on the unique advantages offered by each platform. While Facebook ads provide a broader reach and cost-effective advertising, LinkedIn ads cater to a more professional audience, enabling highly targeted B2B marketing. Ultimately, the choice between these platforms hinges on a business’s specific goals, target audience, and budget constraints.
Related: 24 Facebook Ads Statistics Marketers Need to Know in 2022
In order to maximize the effectiveness of their ad campaigns, B2B businesses often leverage various objectives for their Facebook and LinkedIn ads. We asked our respondents about their primary goals when using these platforms, and the results were quite revealing.
The majority of respondents (80%) use Facebook Ads for awareness, aiming to get people to consume their messaging. In comparison, a smaller proportion (over 40%) use LinkedIn Ads for the same purpose. Retargeting is another popular strategy on both platforms, with over 60% of B2B professionals using Facebook Ads and more than 40% using LinkedIn Ads for retargeting campaigns.
Direct response campaigns, designed to elicit immediate clicks and sign-ups or purchases, are employed by around 65% of our respondents on Facebook and around 55% on LinkedIn. Interestingly, the percentage of the B2B professionals surveyed that indicated that they do not use Facebook Ads is almost negligible, while nearly 20% shared that they do not use LinkedIn Ads.
B2B companies tend to use both Facebook Ads and LinkedIn Ads to achieve their advertising objectives. However, they tend to prioritize Facebook for awareness and retargeting campaigns, while relying on LinkedIn for direct response campaigns. This suggests that businesses find Facebook to be more effective for reaching a broader audience and staying top of mind, whereas LinkedIn is considered the go-to platform for targeting a professional audience with more focused intent.
When it comes to choosing between Facebook and LinkedIn for B2B advertising, marketers often wonder which platform delivers the best results. To help you make an informed decision, we examined the performance of both platforms across three key campaign objectives: awareness, retargeting, and direct response. Let’s explore the results and uncover the most effective platform for each type of campaign.
When it comes to raising awareness and driving impressions, Facebook takes the lead, with 75% of respondents claiming it as the superior platform, while less than a quarter of respondents found LinkedIn to be more effective for this purpose.
In the realm of retargeting, Facebook also came out on top, with almost three-quarters of respondents preferring it over LinkedIn. By contrast, LinkedIn garnered only about a fifth of votes in this category
For direct response campaigns, the competition was much closer. Facebook still maintained a slight edge, with almost half of the respondents giving it the nod. However, LinkedIn trailed closely behind, with 45% of respondents finding it more effective for this objective. Meanwhile, less than 10% of respondents were unsure about which platform delivers better results for direct response campaigns.
Based on the survey results, it’s evident that B2B marketers prefer Facebook for awareness and retargeting campaigns due to its broader reach and cost-effectiveness. However, when it comes to direct response campaigns, the playing field is almost level, with LinkedIn nearly matching Facebook’s performance. B2B marketers should consider these insights when planning their advertising strategies, utilizing each platform’s strengths to optimize results based on their campaign objectives.
Related: LinkedIn Ads Best Practices: 10 Tips for Running Successful Campaigns
When it comes to allocating budgets for social media advertising, B2B businesses face the challenge of determining the optimal amount to invest in each platform. According to data provided by Benchmark Groups, B2B businesses invest roughly the same amount, around $2,000 per month, in both Facebook and LinkedIn ads. But is this budget sufficient to make an impact on each platform? We turn to our expert respondents for their insights.
Trina Moitra from Convert believes that a $1,000 budget is the minimum to make a presence in the PPC game, and with proper campaign management, businesses can achieve micro-goals. Similarly, John Williams from Process Social shares that for Facebook, a $2,000 budget is more than sufficient for most B2B ad strategies.
“I think $1000 is where you can start to at least have a presence in the PPC game. But if you chunk out your campaigns properly, then you can move the needle on micro-goals. Something more generic or blanket can eat up your entire monthly budget in awareness and views (once) – especially on LI – if you are not careful. But pick the platforms and the type of content that is the best optimized for attention/mindshare for the cold layer… then target with the plethora of filters available on LinkedIn.”
Trina Moitra
Head of Marketing at Convert
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Justin O’Brien from AdsManaged goes further, stating that a $2,000 monthly budget for Facebook ads is sufficient for B2B businesses, as they see the best results from direct response ads targeted at their specific B2B niche with a $40/day budget. Retargeting clicks to their website with testimonial ads for a free consultation at a $20/day budget also yields results.
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On the other hand, the general consensus among our respondents is that a $2,000 budget is not enough for LinkedIn ads. Adam Berry from Adam Berry SEO states that while $2,000 a month may be adequate for smaller businesses targeting local audiences, larger companies and those aiming to reach more global audiences may need to increase their budgets significantly.
Jonathan Aufray from GrowthHackers explains that a $2,000 budget for LinkedIn is on the lower end, as LinkedIn ads tend to be more expensive than Facebook ads. This sentiment is echoed by John Williams from Process Social, who notes that for LinkedIn, a $2,000 budget is probably not sufficient.
As the digital advertising landscape evolves, B2B businesses must continually assess their advertising strategies and investment plans. We asked our expert respondents about their predictions for future investment in Facebook and LinkedIn ads, and their responses revealed diverse strategies and opinions on the matter.
Jason Berkowitz from BreakTheWeb believes that his business will invest more in Facebook ads for awareness campaigns, as they are best suited to reach a large audience quickly and effectively. However, Derrick Hathaway from Vem Medical holds a contrasting view. Hathaway goes on to say that LinkedIn ads are more effective for B2B businesses looking to reach a professional audience, especially those in industries such as finance, technology, or consulting, and can offer a higher click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate than Facebook ads.
“Facebook Ads offer a lower cost per click (CPC) and cost per thousand impressions (CPM) compared to LinkedIn Ads, making it more cost-effective for some B2B businesses. However, LinkedIn Ads can offer a higher click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate, making it a better option for some B2B businesses.”
Derrick Hathaway
Similarly, Marc Hardgrove from The HOTH suggests that his company may increase its LinkedIn advertising spending. Hardgrove points out that LinkedIn is an excellent platform for B2B advertising, providing sophisticated targeting options like job title, company size, and industry. Additionally, LinkedIn’s users are known for being very engaged with the content on the site, which makes it a valuable platform for increasing brand awareness and generating leads.
Chelsea Cohen from SoStocked believes that her company may consider redirecting more funds towards retargeting on LinkedIn, arguing that it’s more strategic for finding leads within professional social settings. Daniella Pozzolungo from PupDigital shares a similar sentiment, seeing a big opportunity for more human-to-human connection on LinkedIn and predicting an increased investment into the platform in 2023.
All in all, while some B2B businesses may continue to invest more in Facebook ads for specific objectives, the general trend seems to be leaning towards increased investment in LinkedIn ads due to the platform’s professional focus and sophisticated targeting options. The diverse perspectives of our respondents emphasize the importance of tailoring advertising strategies to the unique needs and objectives of each B2B business.
As we’ve seen, B2B businesses are using both Facebook and LinkedIn ads to achieve various advertising objectives. While the budget for these platforms may vary, it’s crucial to understand where your company stands in comparison to others in your industry.
That’s where Databox Benchmarks Groups come in.
Benchmark Groups provide instant, up-to-date data, allowing you to understand where your business excels and where you may be falling behind. Leveraging industry insights allows you to set more effective, competitive business strategies and make data-driven decisions that yield better results.
By joining a benchmark group, you can gain valuable insights into your company’s performance relative to your peers. This information enables you to set better strategies and business goals, and improve your overall performance.
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to make the most of your advertising budget and optimize your strategies.
Join our Facebook Ads Benchmarks and LinkedIn Ads Benchmarks for B2B companies today and start comparing your performance against similar companies in your industry.
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Davor is an English literature graduate and an avid reader with a passion for languages. Working as a translator, editor, and writer has allowed him to learn about a wide range of topics — making him something of a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to content. In his spare time, he reads, plays video games and boardgames, and runs/plays tabletop RPGs.
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