It is not just contacts, but the right contacts which you need to excel in any field, LinkedIn helps you build that contact base. With new features being rolled out by LinkedIn to ease the processing of generating leads, Like, Lead Gen Forms.

LinkedIn says 80% of engagement with sponsored content happens on mobile and the network realises web forms are a common obstacle to conversions. So it’s decided to take action by creating user-friendly forms on your behalf and prompting users to convert inside the LinkedIn app.

If we take a close look.

What are LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms?

LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms are available for sponsored content campaigns. You can choose whether to use them or not and they won’t cost you anything, so it’s certainly worth trying them out to see what impact they have on lead generation.

Essentially, Lead Gen Forms add a call-to-action to your sponsored content ads, asking users to sign-up, download your eBook, or whatever action you’re targeting. When users click the CTA (call to action form) they’ll be greeted by a signup form inside the app, but instead of filling out fields LinkedIn will automatically pull in the details from their account, so all users have to do is confirm their email address and hit the submit button.

Next, they’ll be greeted by a thank you page and a link to your content or website, depending on where you want to send them. This does involve a bit of setting up on your part, though, so let’s look at how you can create LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms.

How do I set up LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms?

To get started with Lead Gen Forms you’ll want to create a promoted content ad – this is the only format that supports the feature. Next, you’ll be asked whether you want to increase traffic with your ad or generate leads using Lead Gen Forms. Naturally, you’ll need to select the second option to use this feature.

Once you’ve named your campaign and selected Lead Gen Forms you’ll be asked to choose which post you want to sponsor – or create new sponsored content from scratch. You can also go to Campaign manager and create Lead Gen Forms for existing campaigns.

Once you’ve chosen (or created) the content you want to promote, you’ll be asked to create your form template. You can either choose the default format or create your own:

Nothing complex here. You simply have to name your form (users won’t see this), choose your headline and provide any additional information you want about your offer. There’s also the option to add custom privacy policy details if you want to reassure users about their data.

One thing worth mentioning is you need a valid URL for your privacy policy page.

Next, you can choose which details LinkedIn collects from user accounts (a maximum of seven fields). First name, last name and email address are selected by default but you can also request additional contact, location and professional details that your Lead Gen Form will automatically collect.

Users will be able to see what information you’re collecting from them on your Lead Gen Forms, so be considerate of how much info you think they’ll be willing to hand over. These forms remove the need to type anything out but they don’t necessarily remove the reluctance to hand over personal details. Bare this in mind and understand you might need to experiment a bit to maximise conversions from these forms.

The final step is to choose the thank-you message you want users to see after they submit.

Once you’re done, click Save and that’s it. Now you can set your ad targeting options as normal and your new Lead Gen Form is good to go.

Why Should I use LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms?

The whole point of LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms is to boost conversion rates from your lead generation campaigns. It’s a pretty good implementation, too, and there are a number benefits to using the new feature.

Remove friction

The aim of the game with Lead Gen Forms is to make it easier for users to convert by removing friction. All it takes is two clicks for users to convert, an impressively low commitment required on the part of users. This adds up to a serious improvement for mobile users compared to the standard promoted content format.

Fewer steps, more info

Lead Gen Forms prove you can ask for more information from people without killing conversion rates. It all comes down to how you design the experience of completing forms and LinkedIn is doing a pretty good job here. This gives you the chance to collect more data without hurting conversions but also choose which kind of information to collect and create advertising campaigns accordingly.

Test them out for yourself

Don’t let me or anyone else tell you how good LinkedIn Lead Gen forms will/won’t be for your business. If you’re advertising on the network, try them out for yourself and see what kind of difference they make to your lead generation results. Just bare in mind your results will vary depending on the kind of content, ads and campaigns you create. Lead Gen Forms won’t do everything for you.

Also, consider what I said earlier about creating the best form and lead generation experience you can on your own site. Your time and effort might be better spent on improving this process to get better results from all of your advertising/marketing channels.

The post The new LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms. All you need to know appeared first on Digital Leadership Institute.