LinkedIn thought leader ad examples

Dear CMOs who work on exec comms, here's a fresh plate of hot takes to start your week. (1) Every CEO wants to have their own podcast. Less than 5% actually should. (2) Execs will say they don't care about vanity metrics like impressions and only care about engagement from the "right" people. Don't believe them. They care about both. which leads me to... (3) Managing the egos of the execs that you support is 100% part of the job, and the moment you forget that, you will lose the ability to be productive. (4) If you want to create great thought leadership content, you need to challenge the POVs of your execs, not just write down their unedited thoughts. (5) The inherent contradiction between (3) and (4) is exactly why exec comms is an art form. (6) Anyone who claims to "understand the secrets of the LinkedIn algorithm" is a charlatan who wants to sell you a course. (7) You're probably overvaluing organic social and undervaluing paid social. The former is a shotgun (imprecise + ineffective). The latter is a sniper (precise + lethal). related... (8) If you're not running thought leader ads on your exec content, you're missing the biggest opportunity in all of exec comms right now. (9) If you're not using those same thought leader ads to also push your exec content to journalists, podcast hosts, and other important industry folks, you're missing the second biggest opportunity in all of exec comms right now. (10) You need to leave behind "brand" and embrace "performance brand," or you will not survive the next round of budget cuts. That's it for today. If you liked those, I'll be back next Monday with another fresh batch, so make sure to drop me a follow. 🔔

I drove ~1M impressions with just two posts. All thanks to LinkedIn's newsfeed. Both posts were featured in a LinkedIn news story (those links on the top right of your screen) and subsequently distributed out to hundreds of thousands of users. LinkedIn has been telling the market for YEARS that they want to be where every industry gets its news. They're essentially building a community-based news aggregation alternative to trade publications and traditional business media. The value prop is that real insights come from real practitioners, not reporters. After the big Twitter exodus, this focus has only accelerated. So much so that LinkedIn now has an editorial team (a team of actual humans) that is curating the news feed and hand-selecting thought leaders to represent each industry vertical. For thought leaders, this creates a HUGE opportunity. The job of news commentator is totally up for grabs. Execs that can put together a quick content motion that identifies industry news and pumps out genuine informed insight have a chance to become defacto authoritative voices in their space. That means TONS of impressions, followers, and of course ICP engagement (if you select the right stories).

In 11 years of working with brands running their marketing campaigns targeting thousands of locations, I have spent a lot of time stretching what spreadsheets, feeds, and manual campaign builds can do. We got brands live, created localized creatives, but often a huge spreadsheet left to manage manually. It's time to simplify. Describe the outcome once and let Hunch handle more of the data, creative, and structure. Keep humans on the decisions that matter. Take a look of what we are building. Coming soon.

Most display ads get ignored They miss the mark & they waste your budget All because generic display can’t keep up with the real world of B2B buying B2B journeys are complex. Multiple people make decisions. Buying windows open and close fast. Privacy rules keep changing Therefore, old school display ads just can’t adapt So we found a better way -> trigger based display changes everything This approach listens for real company events, like funding rounds, mergers, new hires, acquisitions, or product launches. These are real triggers When a trigger happens, the buying group starts searching for answers. They want solutions, fast Here’s how trigger based display works: • It listens to live company signals, not just old data • It uses SEO triggers and event signals to spot real buying windows • It surrounds the whole buying group, at every stage This is not about tracking content downloads or who clicked on something...that's the old way. The new way is about tracking real company events that spark action & research When you layer triggers, you get precision. You reach the right people, at the right time, with the right message, and display stops being a cost center. It becomes a pipeline engine That’s how modern B2B display works, when you build it on triggers, not guesswork Learn more about our Account Based Display solutions here: https://lnkd.in/em5NCVXi

UK Operators, fear no more. The Robin Hood of iGaming is here to save the day. Meanwhile, Rachel Reeves is out here being the financial equivalent of catching your wife in bed with someone else… and then she still hands you the hotel bill. Let’s compare: Rachel: Politician’s bob Me: Luscious brown wavy locks Rachel: Squeezes tax out of you until your eyes water Me: Fattens your bank account Rachel: Makes you cry in the shower Me: Makes you climax in spreadsheets She takes. I give. She increases costs. I increase FTDs. She’s raising the tax rate. I’m raising your revenue. Like this post or Rachel raises the tax again.

There’s plenty of data shared to quantify a university’s output, but how do you communicate its impact? As universities navigate an increasingly complex public landscape, it's more important than ever to share their stories boldly and confidently. A great event is one of the most powerful ways to do this. Thoughtfully designed events have become essential strategic tools for advancement. They’re opportunities to renew belief, strengthen engagement, and inspire philanthropy. This piece explores how they truly resonate. It makes the case for their growing importance in uniting communities and fostering collaboration between academia and donors to drive the future of research and innovation. All of this leads to an important question: How are you inviting your communities to not only witness your influence, but truly feel it? #INVNT #HigherEducation #ChallengeEverything

Why Gen Z is driving marketing campaigns to embed VIDEO — more of my thoughts in the video. #GenZMarketing #MarketingCampaigns #MarTech #NextGenVideo #AIMarketing #MarketingAtScale #AIVideo #PersonalizedVideo

Common reasons I see people changing agencies? Weirdly, the most common reasons have nothing to do with performance. Top three in no particular order: 1. Lack of communication 2. Poor attitude 3. No alignment to business goals Note: There will have been many clients that have left us for exactly these reasons. So these are things we work on too! But over the past couple years, these three reasons are probably the most common that I hear in sales calls. • Lack of communication is really big. In digital, the work we do can be super technical and so the people doing the work can often struggle to translate what they do in a way that makes sense to the client. It often results in long ass reports that aren't read. • Poor attitude. I've definitely had a few clients come to me recently because their previous agencies actually did great work, but they felt ignored and not really listened to. At the end of the day, we're all still people, right? • No alignment to business goals - Yea, this is kinda funny. Happens a lot with SEO work. Where maybe there's lots of demand for particular keywords so the SEO consultant will only focus on those keywords, even if there's only a slight association to the client's business. I call these out because they're probably the biggest things we need to work on as well. We're a service business, right? Key focus being service. What about you? What's the reason for the last time you changed a provider? —- #Follow for stories about running Insight Online, strategy, marketing, and occasionally, my mum.

The Blandscape™ exposes how many firms say they’re trusted, but fail to prove it. Logos are helpful. Testimonials help. But shallow case studies don’t build confidence. Clients want specifics, because this builds trust and credibility. The Blandscape™ scores how well your case studies demonstrate your value. We’re looking for outcomes, not activities. Challenges solved, impact created, results delivered. When your case studies work, they de-risk the decision for your prospects. They see the pattern of your success. And it makes the buying decision easier. If they don't believe you, they're less likely to hire you. Get your firm's free Blandscape scorecard: https://lnkd.in/ep8zUFgC #branding #brandstrategy #professionalservices #lawfirmmarketing #theblandscape

Is you firm's outdated brand holding your business back? It's easy to end up lost in the 'blandscape'. Same strategy. Same story. Same style. So i you want to find out where your firm's brand is falling short, request your free Blandscape™ audit here: https://lnkd.in/ep8zUFgC #BrandStrategy #LawFirmMarketing #ProfessionalServices #B2BBranding #Leadership

Real talk: Are you actually using loyalty as a growth tool… or just hoping customers stick around? If you’re in manufacturing or the merchant space, you already know what the landscape feels like right now. Busy, noisy, everyone shouting the same messages at the same people. No wonder customers are overwhelmed. Here’s the thing I keep seeing… Most brands work so hard on acquisition, but barely tap into the growth that comes from loyalty. And I don’t just mean rewarding purchases. I mean really understanding your customers. Who’s buying, who’s drifting, what’s driving repeat spend and where your biggest opportunities actually sit. When you have that level of insight, you stop guessing. You stop sending emails into the void. You start influencing the behaviours that genuinely move the needle. In my latest blog, I dig into: → Why your real competition is customer overload → The insight gap most teams don’t realise they have → Why existing customers are your easiest and fastest source of growth → And why now is the moment to double down If you’re trying to grow in a crowded market, loyalty isn’t just helpful. It’s the thing that changes the game. Give the blog a read. It might just reshape how you grow this year. 👉 https://lnkd.in/ebgDUggc

The biggest shake-up in search since Google launched? It’s happening right now. Say hello to AIO: AI Optimisation. We set ourselves a challenge to explain it in plain English (no buzzword bingo). Here’s the deal - People aren’t just Googling anymore. They’re asking AI. ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity… these tools are changing what people see, who they trust, and which brands show up in answers. If SEO helps you show up on Google, AIO helps you show up in AI answers. And when AI gives two results instead of ten, you’d better be one of them. So what can you do right now? ✓ Publish credible, expert-led content. ✓ Use structured data so AI understands you. ✓ Earn mentions from trusted sites. ✓ Stay consistent - authority compounds. Search is evolving fast. The brands adapting now will own the future. Check out the full breakdown in our recent blog. (Link in the comments below!) And if you’d rather skip the acronym soup and get straight to results with someone who knows their sh** stuff, you know where to find us. 😉 #AIOptimisation #SEO #AIO #DigitalMarketing #SearchStrategy #InsightOnline ----- #Follow for stories about running Insight Online, strategy, marketing, and occasionally, my mum.

Have you fallen into the trap of trying to do too much with too little? A limited budget creates pressure. It makes teams feel like they need to squeeze in every channel, every message, every tactic just to keep up. But the truth is that doing more with less rarely makes campaigns stronger. More often it dilutes them. When budgets are tight, the instinct is to “spread it around” so nothing gets missed. Instead of clarity, you end up with clutter. Instead of impact, you get thin activity that fails to move the needle. Teams work harder, not smarter, and the results rarely justify the effort. 2026 should be the year of focus. Focus on the few activities that produce real commercial outcomes. Focus on the audiences that matter most. Focus on the channels that actually drive performance. Focus on the story that sets your brand apart. You do not win by filling your calendar. You win by making every dollar work harder. For B2B marketers leading strategy, creative and growth in their organisations, this mindset shift is powerful. You are the ones who set the direction. You are the ones who can champion simplicity and precision over noise. Prioritise results. Cut the rest. That is how you build campaigns that perform no matter the budget. #B2BMarketing #MarketingStrategy #FocusFor2026 #DoLessAchieveMore #WomenInB2B

“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” I had the privilege of hearing from Dame Ranjna Patel at the University of Auckland Business School’s end-of-year Supporters Thank You event. Her story is extraordinary; from co-founding Tāmaki Health, now serving more than 330,000 patients, to establishing Gandhi Nivas, a groundbreaking family harm intervention service that has helped thousands of families rebuild their lives. Dame Ranjna demonstrated that meaningful change starts with individuals who choose to act, serve and lead with purpose. Her life’s work is proof of the impact one person can make when they refuse to accept the status quo. A heartfelt thank you to the Business School for bringing together such an inspiring community of alumni, industry partners and supporters. University of Auckland Tim Kalwey Dr Drew Franklin Nina Brosius Fiona T. Human Digital | B2B Marketing Agency

Do you spend too much on brand PPC? Is it getting less profitable? The answer is yes! Because search has got way more competitive on brand terms in the 18 months (thanks Pmax & broad match 🙄 ) Your next question has to be: 'Are my brand campaigns optimised and setup right?' Because so often they're neglected. Left as the campaign that 'always delivers'. When we audit campaigns we always delve in brand and find efficiencies. It's the easiest to optimise, yet the most neglected campaign! Need help with your brand PPC? Drop me a message 👋 #brand #ppc #googleads

A new McKinsey survey shows a major shift in how people search: 44% of respondents now prefer AI-powered search, compared to 31% who still choose Google. This is yet another signal that users are gravitating toward AI for more targeted, trustworthy answers. At Ignite Visibility, we’ve developed a proven framework to make sure your brand shows up where modern searchers are looking. We evaluate your brand across five essential dimensions: 1️⃣ Content Retrievability 2️⃣ Content Alignment 3️⃣ Competitive Differentiation 4️⃣ Authority Signals 5️⃣ Entity Mapping This holistic approach strengthens your foundation and positions your content to shine across AI-driven search experiences. To learn more about how to gain AI visibility and request a free AI SEO assessment, visit our website here https://lnkd.in/gbZDRMge

Performance marketing has nothing to do with spending more. It has everything to do with finding the balance between distribution and media spend. https://onecoremedia.com/

In over a decade of leadership, I haven’t seen a shift in digital marketing this drastic. 🤯 The channels that used to be your reliable workhorses, like standard organic search and basic paid media, are now volatile. If you are a CMO or Business Leader entering 2026 with the exact same budget allocation you had in 2025, you aren't just stagnating. You’re vulnerable. The brands that will win next year aren't just "doing more." They are diversifying.They are integrating AI search, rethinking their attribution models, and shifting spend to where the consumer actually is, not where the marketing team wishes they were. We’ve spent the last quarter analyzing data across our entire client base to define the New Marketing Mix for 2026. I want to share that blueprint with you. 🗓️ Join me, Karen Devlin, and Joseph A. Mohay, MBA on Dec 18th at 11am PT. We’re cutting through the noise and focusing strictly on the bottom line. Make sure to save your spot here: https://lnkd.in/ge85WrQc

A ‘perfect marketing campaign’ doesn't exist. For brands looking to scale, consistency beats contemplation. Full stop.

If you're not using influencer videos in your paid media mix, you're missing a trick 👀 We've tested using influencer creative against regular ads and seen a 30%+ uplift in key engagement metrics!!! Are you seeing success with influencer ads in paid media? Let me know 👇 Kudos to Sam Clayton for this analysis, the full article is linked in the comments. #ppc #metaads #influencer

The secret’s out. Yes, I was Tony Blair and Lethal Bizzle… at the same time.

If you don’t know what your brand's goal is on social, you will fail. It’s as simple as that.

“GEO is just SEO” - it’s one of my favourite takes right now — because it shows how boxed in the SEO industry has become. Clients are asking about Generative Engine Optimisation, and getting the same answer: “you need more Search Engine Optimisation” The irony here is, of course, that the SEO industry is trying to tell clients they’re looking for the wrong thing… AI platforms don’t rank pages in the same way search engines do, so the thinking needs to be different. They cite sources. They recommend brands. They look at a broad range of inputs - which change often in terms of the frequency and importance of shaping results - which more broadly speak to the overall online reputation of a business. Which means the advantage shifts to those in the reputation management business, towards: 📈 Credible, high-authority content 📈 Positive media coverage 📈 Brands that have a consistent, positive reputation across as many touch points as possible. In other words - the balance has shifted to public relations management. At Hard Numbers 📈, we’ve been researching this for nearly two years, and both myself and Paul worked in the SEO industry before we started the business six years ago. Our work (with partners like Onclusive) consistently shows that brands with stronger positive media coverage are significantly more likely to be recommended by AI platforms. The opportunity for PR industry is that we’re not trying to retrofit an old product to a new problem. We can meet the “GEO need” head-on, and across all the channels that shape online reputation.

Last year Marty Kausas was scaling Pylon fast — 60+ people, 6x revenue growth, and aggressive 15% MoM pipeline targets. BUT their GTM teams were flying blind. They had one major problem: they couldn’t see which channels were actually driving pipeline. After switching to HockeyStack, they were able to: - Gain full-funnel visibility across LinkedIn organic, Google Ads, and all paid/owned channels - Uncover 10% of monthly pipeline from Google Ads (previously hidden) - Triple ad spend with confidence after identifying high-ROI campaigns - Have Daily pipeline accountability through a single source of truth - Save engineering + RevOps time by avoiding an internal attribution build - Get AI insights from Odin (HockeyStack’s AI Analyst) surfaced underutilized channels automatically Pylon went from reactive → proactive GTM. Every marketing dollar was accountable to pipeline. This is what modern GTM looks like. Want to try HockeyStack? Try our interactive demo here: https://lnkd.in/dKgHGxzv