LinkedIn is a popular social media platform used primarily for professional networking and job searching. Like other social platforms, LinkedIn allows advertisers to run ads to reach its large user base. One common question advertisers have is whether LinkedIn has any frequency caps limiting how often ads can be shown to the same user.
What is a frequency cap?
A frequency cap is a limit advertisers can set on the number of times an ad is served to the same user over a given time period. Frequency caps help ensure that users aren’t overwhelmed with seeing the same ad too many times.
Some common frequency cap options include:
- Daily cap – limits how often an ad is shown to a user per day (e.g. max 2 views per day)
- Weekly cap – limits ad views per week (e.g. max 5 views per week)
- Monthly cap – limits ad views per month (e.g. max 10 views per month)
Frequency caps give advertisers more control over the ad experience. Lower frequency caps help avoid ad fatigue, where users grow tired of excess exposure. Higher caps allow more repetition that may be needed for brand awareness.
Does LinkedIn have frequency caps?
Yes, LinkedIn does have frequency cap capabilities for ads running on their platform. However, LinkedIn does not enforce any standardized frequency caps by default.
Instead, LinkedIn gives advertisers full control to set custom frequency caps as they see fit for each ad and target audience. Some key points about LinkedIn’s approach to frequency caps:
- Advertisers can choose to set frequency caps at the campaign, ad set, or ad level
- Caps can be based on day, week, month, or overall lifetime views
- Caps range from 1 to 20+ views per period
- No cap is required – advertisers can choose not to set any caps
- Suggested caps depend on objective (branding vs direct response)
- Algorithms optimize ads to serve users who have not exceeded caps
So in summary, LinkedIn does have robust frequency management, but the advertisers themselves have full flexibility in configuration based on their goals and preferences.
LinkedIn’s Recommended Frequency Caps
While LinkedIn does not require any standardized caps, they do provide the following recommended frequency cap ranges for different campaign objectives:
Objective | Recommended Cap Range |
---|---|
Brand awareness | 2-6 views per week |
Demand generation | 2-3 views per week |
Website visits | 2-3 views per week |
Conversions | 1-2 views per week |
Video views | 2-3 views per week |
Engagement | 1-2 views per day |
As shown in the table, LinkedIn suggests higher caps for brand awareness campaigns compared to conversion-driven goals. Advertisers should consider these recommendations but can still customize as needed.
How does LinkedIn enforce frequency caps?
When advertisers choose to implement frequency caps, LinkedIn has advanced systems to honor those caps during ad delivery:
- User view counts are tracked in LinkedIn’s ad servers
- Algorithms optimize which users see ads to avoid exceeding caps
- User lists exclude people who have exceeded configured caps
- Real-time monitoring avoids over-delivering on caps
- Delivery pacing helps spread budget over duration
LinkedIn states that their systems achieve over 99% accuracy in serving ads within the defined frequency caps.
Benefits of Frequency Capping on LinkedIn
Here are some of the key reasons LinkedIn advertisers should consider setting frequency caps for their campaigns:
- Avoid ad fatigue – Caps prevent oversaturation that leads to lower CTR and conversion rates
- Improve relevance – Caps allow showing ads to more distinct users in the target audience
- Increase reach – Caps can help extend campaign exposure to unique users
- Manage budget – Caps allow pacing ad spend over time without over-delivering
- Set brand standards – Caps give control over ideal ad frequency for brand image
Overall, moderate frequency capping provides a good balance for performance and budget management.
Potential Drawbacks of Frequency Caps
While frequency capping has its benefits, there are a few potential drawbacks to consider as well:
- May hinder brand awareness if caps are set too low
- Can reduce potential conversions if best prospects see ads infrequently
- Makes optimization harder with smaller pools of uncapped users
- More effective reach may require higher budget to expand uncapped audience
- Still requires testing different caps to find ideal balance
The ideal frequency caps will depend on factors like budget, audience size, and campaign objectives. Continued optimization is important.
Best Practices for Frequency Capping
Here are some recommended best practices for setting frequency caps on LinkedIn ads:
- Set caps at campaign or ad set level for control
- Start with LinkedIn’s recommended caps based on objective
- Monitor delivery pacing and adjust caps as needed
- Use A/B testing to find ideal caps for audience
- Reset caps monthly or quarterly to recapture lost users
- Extend reach with higher budget or less restrictive targeting
- Review frequency distribution reports in ads manager
- Adjust caps based on performance data over time
Conclusion
In summary, LinkedIn does give advertisers flexible frequency capping capabilities but does not enforce any standardized caps on their own. Advertisers have full control to implement caps at the campaign, ad set, or ad levels based on their specific goals and preferences. Some frequency capping can help optimize LinkedIn ad relevance, reach, and budget pacing. However, caps should be tested and refined over time to find the right balance for each audience and objective.