LinkedIn ads manager provides advertisers with a powerful platform to run and optimize LinkedIn ad campaigns. One of the key features is the ability to download leads generated from your LinkedIn ads directly within the ads manager interface.
Downloading your LinkedIn leads allows you to track the quality and performance of your campaigns. It enables you to take those leads and integrate them into your CRM or marketing automation system for further lead nurturing.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the step-by-step process of downloading leads from LinkedIn ads manager.
Prerequisites for Downloading LinkedIn Leads
Before you can download leads from LinkedIn ads manager, there are a few requirements you need to meet:
- You must have an active LinkedIn ads manager account.
- The lead generation form ad unit must be enabled on your ads manager account.
- You must have at least one active LinkedIn campaign using the lead generation form ad unit.
- You must be using the conversion tracking tag on your lead generation form pages.
Without meeting these prerequisites first, you won’t be able to download any leads from your LinkedIn campaigns.
How to Download Leads from LinkedIn Ads Manager
Once your LinkedIn ads account is correctly set up, downloading your leads is a quick and simple process. Here are the steps:
- Log in to your LinkedIn ads manager account.
- Go to the “Campaign Manager” section.
- Click on “Leads” in the left sidebar menu.
- Use the filters to choose the date range for leads you want to download. You can filter by time, campaigns, etc.
- Click the “Export Leads” button.
- A CSV file with all the leads matching your filters will download.
The downloaded CSV file contains detailed information on each lead including:
- Name
- Company
- Title
- Email address
- Phone number
- Lead quality score
- Lead source
- Lead timestamp
With this lead data, you can now segment and categorize your leads for follow-up. Or sync the leads with marketing automation software like HubSpot for nurturing.
How Often Should You Download LinkedIn Leads?
We recommend downloading your LinkedIn leads at least once per week. This gives you adequate time to follow-up while the lead is still warm.
Here are some best practices on lead download frequency:
- Download leads daily if your ad budget is high or lead volume is high
- Download leads 2-3 times per week for average spend/volume
- Download leads weekly for lower budgets and lead volume
Test different frequencies and see what works best for your lead follow-up process. The key is to download regularly so leads don’t go stale before you can contact them.
How to View and Manage Downloaded Leads
Once you’ve downloaded LinkedIn leads, there are a few options for managing and tracking them long-term:
Use the LinkedIn Lead Center
LinkedIn Lead Center is a native LinkedIn platform for viewing, organizing, and tracking your downloaded leads over time. With Lead Center you can:
- See all leads in one place
- Segment leads (e.g. by quality score)
- Track status and activity on leads
- Integrate with Zoho and Salesforce CRMs
- Prioritize highest quality leads
Lead Center makes it easy to pick up where you left off with lead follow-ups. It’s a good free option if you only use LinkedIn for lead gen.
Use Third-Party Marketing Automation Platforms
For more advanced lead management capabilities, third-party marketing automation systems are a good option. For example:
- HubSpot – Sync LinkedIn leads automatically with custom workflows.
- Marketo – Import leads via custom Marketo munchkin API integration.
- Ontraport – Integrates directly with LinkedIn lead ads.
- SharpSpring – Can connect LinkedIn CMS Divine API to pull in leads.
The right marketing automation platform lets you score leads, set lead nurturing workflows, notify sales reps, and measure ROI across channels.
Upload to Your CRM
Lastly, you can upload the LinkedIn leads CSV into your CRM system like Salesforce. Most CRMs let you directly import lead lists via CSV file upload.
The benefit here is that leads seamlessly integrate into your standard sales workflows. Reps see all lead details and can monitor status directly within the CRM.
LinkedIn Lead Matching vs. New Leads
When downloading LinkedIn leads, you may notice some leads are marked as “new” while others are “matches”. What’s the difference?
- New leads – These are leads that are brand new to your LinkedIn account. They have never submitted a lead form before.
- Matched leads – These are leads that have previously submitted a lead form for your account sometime in the past.
Try to focus your initial follow-up efforts on the “new” leads first. You can follow-up with matched leads later after contacting newer prospects.
Tips for Managing Your Downloaded LinkedIn Leads
Here are some best practices to manage your exported LinkedIn leads effectively:
- Prioritize following up with “new” leads first before circling back to previous “matched” leads.
- Remove duplicate leads in Excel before importing into CRM or marketing automation systems.
- Use lead quality score to prioritize follow-ups with hot, warm, and cold leads.
- Personalize your follow-up messaging based on lead attributes and profile.
- Track status and activity history on leads directly in your CRM.
- Set reminders to follow-up with leads that previously expressed interest.
By nurturing and tracking leads properly, you’ll maximize conversion rates from your LinkedIn ad spend. Don’t let quality leads sit untouched.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often are leads updated in LinkedIn ads manager?
Leads are updated in near real-time in LinkedIn ads manager. As soon as someone submits a lead gen form for your campaign, they will appear in your ads manager within minutes (usually faster). You don’t have to wait for leads to update.
Can I export leads from LinkedIn’s mobile app?
Currently, LinkedIn does not support exporting leads from their mobile app. You need to use the desktop ads manager interface to download leads. The mobile app can only be used for monitoring campaigns.
What’s the maximum number of leads I can export at once?
As of October 2022, you can export up to 100,000 leads at a time from LinkedIn ads manager. If you need to export more, you’ll have to download in multiple batches.
How do I import LinkedIn leads into HubSpot?
There are two options for importing LinkedIn leads into HubSpot:
- Install the LinkedIn Ads Lead Gen integration app from HubSpot marketplace.
- Manually upload the CSV using the File Import tool in Contacts.
The integration app provides automation for scheduled lead imports. Manual upload works but requires you to repeatedly upload the CSV.
Can I integrate LinkedIn leads with my mobile CRM app?
Yes, most popular CRM mobile apps like Salesforce Mobile or HubSpot CRM support integrating LinkedIn lead data. You can access all the downloaded lead details right within your mobile CRM app.
Mobile access makes it easy for sales reps to view and manage leads on-the-go after importing.
Should I use an email verification service before following up with LinkedIn leads?
Using an email verification and enrichment service like NeverBounce or Kickbox can improve LinkedIn lead quality. These services identify invalid email addresses and append missing data like full names.
This helps you avoid wasting time following up with fake or undeliverable emails from bots or spammers.
Conclusion
Downloading and managing leads is a vital part of LinkedIn ads success. Take advantage of LinkedIn’s lead gen capabilities by regularly exporting and nurturing your leads.
With the right follow-up processes, you can convert more LinkedIn leads into sales and scale the ROI of your ad spending.
Try setting up lead workflows in a CRM or marketing automation platform to streamline follow-ups. And continuously refine your lead quality by removing bottlenecks in your sales process.
Now that you know how to easily download LinkedIn leads, it’s time to start building those critical lead lists.