As a digital marketer looking to maximize the return on investment from LinkedIn advertising, one of the key considerations is understanding the billing and invoicing process. Specifically, many marketers want to know if there is a minimum spending threshold they must meet in order to qualify for monthly invoicing on LinkedIn’s self-service ad platform.
LinkedIn’s Standard Pay-As-You-Go Billing
By default, LinkedIn bills advertisers on a pay-as-you-go basis. This means your LinkedIn ad account is automatically charged on an ongoing basis for each click or impression delivered by your campaigns. When new ads or campaigns are launched, LinkedIn immediately begins tracking delivery and correlating ad costs in real-time.
At the end of each calendar day, LinkedIn tallies up all ad delivery for the day across your account and processes a bill for immediate payment. This daily billing continues perpetually as long as you have active campaigns running. Any changes in daily spend are simply handled via corresponding increases or decreases to your daily bills.
For most small advertisers, especially those just testing out the platform with budget of less than $10,000 per month, this standard pay-as-you-go billing process usually works just fine. There are no minimum spend requirements, so you can start small and flexibly adjust budgets up or down on a day-to-day basis.
The Benefits of Monthly Invoicing
However, for larger advertisers spending more significantly on LinkedIn ads, the standard daily billing process can create accounting overhead. With daily bills, expenditure tracking and reporting is more fragmented. There is also the hassle of more frequent administrative payment processing.
To solve these issues for bigger marketing budgets, LinkedIn offers the option of monthly invoicing:
- Consolidated Spending Reporting – Instead of daily bills, spending is reported in consolidated monthly invoices. This makes it easier to track and manage LinkedIn ad costs.
- Set Monthly Budgets – Monthly invoicing allows you to set and control defined monthly ad budgets instead of variable daily amounts.
- Predictable Payment Cycles – Rather than daily payment processing, monthly invoicing allows for scheduled payments on a predictable 30-day cycle.
The overall benefits of monthly invoicing include simplified accounting, easier budgeting, improved spending visibility, and more efficient payment processing. This makes the monthly invoicing process much more suitable for larger LinkedIn advertising accounts with bigger budgets.
LinkedIn’s Minimum Spend for Monthly Invoicing
So what kind of minimum monthly ad spend do you need for monthly invoicing? LinkedIn’s requirements are straightforward:
- To qualify for monthly invoicing, you must consistently spend a minimum of $5,000 per month on LinkedIn advertising.
- This $5,000 minimum spend must be maintained for three consecutive months.
- Once qualified, you must continue spending at least $5,000 per month to remain on monthly invoicing.
In other words, you need to demonstrate that your LinkedIn advertising account maintains an ongoing monthly ad budget of at least $5,000. You prove this by actually spending $5,000 or more per month for three months in a row.
Some key things to note about LinkedIn’s monthly invoicing minimums:
- The requirements apply specifically to self-service advertising through LinkedIn’s interface, not LinkedIn’s managed ad services.
- Company Pages advertising is included in the monthly minimum calculation.
- The threshold is based on net spend after any credits are applied.
- Taxes are not included in the $5,000 minimum spend calculation.
- All currencies are converted to USD to assess qualification.
In most cases, marketers wishing to switch to monthly invoicing will need to intentionally ramp up ad budgets to surpass the $5,000 net spend for three consecutive months. So you should factor this requirement into planning if monthly bills are your objective.
Requesting the Switch to Monthly Invoicing
If you meet the minimum spend requirements, requesting a switch to monthly LinkedIn invoicing is straightforward:
- Navigate to the billing page in your LinkedIn Campaign Manager account.
- Click on “Request Monthly Invoicing” located below your active payment method.
- Complete and submit the request form that appears.
Approval for monthly invoicing is not immediate. LinkedIn will review your request and evaluate prior spending to confirm your account meets the $5,000 monthly minimum requirements. Expect a 1-2 week turnaround.
Once approved, you will receive confirmation email that your account has been switched to monthly invoicing. Your billing cycle will then be set to align with the calendar month moving forward.
Downsides of Monthly Invoicing
While monthly invoicing typically works well for larger advertisers, there are a few downsides to keep in mind:
- Loss of billing flexibility – With monthly invoicing, you can no longer adjust spend and payment on a day-to-day basis.
- Pacing limitations – Monthly budgets cap your ad spending for the full month. You may reach your limit well before month end.
- Budget pre-commitment – You must set monthly budgets upfront instead of organically scaling up daily spends.
For these reasons, the pay-as-you-go approach sometimes can be preferable even if you meet the minimums. So assess your specific needs before switching. Monthly invoicing makes sense for larger accounts focused on consolidated reporting and predictable payment processing.
Falling Below Minimums
Once your LinkedIn advertising account has been switched to monthly invoicing, you must be careful not to let your average monthly spend slip below $5,000. If your monthly advertising spend falls below the minimum thresholds for two consecutive months, your account will be switched back to daily pay-as-you-go billing.
The two key scenarios that can lead to falling below required minimum monthly spend levels are:
- Sudden Budget Decreases – Slashing monthly budgets to below $5,000 thresholds for two months will trigger a return to daily billing.
- Seasonality Effects – Advertising accounts subject to major seasonality fluctuations may dip below for one or two months per year.
To avoid returning to daily billing, implement thoughtful LinkedIn advertising budgeting with minimum targets above $5,000 and use robust forecasting to account for any seasonal variations.
Projected Spend Does Not Count
One final note – when initially requesting monthly invoicing, LinkedIn specifically looks at your recent historical monthly advertising spend. Projected or anticipated future spend does not count toward the $5,000 minimum requirement.
For example, let’s say your account has spent an average of $3,000 on LinkedIn ads over the past three months. For the next month, you are planning a major campaign that you project will spend $10,000. Despite your new $10,000 budget, your account is still not eligible for monthly invoicing because you haven’t yet proven you can consistently spend $5,000+ per month.
LinkedIn wants to see your ability to sustain the minimum spend levels demonstrated through actual spending, not intended or predicted budgets. So factor this into timing if requesting a switch to monthly billing.
Key Takeaways
To recap the key facts on LinkedIn’s monthly invoicing requirements:
- You must spend a minimum of $5,000 per month on LinkedIn ads for three consecutive months.
- Once qualified, you have to maintain at least $5,000 in monthly spending.
- Eligibility is based on historical actual spend, not future projected budgets.
- Falling below the threshold for two months results in a return to daily billing.
- Monthly invoices help consolidate spending reports and facilitate predictable payments.
Understanding these minimums and criteria is essential for marketers interested in shifting to simplified monthly LinkedIn advertising invoices for improved budgeting, reporting, and billing management.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some common questions about LinkedIn’s requirements for monthly invoicing and billing:
What happens if I spend $5,000 one month, $3,000 the next month, and $5,000 the third month?
Your account would not yet qualify for monthly invoicing in this scenario. You need to demonstrate a consistent minimum spend of $5,000 for three consecutive months. Fluctuating above and below the threshold during the three month period would not meet the requirements.
Can I qualify for monthly invoicing if I ramp up my daily spend really fast?
No, you cannot qualify within just a single month, even if spending an entire month’s $5,000 budget in a few days. Minimum monthly spends need to be demonstrated over a full 3 month period to be eligible.
What if I’m already billing monthly but then my spend drops below $5,000 – what happens?
If your average monthly spend falls below $5,000 for two consecutive months at any point, your account will automatically revert back to daily pay-as-you-go billing. You would then need to re-qualify by meeting the minimum spends again for 3 months.
Can I switch back to daily billing after using monthly invoicing?
Yes, you can request to switch back to daily billing at any time if you decide the monthly invoicing process no longer fits your needs or preferences for payment management.
Is monthly invoicing required for access to any LinkedIn advertising features?
No, monthly invoicing is optional and has no impact on access to LinkedIn ad targeting, bidding options, or any other self-service campaign management capabilities. It is simply an alternative billing process.
How soon in the month will I be billed if using monthly invoicing?
Monthly invoices are generated on the 2nd of each month and payment is due 20 days later. So you will receive your consolidated monthly bill early in the month with payment due later in the same month.
Can I switch to monthly invoicing if I consistently spend $5,000+ on LinkedIn’s ad services, but not self-service ads?
No, the minimum spend requirements specifically relate to self-service advertising spend through Campaign Manager. Use of LinkedIn’s managed ad services does not count toward the thresholds.
Conclusion
LinkedIn’s minimum monthly ad spend requirements for monthly invoicing eligibility present a clear threshold advertisers must exceed for three consecutive months. Upon qualification, marketers gain access to a consolidated monthly billing cycle that can streamline accounting and payment processing.
However, reverting back to daily billing is also a risk if spend dips. And for some, the flexibility of pay-as-you-go billing still makes most sense. Understanding both the benefits and risks of switching to monthly invoicing is key for LinkedIn advertisers exploring alternative billing options.
