A LinkedIn tracking tag, also known as a LinkedIn pixel, is a small snippet of code that marketers place on their website to track conversions from their LinkedIn ad campaigns. Tracking tags allow marketers to see how many site visitors came from LinkedIn ads and what actions they took on the website after clicking on an ad.
How Does a LinkedIn Tracking Tag Work?
A LinkedIn tracking tag works by firing a signal back to LinkedIn whenever someone who has previously seen or clicked on one of your LinkedIn ads visits your website. This allows LinkedIn to identify that visit as originating from your ad campaign.
Specifically, when someone clicks on your LinkedIn ad, a cookie is dropped on their browser containing a unique identifier. When that person later visits a page on your website with the LinkedIn tracking tag installed, the tag detects that cookie and fires off a notification to LinkedIn, allowing them to log the visit as a conversion from your ad campaign.
Why Use a LinkedIn Tracking Tag?
There are a few key reasons to use a LinkedIn tracking tag on your website:
- Track conversions and ROI from LinkedIn ads – See how many people actually took desired actions after clicking your ads.
- Optimize ad targeting – Identify which audience segments and ad placements drive the most conversions.
- Retarget site visitors – Use conversion data to create lookalike audiences and target people likely to convert.
- Unlock more LinkedIn advertising options – Conversion tracking required for advanced bid types.
How to Install a LinkedIn Tracking Tag
Installing a LinkedIn tracking tag is a relatively simple, quick process:
- Log into LinkedIn Campaign Manager and navigate to the “Tracking & Conversions” page under the “Assets” section.
- Select the “Website Tracking” option. Copy the tracking tag code snippet.
- Paste the code on every page of your website before the closing tag.
- Test that the tag is firing correctly by clicking your own ad and checking for notification in Campaign Manager.
The tracking tag code should look something like this:
<script type="text/javascript">
_linkedin_data_partner_id = "12345";
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
(function(){var s = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];
var b = document.createElement("script");
b.type = "text/javascript";b.async = true;
b.src = "https://snap.licdn.com/li.lms-analytics/insight.min.js";
s.parentNode.insertBefore(b, s);})();
</script>
Tracking Tag Placement Best Practices
To get the most accurate tracking results, follow these best practices when installing your LinkedIn tag:
- Place the tag as high in the as possible.
- Use on every page, especially key conversion pages.
- Avoid caching or server content delivery networks.
- Double check tag is firing via LinkedIn’s Tag Assistant.
- Tag all variations of a URL, including parameters.
Tracking Conversions in LinkedIn Campaign Manager
Once your LinkedIn tag is installed, you can view conversion data in LinkedIn Campaign Manager in real time. Some key reports to analyze include:
- Conversions – View total number of conversions and conversion rate.
- Conversion Path – See the journey users took from ad click to conversion.
- Conversion Timestamp – Check when conversions took place relative to ad clicks.
- UTM Source/Medium – Confirm conversions came from LinkedIn ads.
This conversion data powers many of LinkedIn Campaign Manager’s automated bidding and optimization features to maximize your ROI. You can also create custom conversion goals and assign them values to track the metrics most important to your business.
Using Conversion Data to Optimize
Once you are tracking conversions, some ways to use that data to optimize your LinkedIn ads include:
- Use conversion data to build lookalike audiences to target more users likely to convert.
- Review top converting keywords and placements and allocate more budget to those ads.
- Exclude users who have already converted so you aren’t showing them ads unnecessarily.
- Build A/B test ads and landing pages and see which convert best.
- Use LinkedIn’s automated bid strategies leveraging conversion data.
Troubleshooting Tracking Tags
Some common tracking tag issues and ways to troubleshoot them include:
Issue | How to Troubleshoot |
---|---|
No conversions registering | Use LinkedIn’s Tag Assistant to test tag is firing. Check tag placement and site caching settings. |
Conversions over- or undercounting | Make sure 1 tag installed sitewide. Check similar URLs are tagged. Use UTM links for accuracy. |
Conversion lag | Can take 24-48 hours for all data to sync. Check timestamps to confirm delays. |
Conclusion
Installing a LinkedIn tracking tag is crucial to measuring the true impact of your LinkedIn ad campaigns. By implementing the tag properly and leveraging the conversion data it provides, you can gain actionable insights to optimize your targeting, creative, and bids to maximize your LinkedIn advertising ROI.