For an early stage B2B software company, the first paid media budget is usually small, and the first mistake is spreading it across too many channels. The two most common choices are Google Ads and LinkedIn Ads. They work in different ways, and the right choice depends on how much demand already exists, how well you can define your buyer, and what you are trying to learn. This guide compares them and suggests how to sequence them.<\/p>\n
Google Ads search captures intent.<\/strong> You show an ad to a person who just typed a query related to a problem or a solution. The audience is defined by what they are looking for, not by who they are. If the right people search for your category, you can reach them at the moment they are looking.<\/p>\n LinkedIn Ads reach people by profile.<\/strong> You can target by job title, seniority, industry, company size, specific companies and more. The audience is defined by who they are, not by what they are doing at that moment. You can reach buyers who are not searching yet, which makes it better for creating demand and for account-based work, but typically at a higher cost per click than search.<\/p>\n Neither is “better”. They answer different questions. Search asks “is there demand we can capture?” LinkedIn asks “can we reach the right people before they search?”<\/p>\n Start with narrow, high-intent keywords: terms that describe the problem or solution you offer, competitor and alternative terms where policy allows, and your own brand. Use exact and phrase match types with care, review search terms regularly, and add negative keywords to avoid irrelevant clicks. Send traffic to a page that matches the query, not to a generic home page. For more on how we approach it, see B2B SaaS marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n The limit of search is volume. If few people search for what you do, because you are creating a new category, search alone will not scale.<\/p>\n LinkedIn works well for account-based programs, where you upload or select a list of companies and show them a sequence of messages. It also works for retargeting people who visited your site, watched your video or engaged with your content. Keep audiences large enough for the platform to deliver, and watch frequency so the same people do not see the same ad too often. Be careful with job title targeting that is too narrow; the platform has minimum audience sizes and costs can rise sharply for small groups.<\/p>\n Costs differ by market, season and competition, so we do not quote averages here. Test with a small budget to find your own numbers.<\/p>\n The biggest mistake in B2B paid media is stopping measurement at the form fill. A cheap lead that never becomes a meeting is expensive. Set up tracking so you can see the full path.<\/p>\n With early stage volumes, you will not get statistically solid numbers. Use the data to find clear winners and losers, and use conversations to understand why. Be patient with the sales cycle: if your deals take three months, a campaign launched last week cannot tell you its revenue yet. Look at leading indicators such as qualified meetings.<\/p>\n A budget split is a decision for your numbers, not a rule. A common approach is to begin mostly with search where demand exists, add LinkedIn at a smaller share for a defined audience, and shift once you see cost per qualified meeting for each.<\/p>\n Paid media works best alongside other work. Organic search, content and outbound feed the same funnel and give you messaging ideas that you can test in ads. If you are still looking for your first customers, see our guide to the first ten customers of an AI startup<\/a>. You can also read about our tech startup marketing<\/a> services.<\/p>\nWhen to start with Google Ads<\/h2>\n
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When to start with LinkedIn Ads<\/h2>\n
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Compare them on the things that matter<\/h2>\n
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\n \nQuestion<\/th>\n Google Ads (search)<\/th>\n LinkedIn Ads<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n Who sees the ad<\/td>\n People searching a query<\/td>\n People matching a profile<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Best for<\/td>\n Capturing existing demand<\/td>\n Reaching defined accounts and roles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Typical click cost<\/td>\n Varies widely by keyword<\/td>\n Generally higher than search<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Volume limit<\/td>\n Search demand in your category<\/td>\n Size of your target audience<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Learning speed<\/td>\n Fast, from query data<\/td>\n Slower, depends on audience size<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Creative focus<\/td>\n Match the query and the page<\/td>\n Offer, proof and a clear reason to click<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n Measure pipeline, not just leads<\/h2>\n
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A sensible sequence<\/h2>\n
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Mistakes to avoid<\/h2>\n
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Where other channels fit<\/h2>\n