CEB, the leading member-based advisory company aimed to gain new members for the organization’s unique mix of peer perspectives and research-based operational solutions. CEB partnered with LinkedIn and realized that the solution rested in the way that professionals use LinkedIn. They agreed that Sponsored InMails were the perfect vehicle for communicating with these executives about the benefits of CEB membership. Read the full story to learn more and see more success stories at marketing.linkedin.com/success-stories

1. Marketing Solutions
Challenge

Reach highly-placed executives

Target executives during career transitions

Deliver relevant, personalized marketing
messages

Highlight the value of CEB thought leadership
Solution

LinkedIn Sponsored InMails
Why LinkedIn?

Executives self-identify as job changers or
leaders in transition

Targeting capabilities allow focus on key
segments such as HR or sales professionals

InMails are trusted communications and can
deliver in-depth messages
Results

InMail open rate is four times the average

Clickthrough rate is twice the average
CEB (www.executiveboard.com), the leading member-based
advisory company, markets its research in human resources,
information technology, and corporate innovation to a
rarified group of highly senior executives. To gain new
members for the organization’s unique mix of peer
perspectives and research-based operational solutions, CEB
faces a unique marketing challenge, explains Rory Channer,
Managing Director of Marketing for CEB.
“These are very busy people, and they can be hard to reach,”
Channer says. “This requires us to deliver high-impact
marketing, but it needs to be cost-effective.” CEB’s marketing
organization is relatively new, and has focused on using new
tools, such as digital and social media marketing, to reach out
to potential members. However, the problem of getting
through to highly influential executives remained – in
particular, how to convince executives to check out some of
the compelling thought-leadership materials that CEB offers.
CEB Case Study
CEB reaches executives
in transition with LinkedIn
Sponsored InMails

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The title of CEB’s InMail specifically addressed executive
challenges: “How will you ensure long-term success in
your new role?” The InMail went on to congratulate the
LinkedIn member on his or her professional shift, invited
them to try out CEB’s Leadership Transition Service, and
offered a free white paper on the hallmarks of successful
leadership transitions.
High open rates – and thankful recipients
The InMail campaign generated open rates that were four
times the rate of CEB’s typical online marketing campaigns,
and twice the typical clickthrough rate. “The performance of
the campaign was astounding,” Channer says. “But it wasn’t
just about open rates and clickthroughs. People told us they
were thankful that we reached out to them at this moment of
transition in their careers. They quickly engaged with us, and
wanted to see how we could help them.”
Using LinkedIn’s targeting to reach executives at the moment
when the CEB pitch would be most relevant is the key to this
campaign’s success, Channer says. “LinkedIn not only gives
us access to senior executives, it gives us the speed to go to
market with messaging while it’s relevant to our target market,”
he says. “We also get LinkedIn’s counsel on the best way to
launch an innovative and highly targeted campaign.”
CEB’s LinkedIn Sponsored InMail
Visit marketing.linkedin.com to learn how other marketers have successfully met their marketing objectives.
Leveraging the power of LinkedIn
profile data
Channer and his marketing colleagues knew that a defining
moment for connecting with an executive about CEB services
is during a period of transition – that is, when an executive
has changed companies, been promoted, or added
significant new responsibilities. “This is the moment when we
can help them,” Channer says. “Our research shows that 50
percent of executives struggle during the first year of
transition, and the support we provide can help them
succeed. But the conundrum is that at these moments, they’re
too busy to talk to us.”
Channer shared this marketing challenge with LinkedIn and
together they realized that the solution rested in the way that
professionals use LinkedIn. “When people change their
company or their title, they update this information on
LinkedIn,” Channer explains. Using LinkedIn targeting
capabilities, CEB could send messages directly to leaders
during an in-flux time in their careers. “We decided to
target a sub-segment of executives in human resources and
sales, because they have high turnover rates in their
departments and because they are experienced with these
kinds of transitions.”
Channer and LinkedIn agreed that Sponsored InMails were
the perfect vehicle for communicating with these executives
about the benefits of CEB membership. Since InMails arrive
directly in LinkedIn members’ email inboxes, they provide a
powerful incentive for recipients to explore the messages.
And since members can only receive one Sponsored InMail
every 60 days, their impact is greater and they are more
effective at cutting through message clutter.
“LinkedIn not only gives us access to senior executives, it
gives us the speed to go to market with messaging while
it’s relevant to our prospects. We also get LinkedIn’s
counsel on the best way to launch an innovative and
highly targeted campaign.”
Rory Channer
Managing Director of Marketing
CEB