Engagement Retargeting

What AdGradr checks

AdGradr reviews whether accounts are using LinkedIn’s engagement-based retargeting audiences. It flags accounts older than 60 days with no engagement audiences defined as the most significant finding. Accounts that have defined engagement audiences but are not using them in any active campaign receive a moderate flag. Accounts using only one type of engagement audience when multiple types would be relevant receive a minor flag.

AdGradr does not flag accounts without video campaigns for missing video viewer audiences. The check only applies to engagement types relevant to the ad formats the account actually uses.

Why this matters

LinkedIn lets you build retargeting audiences from people who engaged with your content on the platform itself. These audiences require no Insight Tag, no website traffic, and no list uploads. They are built entirely from actions people took on LinkedIn.

The available engagement audience types include:

• Video viewers at 25%, 50%, 75%, or 97% completion thresholds.
• Lead Gen Form openers who started but did not submit.
• Company Page visitors who viewed your LinkedIn Company Page.
• Single Image Ad engagers who clicked or interacted with your sponsored content.

Each of these represents a different intent signal. Someone who watched 75% of your video knows your message. Someone who opened a Lead Gen Form but abandoned it was interested enough to start but hit friction. These are warm audiences that cost nothing to build.

What good looks like

A well-configured account creates engagement audiences for every relevant ad format it runs:

• If running video ads: audiences for 50%+ and 75%+ completion, used in mid-funnel campaigns.
• If running Lead Gen Forms: an audience of form openers who did not submit, targeted with follow-up creative addressing common objections.
• Company Page visitor audiences, especially useful after organic posting activity drives traffic to the page.
• Single Image Ad engagement audiences for accounts with high-volume sponsored content.
• These audiences are actively used in campaigns, not just defined in the audience library.

Common mistakes

1. Not knowing these audiences exist. LinkedIn buries engagement retargeting under Matched Audiences. Many advertisers only think of retargeting as website-based.
2. Creating audiences but forgetting to use them. The audience library fills up with segments that never get attached to a campaign.
3. Using only one engagement type. An account running video, Lead Gen Forms, and sponsored content but only retargeting video viewers is ignoring two other intent signals.
4. Setting completion thresholds too low. A 25% video view audience includes people who scrolled past after 3 seconds. That is not intent. Stick with 50%+ for meaningful engagement signals.
5. Not refreshing audience windows. Engagement audiences have lookback windows (30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days). Stale audiences filled with year-old engagers are less valuable than recent ones.

How to fix it

1. Go to Campaign Manager > Plan > Audiences > Create Audience.
2. Select the engagement source that matches your active ad formats:
   • For video: choose “Video” and set completion thresholds at 50% and 75%.
   • For Lead Gen Forms: choose “Lead Gen Form” and select “People who opened but didn’t submit.”
   • For Company Page: choose “Company Page” and select “All page visitors.”
   • For Single Image Ads: choose “Single Image Ad” engagement.
3. Set lookback windows appropriate to your sales cycle: 90 days for most B2B, 30 to 60 days for faster cycles.
4. Build campaigns targeting these audiences with creative tailored to their engagement level. A video viewer who watched 75% needs different messaging than a cold prospect.
5. Review audience sizes monthly. Engagement audiences grow organically as your campaigns run.

When to ignore this check

Accounts under 60 days old have not accumulated enough engagement data to build meaningful audiences. AdGradr skips the check for these accounts. Additionally, accounts running only one ad format with a single relevant engagement type will not be penalized for missing other types. The check adapts to what the account actually runs.

---

Want someone to handle this? The Click Makers team manages LinkedIn Ads accounts for companies spending $10K+/month. Get in touch to see if we are a fit.