With lookalike groups - or lookalike audiences - you could, until recently, target interesting LinkedIn audiences. A familiar functionality for the seasoned (B2B) marketer. On Feb. 29, 2024, this feature was discontinued. So, what now? Not to worry, LinkedIn obviously already has an alternative: predictive audiences.

Lookalike groups have long played an important role for online advertising on LinkedIn. These groups are based on similar audiences that resemble existing customers or followers. This allowed you to target ads to people with demographic characteristics and interests similar to current customers.

In addition, LinkedIn offered the ability to upload customer lists with (last) names and e-mail addresses. The algorithm then delved into this data and searched for people with similar online behavior. This often resulted in reaching often high-quality and new audiences.

The farewell to lookalike groups, however, does not mean the end of targeted advertising on LinkedIn. On the contrary, it opens the door to a more personalized and precise approach: personalized advertising with predictive audiences.

Imagine seeing only ads that really apply to you. No more redundant information, no more ads you ignore because they are not relevant. That sounds ideal, right? With predictive audiences, LinkedIn is playing on this more and more.

Predictive audiences can be thought of as dynamic audiences. They are created using advanced algorithms and machine learning. These technologies analyze a huge amount of data from the 950 million LinkedIn users. This data allows LinkedIn to predict which users are likely to be interested in certain products or services.

They also look at the (high) level of engagement, purchase intentions and related interests. This allows you to target not only your target audience more specifically, but also the competitor's target audience. In short, this opens up more opportunities for reaching new potential customers.

We said it before: predictive audiences are going to ensure that you will reach a broad but more accurate audience. Data analysis will make it easier to identify specific patterns and trends. As a marketer, you can capitalize on this by better tailoring your content and ads to the needs and interests of the target audience.

By predicting who is most likely to convert, you also deploy ad budgets more effectively. This, of course, has a positive effect in terms of conversions and ROI. But the most important result? You create a more personalized and, above all, relevant customer experience.

With our LinkedIn training, we help you get started. We tell you step by step how you can successfully target your audience and share essential strategies for this business platform.