AJ Wilcox is a marketer and LinkedIn Guru. He is the founder of the ad agency B2Linked, which shares information, strategies, and tips about advertising on LinkedIn. AJ was challenged to improve advertising on LinkedIn at his previous job, where he learned as much as he could, and became an expert in the field, before starting his own ad agency when he was let go. In this episode, he talks about the differences between search and social media advertising, the art and science of advertising, and whether LinkedIn Ads are for you. Tune in to find out more about how LinkedIn Ads could be changing your business.

 

Key Takeaways:

[:19] John introduces his guest for this episode — AJ Wilcox.

[1:08] How did AJ get into the business of being a LinkedIn Guru?

[4:00] Search advertising is very different from social media advertising. AJ introduces the concept of BANT that captures the differences.

[7:20] How does AJ use LinkedIn to target the Budget and Authority aspects of BANT?

[10:20] LinkedIn advertising is powerful because of the context it provides — it reaches people who are thinking about their jobs and career, which leads to higher conversion rates.

[11:28] When AJ got let go at his previous job, it gave him the chance to ask himself what he really wanted to do.

[13:44] It’s not always a bad thing to be a cog in the corporate world — focus on learning everything that you can, and becoming the best at that aspect, before branching out.

[15:35] Advertising is a complex mix of art and science.

[17:25] What does AJ think about the Microsoft acquisition of LinkedIn?

[21:53] Microsoft’s LinkedIn acquisition has even more staggering implications, if you apply BANT to it — there is now the power to combine search and social.

[24:29] AJ talks about running his own business.

[26:51] What has AJ learned over the course of the past few years about finances, accounting, and taxes, that he didn’t know before?

[29:05] AJ talks about his upbringing, and how that has shaped where he is now, and how he runs his business.

[33:11] AJ grew up in an environment where his father was super conservative and his brother was the complete opposite. It allowed him to see the different consequences of the different choices they made.

[36:39] Was there a point in AJ’s entrepreneurial journey when he thought his business was going to fail?

[38:40] AJ and John discuss millennials, and changes in the digital world.

[41:58] What are some books that AJ would like to recommend?

[44:45] What are some apps or technology that have changed the way AJ runs his business, or that he can’t live without?

 

Mentioned in This Episode:

AJ Wilcox on LinkedIn

B2Linked

LinkedIn

BANT

Microsoft Surface Book

Microsoft Windows 10

Microsoft Teams

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