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ChatGPT Ads for SaaS is still brand new, which makes it both exciting and a little unpredictable.

OpenAI launched its advertising platform in February 2026, and it has been shipping new features ever since.

You'll still run into a few rough edges, from limited campaign objectives to B2B SaaS eligibility questions that haven't been fully answered yet.

But that's the price of getting in early.

This guide brings together OpenAI's official documentation and AdConversion's first-hand experience running pilot campaigns. 

Everything in this article reflects ChatGPT Ads as of July 2026. But don't be surprised if OpenAI has rolled out a few more updates by the time you’re reading it.

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Table of Contents

What Are ChatGPT Ads?

How Do ChatGPT Ads Work?

What Are the Current Limitations of ChatGPT Ads for SaaS?

When Should SaaS Businesses Start Investing in ChatGPT Ads?

How Do You Launch Your First ChatGPT Ads Campaign for SaaS?

How Do You Measure ChatGPT Ads Performance?

What Are ChatGPT Ads?

ChatGPT ads are sponsored placements that appear below ChatGPT answers during AI conversations. 

The format is refreshingly simple. Each ad includes only:

• Your brand name and favicon
• A headline and a short description (max. 100 characters)
• A small thumbnail image
• A link to your landing page

OpenAI labels every placement as sponsored, so users can easily tell it apart from the AI’s response.

What makes ChatGPT Ads stand out is the unique advertising experience it creates. 

Instead of fighting for attention on search results pages and social feeds, your brand becomes part of the user’s research process. 

You can reach potential buyers while they ask questions, compare vendors, or explore new solutions with AI search.

This gives you a brand new touchpoint to add to your paid media mix.

How Do ChatGPT Ads Work?

ChatGPT Ads match your ads to relevant conversations while using a familiar paid media campaign structure.

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Context hints replace keyword targeting

If you've spent years building keyword lists in Google Ads, you now need to break that habit.

Instead of choosing the exact searches you want to target, you provide context hints.

These hints tell OpenAI what your product does, who it's for, and the types of conversations it belongs in. 

Think of them as conversation themes that match the questions people are asking and the problems they’re trying to solve. 

The more context hints you give, the easier it becomes for ChatGPT to find relevant opportunities for your ads.

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Conversations determine ad relevance

ChatGPT Ads doesn't decide whether to show your ad based on a single prompt or keyword. 

It looks at the entire conversational context to understand what the user is trying to accomplish. 

If the chat signals commercial intent and your product could genuinely help the user, OpenAI will display your ad.

For example, someone asking ChatGPT 'What is HR software?' isn't ready to buy, so they won’t see any ads. But once they start comparing platforms and pricing, an HR software ad would fit right in.

This contextual targeting might just be one of the platform’s biggest advantages.

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Campaign structure mirrors traditional ad platforms

The good news is that ChatGPT Ads Manager isn’t an entirely different ballgame if you’re used to managing Google Ads for SaaS.

The account follows the same hierarchy you're accustomed to: campaigns contain ad groups, and ad groups contain individual ads.

You can also choose a campaign objective and submit bids that determine how your ads compete for ad delivery.

This familiar structure makes the learning curve much shorter. 

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User trust and brand safety come first 

ChatGPT Ads doesn't chase ad impressions at all costs. 

If a conversation involves sensitive topics like self-harm, violence, hate, or fraud, your ads simply won't appear. 

This policy protects the user experience and your brand’s reputation.

OpenAI also goes over your ad copy, images, and landing pages with a fine-tooth comb before they go live. 

Misleading claims, deceptive offers, impersonation, prohibited products, and other restricted content won't pass the review.

OpenAI can reject your ad, reduce its reach, or ask you to fix it before it runs. 

If you keep breaking the rules, you risk losing access to ChatGPT Ads altogether.

What Are the Current Limitations of ChatGPT Ads for SaaS?

ChatGPT Ads is still in its early stages, so you should expect some limitations in accessibility and features.

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Platform access is limited

Getting into ChatGPT Ads isn't as simple as creating an account. 

The Ads Manager is still in beta, and OpenAI continues to expand access in phases.

Right now, only businesses in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Korea can apply.

Even then, you'll need OpenAI's approval before you can launch your first campaign.

If you haven’t gained early access to the beta version, as AdConversion had, don’t despair.

ChatGPT Ads is still developing and needs more time to reach maturity.

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Campaign objectives are in short supply

If you're used to mature paid media platforms, you'll notice a few gaps straight away. 

As of July 2026, ChatGPT Ads only supports Views and Clicks as campaign objectives, with Conversions still in development.

This means you can’t yet optimize for leads or sales as you would on Google Ads.

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Targeting isn't fully mature

OpenAI’s targeting capabilities still have a long way to go. 

Geographic targeting is limited to the same countries where advertisers can access the platform.

Plus, ChatGPT ads only appear to users on the Free and Go plans. 

If your ideal customers use Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, or Edu plans, they won't see your ads. 

This means part of your target audience could be out of reach before your campaign even rolls out.

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Reporting has room to grow

ChatGPT Ads reporting is another area that's still catching up. 

You'll see top-of-the-funnel metrics like impressions, clicks, and click-through rates (CTRs), but not much beyond that.

OpenAI recently added the option to set up conversion tracking, which is a step in the right direction.

But you still can't connect ad spend to pipeline, revenue, or other business metrics that matter most to B2B SaaS teams.

You also can't see which conversations triggered your ChatGPT ads because the platform doesn't offer conversation or placement reports yet.

This makes it much harder to understand what actually drives performance or wasted spend.

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Some SaaS businesses might not qualify

OpenAI currently supports a relatively small number of advertising categories. 

The problem is that most of them seem to favor B2C brands more than B2B companies.

For instance, you have lifestyle and household goods, local services, and travel and experiences.

The ad policies also mention digital products, but don't clearly define them. 

And since you don’t know which SaaS products actually qualify, campaign approval becomes unpredictable. 

Fintech companies face even more restrictions because OpenAI currently allows only general financial software and educational resources.

When Should SaaS Businesses Start Investing in ChatGPT Ads?

SaaS businesses should start investing in ChatGPT Ads once they’ve built a paid acquisition engine that produces consistent business results.

Experiment once your marketing works

Don't make ChatGPT Ads your first paid media channel. 

Start testing it after you've achieved success on major ad platforms like Google Ads, LinkedIn Ads, or Meta Ads. 

By then, you'll already know which offers generate pipeline, which messaging resonates with buyers, and which landing pages convert. 

That puts you in a much better position to experiment with a new channel than if you simply go in blind.

Start with a small test budget

You don't need to bet your entire ad budget to see whether ChatGPT Ads deserve a place in your paid media program. 

Treat it like any new channel and start with a learning budget of around five to ten percent of your monthly ad spend.

Gather data, learn what works, and scale only once you see measurable results.

How Do You Launch Your First ChatGPT Ads Campaign for SaaS?

Launch your first ChatGPT Ads campaign for SaaS by aligning your ads and landing pages with the conversations your ideal buyers are having.

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Step 1: Set up your Ads Manager account

Start by signing in to ChatGPT Ads Manager with your OpenAI account and completing the onboarding process. 

You'll need to enter your business details, verify your account, and wait for OpenAI to review your application. 

Once you're approved, finish setting up your account information, billing profile, and payment method.

You can then invite other team members to help manage your campaigns. 

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Step 2: Build custom audiences

Custom audiences is one of the latest features in ChatGPT Ads, and it's a welcome addition for B2B SaaS marketers. 

Setting up a custom audience is pretty straightforward. 

You upload a list containing either email addresses or phone numbers for your customers or prospects, then wait for OpenAI to match the data. 

Just make sure the list is properly formatted because ChatGPT Ads only accepts one identifier type per file.

Once your custom audience is set up, you can use it to include or exclude users from a campaign or adjust your bids for specific audience segments. 

Your audience needs at least 25,000 matched users to be eligible, although OpenAI recommends aiming for 100,000 users or more for the best results.

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Step 3: Configure your campaign

Use the campaign objective to tell ChatGPT Ads what you’re trying to accomplish.

If your goal is to get your brand in front of more people, choose Views, which uses CPM (cost per thousand impressions) pricing. If you'd rather drive traffic to your website, go with Clicks, which uses CPC (cost-per-click) pricing. 

Choose carefully because you won't be able to change the objective once the campaign goes live.

Your budget deserves just as much attention. 

The new daily budget option is a huge improvement because it gives you more control over your ad spend. 

During early testing, AdConversion saw one ChatGPT Ads campaign spend its entire lifetime budget in a single day because that was the only available option at the time.

Set your maximum bid based on OpenAI’s recommendations, then adjust it as you learn more about how the platform behaves.

Pick start and end dates that give your campaign enough time to collect meaningful data before making changes.

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Step 4: Create ad groups and context hints

Keep each ad group focused on a single conversation theme instead of trying to squeeze every use case into one campaign. 

For example, a cybersecurity SaaS company could create one ad group for buyers comparing endpoint protection platforms and another for IT teams looking to reduce ransomware risk.

This makes it much easier to keep your ads and context hints aligned.

Your context hints should describe the conversations you want to join, not the keywords you want to target. 

Think in terms of moments like 'user is comparing HR platforms' or 'user needs help automating employee onboarding.'

Based on AdConversion’s pilot ad campaigns, broader yet highly relevant context hints tend to outperform extremely narrow ones.

If you're not sure where to start, ask ChatGPT or Claude for help. 

Feed the AI your customer interviews, testimonials, or sales call transcripts. Then ask it to identify the questions, pain points, and buying signals that show up most often.

Those insights make excellent context hints.

For more details, check out AdConversion’s tutorial on ChatGPT Ads targeting.

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Step 5: Write relevant ads

Your ChatGPT ad creatives should feel like a natural next step in the conversation, not a promotional banner.

Write a headline that immediately tells the user how your SaaS product can help.

Instead of 'HR Software for Growing Companies,' try 'Simplify Employee Onboarding with AI.'

Use the ad description to build on the headline’s promise by highlighting one clear benefit or outcome.

Every word counts when you have limited space, so focus on what the buyer actually cares about.

ChatGPT Ads only supports small thumbnails that don't leave much room for detailed graphics or product screenshots.

A simple illustration that reinforces your headline is your better option.

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Step 6: Build dedicated landing pages

Sending every visitor to your homepage is one of the fastest ways to lose potential customers. 

Instead, create a landing page that matches the promise in your ChatGPT ad. 

If your ad promises to help companies build real-time dashboards, take visitors straight to your data analytics solution.

Align your page headline, body, and call to action (CTA) with your ad messaging to keep the experience consistent from click to conversion.

Add UTM parameters to every landing page URL to identify traffic from a specific ChatGPT Ads campaign.

You also need to make sure every page loads correctly and is accessible to OpenAI's crawler. Otherwise, your ads might not pass the review.

Building dedicated landing pages for every campaign isn't always realistic, especially if you're juggling multiple launches at once. 

If that's the case, bringing in a SaaS landing page agency, like AdConversion, can save your team a lot of time.

AdConversion builds and optimizes landing pages for all types of paid media campaigns, including ChatGPT Ads.

The team also keeps tabs on your pages once they go live, constantly testing new offers, messaging, and CTAs to increase conversions.

For example, AdConversion's work with Warmly shows how redesigning a landing page resulted in a 366% jump in conversion rates and a 160% increase in average time on page.

Step 7: Launch and double-check

Hitting Publish isn't the finish line. 

Once your campaign is approved, keep an eye on its status in ChatGPT Ads Manager to make sure your ads are actually delivering. 

If you see 'Not serving,' don't panic. Hover over the status to find out what's causing the issue. 

In many cases, a quick edit and resubmission are all it takes to get your campaign back on track. 

If you’re dealing with something more serious, such as policy violations, business verification issues, or billing problems, you need to resolve it before your ads can start running.

How Do You Measure ChatGPT Ads Performance?

You can measure ChatGPT Ads performance by combining platform metrics with conversion data to understand what's actually driving results.

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Keep an eye on available metrics

As of July 2026, the ChatGPT Ads Manager lets you monitor:

• Impressions
• Clicks
• Spend
• CTR
• Average CPC
• Average CPM
• Conversions (only if you set up conversion measurement)

This gives you an idea of how your campaigns are delivering and how efficiently you're spending your ad budget. 

Just remember that conversion data can take 24 to 48 hours to appear in Ads Manager, so don't expect immediate updates.

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Set up conversion measurement

If you want to know whether your ChatGPT ads are driving trial sign-ups, demo requests, or other valuable actions, you'll need to set up conversion measurement.

OpenAI currently supports three measurement options:

• JavaScript Pixel is the quickest way to start tracking conversions. Once you add the code to your website, it will automatically record the actions users take after clicking your ChatGPT ads.
• Image Tag loads a small tracking image when someone reaches your conversion page. It's a simple alternative if you can't use JavaScript, but it doesn't offer the same level of access.
• Conversions API sends conversion events directly from your server to OpenAI instead of relying on the user's browser. It's the most reliable option for SaaS companies already using server-side tracking because it's less affected by browser restrictions and ad blockers.

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Analyze your campaign reports

Checking reports should become part of your regular optimization routine. 

ChatGPT Ads lets you compare performance across campaigns, ad groups, and individual ads, making it easy to spot winners and underperformers. 

You can also switch to charts to spot performance trends over time or export your data as a CSV file for deeper analysis.

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Over to You

ChatGPT Ads for SaaS is still finding its footing, but the opportunity is already hard to ignore.

Getting started now gives you a chance to learn the platform before everyone else joins the party.

Stay curious, keep experimenting, and let the data guide your decisions.

If you'd like a second opinion before launching your first campaign, have a quick chat with AdConversion.

Reddit Ads are among the most underestimated paid acquisition channels for SaaS, but they differ significantly from other platforms.

Cost-per-click (CPC) on Google and LinkedIn keeps climbing. Meta's targeting has never fully recovered. Reddit sits there with lower costs, highly engaged niche communities, and buyers who are actively researching solutions. 

And yet, most SaaS teams either ignore it or try it once without a solid framework, only to walk away disappointed.

This guide fixes that. Here's what it covers:

• What Reddit Ads are and which ad formats matter for SaaS.
• The budget you need to get meaningful data.
• How to track and attribute conversions without undercounting Reddit's impact.
• The most common mistakes SaaS marketers make on Reddit, and how to avoid them.

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Table of Contents

What Are Reddit Ads?

What Differentiates Reddit Ads from Other Advertising Platforms?

How Can a SaaS Business Benefit from Reddit Ads?

What Budget Do SaaS Companies Need for Reddit Ads?

How Should You Structure a Reddit Ads Campaign for SaaS?

How Do You Track and Attribute Reddit Ads Conversions for SaaS?

Common Reddit Ads Mistakes SaaS Marketers Make

What Real SaaS Reddit Ads Results Look Like: Case Studies

What Are Reddit Ads?

Reddit Ads are paid placements that appear natively inside Reddit's feeds and subreddit conversations (much like promoted posts within niche forums) alongside organic posts. 

They're managed through the Reddit Ads Manager and can target users by:

• Subreddit community
• Keyword
• Interest
• Behavior

Unlike other platforms, users aren't passively scrolling on Reddit. They're instead actively researching tools and asking peers for recommendations. That means your ad shows up in the middle of a conversation your potential buyer is already having.

Reddit Ads runs on an auction system with three bidding models:

1. Cost-per-click
2. Cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM)
3. Cost-per-view (CPV) for video

Here's how every Reddit ad format maps to a SaaS use case:

For most B2B SaaS teams, the formats worth starting with are image ads, free-form ads, video ads, and lead generation ads. 

These provide the best balance of native feel, targeting control, and conversion potential.

What Differentiates Reddit Ads from Other Advertising Platforms?

The main difference between Reddit Ads and other advertising platforms or social networks is how targeting works.

On Google or Quora, you reach buyers based on what they're searching for.

On LinkedIn, you reach them based on their professional roles.

On Reddit, however, you reach them based on what communities they belong to.

That community context changes the creative style and tone of your content, the way your offer is framed, and how buyers are likely to respond. For example, an ad that converts on LinkedIn may get downvoted on Reddit.

Here's how Reddit stacks up against every major alternative:

Reddit is not a replacement for any of the other channels. It fills a specific gap (mainly, community-based awareness and consideration) that other platforms struggle to reach cost-effectively.

How Can a SaaS Business Benefit from Reddit Ads?

Reddit isn't the right channel for every SaaS company. But for the ones it fits, it offers advantages that Google, LinkedIn, and Meta usually can't replicate:

• Access to high-intent buyers in the mid-research stage: Reddit users aren't passively scrolling. They're asking peers which tools to use, reading product teardowns in their category, and comparing vendors in real time. Your ad appears in that conversation.
• Lower CPCs than any major B2B channel: Reddit's average CPC for B2B SaaS audiences sits between $0.60 and $2.50, compared to $8.50–$14.00 for non-branded B2B SaaS keywords on Google Search and $10–$16 on LinkedIn.
• Subreddit targeting reaches niche ICP communities: No other platform lets you target r/devops, r/cybersecurity, or r/startups directly. For SaaS products with a well-defined ideal customer profile (ICP) this precision is hard to match.
• Community credibility transfers to your brand: Ads that feel native to a subreddit borrow trust from the community itself. That's a meaningful edge for SaaS companies trying to break into markets where buyers are skeptical of outbound.
• Complements demand capture channels: Reddit builds awareness before buyers start searching. Teams running Google Ads often see improvements in branded search volume and conversion rates after adding Reddit to the mix.

What Budget Do SaaS Companies Need for Reddit Ads?

A SaaS company typically needs $1,500–$3,000 per month to run a meaningful Reddit Ads test, according to Stackmatix's 2026 Reddit Ads cost guide. That’s generally enough to cover two to three campaigns with sufficient data to optimize.

Reddit's minimum is $5 per day, but in practice, that buys roughly two to three clicks, which isn’t enough for the algorithm to learn. The practical floor is $50–$100 per day per campaign to allow enough room for that.

Beyond averages, your budget may vary based on several factors:

• Funnel stage: Conversion campaigns optimized for demo requests run at 2–3 times higher CPC than awareness campaigns.
• Subreddit targeting tier: Mid-tier communities of 100,000–500,000 members deliver comparable engagement to large subreddits at 30–40% lower CPMs.
• Audience size: Narrow ICP targeting limits available inventory and pushes CPCs up.
• Creative testing: Reddit audiences are sensitive to tone. The fix is to reserve 20–30% of your budget for testing angles and formats before scaling.
• Sales cycle length: Longer B2B SaaS cycles require nurturing budgets across multiple funnel stages, not just a single push to convert fast.

How Should You Structure a Reddit Ads Campaign for SaaS?

Successful Reddit Ads campaigns aren’t just a single ad set thrown at a broad audience. 

They’re structured systems with a clear conversion goal and audience. They are also:

• Matched to a funnel stage
• Targeting by intent
• Segmented by persona
• Tested deliberately

Here's how to build a Reddit Ads campaign, step by step.

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Step 1: Define the SaaS conversion you want Reddit to influence

Pick one conversion goal per campaign, for example:

• Demo requests
• Trial signups
• Freemium activations
• Webinar registrations
• Content downloads

Reddit can influence any stage of the buyer journey, but trying to drive awareness, leads, and pipeline from the same ad set dilutes the message and makes results hard to read.

Decide what the purpose of this campaign is before writing a single ad.

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Step 2: Match the campaign to the SaaS funnel stage

A campaign targeting cold subreddit audiences should look different from one retargeting people who already visited your pricing page. Each group is at a different point in the journey, and the ad needs to reflect that.

Top-of-funnel campaigns tend to perform best when they lead with the pain point, keeping things educational rather than salesy.

Bottom-of-funnel campaigns can be more direct, since that audience already understands the category. Demos, free trials, comparison pages, or implementation-specific content all work well here.

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Step 3: Segment audiences by SaaS buyer intent

Not everyone scrolling a relevant subreddit is equally close to making a decision, and the targeting should reflect that range.

A few useful segments to separate:

• Broad category communities for general awareness
• Niche problem-based subreddits for people already dealing with the pain point
• Competitor-related discussions
• Keywords for audiences actively researching
• Retargeting pools for anyone who has already engaged with the brand

Someone casually browsing r/cybersecurity is in a different headspace than someone comparing tools against a specific competitor, so your ad messaging should differ too.

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Step 4: Build separate ad groups for personas, use cases, or pain points

Most SaaS products serve more than one type of buyer, so it's best not to put every prospect into a single ad group. 

Developers, RevOps managers, founders, and IT leaders might all be potential users of the same product, but they care about different things.

Building separate ad groups for each, with pain points, proof, and custom calls to action, is a great way to make the ad feel like it was written for them, even though the product is the same.

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Step 5: Choose an offer that fits the audience’s readiness

A cold Reddit user who's never interacted with the brand before usually isn't ready to book a demo the moment they see an ad.

For lower-intent audiences, softer offers tend to work better, such as templates, benchmark reports, calculators, or teardowns of relevant problems.

The bigger asks, such as free trials, demo requests, or comparison pages, are better saved for warmer audiences who've already shown some engagement through retargeting or prior interaction.

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Step 6: Write Reddit-native ads around problems, not product features

Ads that lead with product features tend to blend into the internet noise, and Reddit users have little tolerance for that. 

Leading with the problem instead tends to work better.

Write in a way a particular Redditor would talk about something useful they just found, in plain language. Corporate jargon like ‘unlocking potential’ or ‘next-level solution’ is worth avoiding completely.

Polished stock photography also underperforms here. Screenshots, simple graphics, or text-first formats that feel native to the platform do better than anything that looks like a billboard.

You shouldn’t try to disguise that your post is an ad (it rarely works and tends to erode trust). Just meet your audience where they are.

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Step 7: Send each campaign to a SaaS landing page built for that intent

The ad's job is to earn the click. The landing page's job is to deliver on what was promised, not a generic homepage. 

If the ad leads with a specific pain point, the landing page should address that pain point right away rather than making the visitor search for it.

Keeping the landing page focused helps too: one offer, one clear call to action, and minimal distractions. 

For lead-gen offers, trimming the form to only the necessary fields further improves conversion.

For more practical guidance, check out these 10 tips for building B2B SaaS landing pages.

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Step 8: Structure tests around audience, offer, and message fit

The culprit for an underperforming Reddit campaign could be the wrong audience, the wrong offer, or the wrong message. Without a clear testing structure, it's hard to know which one it is.

A cleaner approach is to test one variable at a time:

• Starting with distinct audience segments shows which ones respond well.
• Once a segment shows promise, you can test different offers and hooks to narrow things down further.
• From there, scaling the combinations that consistently produce qualified leads (not just clicks) is the most efficient way to maximize your results.

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Bonus step: Partner with a Reddit Ads agency

If you don’t have the time or resources to build and manage campaigns yourself, let a SaaS Reddit Ads agency, like AdConversion, do it for you.

AdConversion Agency researches your market, competitors, and relevant subreddits before building a strategy around your ICP. 

From there, it creates Reddit native ad creatives that fit naturally in discussions instead of interrupting them. 

Campaigns never sit on autopilot either. The agency keeps testing new audiences, messaging, offers, and bidding strategies to improve performance. 

AdConversion also builds landing pages that pick up where the ad leaves off, giving prospects another reason to book a demo.

How Do You Track and Attribute Reddit Ads Conversions for SaaS?

Reddit's impact is easily misjudged if the tracking is set up wrong. Most SaaS teams rely on the Reddit Pixel alone and miss a significant portion of conversions from technical audiences who run ad blockers.

The right setup has two layers.

1. Install Reddit Pixel across all site pages to capture standard conversion events, such as demo requests, trial sign-ups, and content downloads.
2. Configure Reddit's Conversions API (CAPI) for server-side event delivery, bypassing browser-level blocking and filling the gaps Pixel misses.

From there, add UTM parameters to every Reddit ad and make sure they feed into your CRM (e.g., HubSpot or Salesforce). This lets you track Reddit-sourced contacts through every funnel stage: 

• Marketing-qualified lead (MQL)
• Sales-qualified lead (SQL)
• Opportunity
• Closed-won

You can use AdConversion’s free UTM generator to create them.

There’s one caveat worth noting here: Reddit's default attribution window is 28 days, meaning any conversion that occurs within 28 days of someone clicking your ad is credited to that campaign. 

For B2B SaaS with longer sales cycles, this undercounts Reddit's influence.

A buyer who clicks a Reddit ad and then converts through branded search a month later shows up in Google's report, not Reddit's. Make sure to treat your CRM as your main data source for lead attribution instead of Reddit’s Ads Manager.

Here are the metrics you should track across every campaign:

• Click-through rate (CTR) and CPC: Early signals of creative and audience fit.
• Cost per lead (CPL) and cost per SQL: Pipeline efficiency.
• Trial sign-up or demo request volume: Conversion output.
• Lead-to-SQL conversion rate: Lead quality.
• Pipe-to-spend ratio: Revenue impact.
• Engagement rate (upvotes, comments): How native the ad feels to the community

AdConversion’s Data Analytics Agency makes tracking and analyzing campaign results much easier. 

The team builds you a custom Paid Revenue Dashboard that integrates with your Reddit Ads account and CRM, bringing all the data into one place.

This dashboard updates automatically, so you can check pipeline and revenue metrics in real time.

AdConversion can also connect your other ad accounts to the same dashboard to give you a complete view of paid media performance.

Common Reddit Ads Mistakes SaaS Marketers Make

Reddit punishes lazy advertising more than any other platform. A misaligned ad doesn't just underperform; it gets downvoted, criticized, and damages brand perception in the communities you're trying to win over.

Most SaaS teams that write off Reddit as ‘a channel that doesn't work’ have made at least one of these mistakes:

• Repurposing ads from other platforms: Corporate language, polished visuals, and feature-focused copy get ignored (or ridiculed). Ads need to be written in a conversational, problem-first way that’s tailored to the Reddit community you target.
• Targeting too broadly: Broad interest categories waste budget on low-intent users. The biggest advantage of Reddit is its precise subreddit targeting.
• Judging performance too early: Just like with other platforms, Reddit's algorithm needs time to learn. Pulling campaigns after only one or two weeks of conversion data is one of the most common reasons teams conclude Reddit doesn't work.
• Ignoring the comment section: Promoted posts have open comment sections. Unaddressed negative comments are visible to every subsequent viewer. It’s important that someone on your team monitors and responds to these.
• Optimizing for CPL instead of pipeline: A low cost per lead can be misleading if those leads don’t reach your sales reps. Track cost per SQL and pipeline-to-spend ratio instead.

What Real SaaS Reddit Ads Results Look Like: Case Studies

Here are three case studies from Reddit’s success stories that show what happens when you get both your targeting and creatives right.

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Kolide: 2x CTR above benchmark, 3x more efficient CPC

Kolide, a device security software company, used Reddit to grow readership for its Kolidescope newsletter among IT and cybersecurity professionals.

By targeting relevant communities and interests with carousel ads, it achieved CTR double the benchmark, with CPC three times more efficient than expected. 

Kolide leveraged the fact that Reddit's security and IT communities are highly engaged and actively looking for exactly this kind of content.

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Chargeblast: 75% reduction in customer acquisition cost

Chargeblast, a chargeback management SaaS, ran a full-funnel Reddit strategy combining interest targeting, community targeting, and lookalike audiences to reach e-commerce and fintech buyers.

The result was 50% lower cost per acquisition (CPA) than projected, and 40% lower CPA specifically from lookalike targeting. Founder Qi Cao called it the best experience he'd had across all ad platforms.

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Bitly: 1.6x CTR above goal, 25% more site clicks

Link management platform Bitly used community and keyword targeting to reach users who are actively researching relevant topics, rather than those passively scrolling.

Its campaign drove over 10,000 new users to the site, with CTR above both the target and the industry average.

Visitors sourced from Reddit also spent more time on Bitly's site than traffic from other platforms.

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Over to You

Reddit is a unique platform for advertisers, with distinct targeting logic, creative standards, and audience expectations. Users who are active on it have a lower tolerance for anything that feels like an ad.

That said, B2B SaaS teams willing to meet buyers where they are have an advantage on Reddit. They can leverage the platform to lower CPCs, engage niche audiences, and source leads from communities their competitors are ignoring.

If you want help building a Reddit Ads program that drives a qualified pipeline, book a call with the AdConversion team.

Looking to ask your boss or client for more ad budget? 

This can feel really uncomfortable the first time but I promise it gets easier. 

With a simple shift in mindset and some solid tactics you’ll be securing budget in no time. 

Here are 3 simple but effective steps for you to implement before having that budget conversation.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Step 1: Pull the numbers
• Step 2: Find the story
• Step 3: Present your case
• Additional Resources

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Step 1: Pull the numbers

Your client or boss wants to be successful. 

They want to surpass their goals (just like you). 

If you can show them how your increased budget will make this happen, they will gladly give it to you. 

Remembering this will help you release the anxiety associated with asking for more budget. 

The key is you need to sell your stakeholders on WHY they should invest more and the way you'll do that is by building a case that makes them as certain as possible.

Don’t assume your clients or managers will be able to realize this on their own. 

Build a no-brainer case that makes saying anything but yes sound illogical. 

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This starts with pulling the numbers 👇 

Answer your critical questions 

Put your investor hat on and answer critical questions such as:

• Which channels are performing best?

Ex: Google Ads driving the most opps at the lowest cost

• What's the overall blended trend? (paid + organic)

Ex: Opps are increasing QoQ at a 25% lower cost

• What's the current return on investment?

Ex: $6 pipe-to-spend and 150% ROI

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Depending on your company, goals, and what you’re asking budget for this will vary. 

Brainstorm all of the key questions you’ll need to pull data to answer. 

The difficulty of this step will vary on your current level of reporting. 

If you don’t already I HIGHLY recommend building a Paid Media dashboard that connects your ad spend to pipeline and revenue performance reported in your CRM. 

Here’s an example of our Paid Media Dashboard Template in our Building a Paid Media Program course: 

You can get free access to this template and learn how to set it up in Module 3, Lesson 3 of the course.  

It’s going to be hard to ask for more ad budget if you can’t prove that your current campaigns are actually contributing to the bottom line. 

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Don’t have any data? 

If you’re reading this and saying, Silvio how can I pull numbers if I don’t have any? 

Maybe you’re trying to secure budget for a new channel. 

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If this is the case I have two recommendations: ‍

1. Run a pilot campaign for $100 

Let’s say you’re trying to secure budget to test X (Twitter) Ads. 

Put together $100 (most companies can afford this) and launch a pilot campaign. 

The only goal of this campaign is to understand what are your real costs (ex: CPM, CPC). 

Once you have this information you can work backwards from your goals to create a starting budget. 

For example:

• $3 CPC at a 5% landing page conversion rate = $60 cost per lead 
• $60 cost per lead at a 3% lead to opportunity ratio = $1,980 cost per opportunity
• $1,980 cost per opportunity at a 20% win rate = $9,900 cost per closed won deal 

If you need help running the numbers, check out our Google Ads budget calculator. 

From here you’ll have a good idea of what a starting budget would look like. 

You’ll also have a sense of what’s possible on this channel. 

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2. Do some research

Ask around or search for benchmarks associated with the channel you’re looking to invest in. 

Even just collecting anecdotal evidence (ex: screenshots of others) talking about how much success they’ve had with this specific channel, tactic, etc can go a long way. 

LinkedIn polls are a great way to collect this feedback:

You can DM the respondents asking for more information. 

The TL;DR here is don’t let lack of data be an excuse to show up empty handed. 

Once you’ve pulled all the necessary information it’s time to find the story. 

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Step 2: Find the story

Behind the data there is a story being told, it's your job to find it and tell it.

Here's some key questions to answer to help find it:

• What went well? (the highlights)
• What went bad? (the lowlights)
• Where are we today vs before? (the journey)
• What were the biggest blockers? (the obstacle)
• Where do we go from here? (the opportunities)

Data alone won't persuade, and stories without data are subject to suspicion.        

A combination of both is required in order to effectively present your case. 

Image above is Module 6, Lesson 1 of our Building a Paid Media Program course

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For example, perhaps I’m trying to secure more budget for Google Ads: 

• What went well? (the highlights) some text
  • Google Ads contributed 25% more opportunities at a $7 pipe-to-spend ratio. 
• What went bad? (the lowlights)some text
  • We missed out on 57% more volume due to budget limitations.  
• Where are we today vs before? (the journey) some text
  • We’ve optimized our pipe-to-spend efficiency from $3 to $7. 
• What were the biggest blockers? (the obstacle)some text
  • High search lost to budget for our top contributing campaigns. 
  • No landing page testing due to limited development resources. 
• Where do we go from here? (the opportunities)some text
  • With an additional $25,000 in budget we can scale our top contributing campaigns and yield up to 35% more demo requests at a $15 CPC and 5% landing page conversion rate. 

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Here’s a simple presentation template you can use to present your case and answer each key question:

Once you've found the story and pulled the numbers you're ready to present. 

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Step 3: Present your case

After steps 1-2 the majority of the prep work is done. 

Now it’s time to get the meeting scheduled with your boss or client. 

You could have the most beautiful slides and compelling case but if you can’t effectively communicate the significance of what you’re asking it won’t matter. 

Thankfully, like any skill, communication is something you can improve on with practice. 

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5 unconventional tips to implement in your budget presentation:

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1. Remember you both want the same thing. 

Ultimately, your stakeholders want you to be right. If you can drive more pipeline/revenue they'd happily give you the budget (assuming financial availability).

The challenge though is like an investor they are analyzing the potential upside and downside of your plan, and don't believe the promises you're making. 

You need to addresses their concerns with a combination of data and storytelling that makes them as certain as possible. 

Just remembering this simple truth will help you show up differently. 

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2. It’s a conversation, not a lecture. 

You’ll want to keep this discussion conversational. 

Make sure to check-in frequently with your boss or client and ask things like:

• Is this making sense? 
• Did you have any questions? 
• Are there any concerns you have that I haven’t addressed? 

The last thing you want to do is to speak to them for 30-minutes and then ask:

“soooooo did you have any questions…..? 😅”

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3. Replace “I think” with “the data suggests” 

You’ve pulled the data and done the homework. 

Don’t water down your points by saying “I think” get in the habit of replacing this with “the data suggests” and then calling out the data point that comes to mind. 

This will make your perspectives and points of view far more compelling.

Which ultimately lead to more certainty from the decision maker. 

Greater certainty = greater chance of budget approval 

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4. Don’t forget to smile. 

This might sound silly 😂 but it’s really easy to forget to smile. 

This conversation is about new opportunities, and that’s exciting.  

Instead of telling yourself I’m nervous, reframe it as I’m excited. 

This is called anxiety reappraisal and Alison Wood a psychologist at the Harvard Business School found evidence to support. 

Here’s a quick excerpt from her abstract: “Across several studies involving karaoke singing, public speaking, and math performance, I investigate an alternative strategy: reappraising anxiety as excitement. Compared to those who attempt to calm down, individuals who reappraise their anxious arousal as excitement feel more excited and perform better” — Alison Wood Brooks

Don’t knock it until you try it! 

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5. Turn your weakness into a strength

Maybe you’re reading this article and saying to yourself:

• I’m not a good presenter because I’m an introvert 
• I’m not a good presenter because English isn’t my first language. 

Whatever your weaknesses are, turn them into strengths with humor. 

When you start budget approval call begin by addressing your big weakness with humor. 

Here’s what this might look like for the weaknesses above: 

• Hey {First Name} thanks for the time today. As you might have noticed I’m not going to be giving a Ted talk anytime soon with my English so if you’re having trouble understanding just stop me at any point. 
• Hey {First Name} thanks for the time today. I just wanted to start off by saying I’d rather chug a bottle of hot sauce then give a presentation but I believe so much in what I’m going cover today that I had to do this – so I appreciate you baring with any mishaps I might have. 

Whatever your weaknesses are don’t run from them.

Embrace it and transform it into a strength.

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Additional Resources

If you want to learn more about securing budget checkout Module 6 - Lesson 1 of our Building a Paid Media Program course, it’s 100% free and takes < 90 seconds to sign up. 

If you want to dive deeper into B2B advertising check out some of our other top articles:

• B2B Advertising in 2024: The Definitive Guide
• How to Build a Multichannel B2B Retargeting Strategy (Step-By-Step)

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Thanks for reading, good luck on getting your budget approved!

(you got this) 🎉

People Also Ask

How can I address concerns about the risks associated with increasing the ad budget?

Acknowledge potential risks by presenting a risk mitigation plan. This could include strategies like phased budget increases, continuous performance monitoring, and predefined criteria for scaling back if certain KPIs aren’t met. Demonstrating proactive risk management can build stakeholder confidence.

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What if my initial pilot campaign doesn’t yield strong results?

If a pilot campaign underperforms, analyze the data to identify areas for improvement. Adjust variables such as targeting, ad creatives, or bidding strategies, and consider running a second pilot. Use these learnings to refine your approach before requesting a larger budget.

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How do I align my ad budget request with broader company objectives?

Ensure your proposal clearly connects the ad spend to company goals like revenue growth, market expansion, or brand awareness. Illustrate how the investment will contribute to these objectives, using data and projections to support your case.

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What are some common pitfalls to avoid when presenting a budget proposal?

Avoid using jargon that stakeholders may not understand, overloading the presentation with excessive data, or failing to anticipate potential objections. Practice your presentation to ensure clarity and conciseness, and be prepared to address questions confidently.

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How can I demonstrate the potential ROI of the proposed ad budget?

Utilize tools like the Google Ads Budget Calculator to forecast potential returns based on different budget scenarios. Present these projections along

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Today I’m going to give you a crash course in B2B advertising.

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In this comprehensive guide I’ll cover:

• What is B2B advertising?
• 7 ways B2B differs from B2C
• 20 B2B Terms and Metrics you need to know
• Top 3 B2B Revenue Models
• B2B ad examples by revenue model
• How to create a B2B advertising strategy
• The Five Stages Model
• The Best B2B Ad Channels
• Advice from 20 B2B Advertising Experts

So if you need to get up-to-speed on B2B as quickly as possible, you’ll love this guide. 

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Let’s get started 🔥

What Is Business-to-Business Advertising?

B2B advertising is the process of any paid marketing efforts directed toward influencing multiple individuals within a company for a purchase decision (known as a buying committee) vs a single consumer.  

7 Differences between B2B and B2C Advertising:

1. Longer sales cycles (3 - 36 months)
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2. Larger average deal sizes (< $1,000 - $250,000+)
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3. More stakeholders involved in the purchase decision (ex: c-suite, finance) 
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4. Focus on impacting the entire buyer's journey not just the first conversion (unlike B2C). 
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5. Smaller audiences (< 300,000) with a focus on reaching the right person and company vs B2C with broad audiences ( > 300,000) as more people can purchase your product. 
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6. B2B requires strategic alignment between marketing and sales as you’re joining forces (inbound and outbound) to win accounts.  
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7. B2B supports multiple revenue models, the big three being; product-led, sales-led, and hybrid. Whereas e-commerce is solely product-led. 

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Check out more examples in the article: B2B vs B2C Advertising: 8 Differences & Examples You Need To Know.

20 B2B Terms and Metrics you Need to Know

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One of the first things you realize when you get into B2B is how much jargon there is! MQL, SQL, ACV, ARR, and the list goes on! 

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In order to make sure you understand the language, here’s 20 B2B terms and metrics you need to know:

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Unfortunately there are many more terms you’ll need throughout your B2B career 😂 and every company creates their own (it’s a constant struggle) but these 20  will give you a solid foundation. For a great list of b2b terms check out our B2B Advertising Glossary.

Top 3 B2B Revenue Models

If you’re working in B2B there are three common revenue models you’ll likely work with. 
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If your job is to promote this organization, understanding the revenue model is key as it will change everything from how you approach your strategy, the offers you choose, channels, and more. 

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B2B Ad Examples by Revenue Model:

Sales Led

×

Product Led

×

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‍How to build a full-funnel B2B Advertising Strategy ‍

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Now that you know how B2B differs from B2C.

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How do you build a full-funnel B2B advertising strategy?

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Full-funnel refers to building a strategy that covers all touch points along the customer journey. 

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This means advertising to individuals who are (e.g. Eugene's Schwartz Stages of Awareness):

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• Unaware = have no clue they even have a problem in the first place (ex: blissfully mismanaging customer relationships)

• Problem Aware = know they have a problem but are not sure how to solve it (ex: realize managing customer relationships is important but don't know how).

• Solution Aware = need help deciding on the right solution (ex: should I use Google Sheets, a filing cabinet 😂 or a CRM?). 

• Product Aware = know of your brand/product but not sure if you're the best option (ex: comparing CRM software; Salesforce vs HubSpot vs Pipedrive).

• Offer Aware = know of your brand and exactly how you can help but need some nudging (ex: pricing discounts, better contract terms, customer references).

• Most Aware = Existing customers, familiar with your brand and working with you (ex: referral program).

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Understanding your prospects' stage of awareness allows you to create messaging, and offers that better resonate with where they are in the customer journey. 

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It helps to have a model (think of it like a map) to make complicated topics simple. 

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We’re going to use The Five Stages model covered in our course Building a Paid Media Program.

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Here’s how it works:
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Based on the stage; the outcome, awareness level, offers, tactics, and KPIs differ.

• Outcome = the end goal you're trying to achieve in each stage.

• Awareness = the familiarity level of your brand/product/solution.  

• Offers = what you're providing your target audience in each stage.

• Tactics = how you're going to actually execute your strategy per stage.

• KPIs = how you're going to measure success in each stage. 

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Let's dive into examples for each stage so you really understand!

The Five Stages Model

Stage 1: Create

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Stage 2: Capture

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Stage 3: Accelerate (Sales Led) / Activate (Product Led)

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Stage 4: Revive

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Stage 5: Expand

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The Five Stages model allows you to plan across all the lifecycle stages past initial conversion. 

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Ultimately no one knows for certain where someone is in their buyer's journey and everyone moves through it at different speeds. Use your best judgment. 

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If you're confused on which stage someone would be, remember the target audience's level of awareness dictates the stage they fall under. 

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Which stage should you invest in? 

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Generally speaking if you want to maximize ROI in the short-term you should work from the bottom of the Five Stages and move towards the top (Expand → Create).

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You don't have to build a full-funnel strategy at once, take it one stage at  a time.
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Putting The Five Stages into practice

1. Decide on which stage you want to focus on based on the outcome you’re after. If you have a smaller budget (ex: < $5,000/month) focus exclusively on one stage first. 
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2. Once you’ve decided on the stage fill in your budget, and leading + lagging KPIs. If you’re unsure of what KPIs to select refer to Module 5- Lesson 1 of Building a Paid Media Program.
   ‍‍
3. Next decide on which channels you’ll advertise on to reach individuals in this stage and how you’ll target them and exclude the wrong audience. If you’re unsure of what channels to advertise on, refer to Choosing the BEST channels. 
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4. Finally decide on what offers you’re going to promote in these channels for this stage (the offers listed above  are only examples to give you ideas).  
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5. If you’re targeting multiple stages repeat steps 1-4 for each.

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Click here to become an AdConversion student and get free access to The Five Stages planning template in Module 2 - Lesson 1  where we cover how to build your paid media strategy in depth.

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After you’ve filled in The Five Stages planning template you now have your strategy in place and can easily move into execution and start assembling your campaigns, creatives, and messaging. 

What are the BEST B2B advertising channels?

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The obvious answer is where your audience hangs out online!

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But not all channels are equal, some are more effective at certain stages.

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Most channels can be grouped into these 5 primary categories ↓

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How to decide on the best channel?

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There's four key criteria to consider when deciding on a channel:

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1. Targeting options 
2. Media cost
3. Reach
4. Policy

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Let's dive into each ↓

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If the channel you’re considering meets all four of these criteria then you should consider running a test campaign for $100 to get your real average CPC & CPM.

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Recommended Channels by Stage

Based on my experience these channels work best for each stage:

(Use this as inspiration not restriction)

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Let this be a guide to help you get started, take what serves you and abandon the rest. 

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Test what works for you until proven otherwise. 

Advice from 20 B2B advertising experts

One of the best parts about being in B2B is the quality of marketers in this space. 

We asked 20 B2B advertising experts:

What’s 1 tip you’d share with new marketers getting into B2B advertising?

Have you ever wondered what dimensions does that ad require? 🤔

Then started searching to find the answer? (same here lol)

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To save you (and ourselves) trouble, we gathered the most popular ad specs across 10 channels in one place: 

• Google Display Ad Specs
• LinkedIn Ad Specs
• Twitter (X) Ad Specs
• Quora Ad Specs
• Reddit Ad Specs
• YouTube Ad Specs
• Google Discovery / Demand Gen Ad Specs
• TikTok Ad Specs
• Meta Ad Specs

⭐️ Bookmark this article and refer back to it when you need ad specs. 

Google Display Ad Specs

Source: support.google.com

Browse examples at adstransparency.google.com

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LinkedIn Ad Specs

Source: business.linkedin.com

Browse examples at: linkedin.com/ad-library/home

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‍X (Twitter) Ad Specs

‍Source: business.twitter.com

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• You can request to have video lengths increased up to 10 minutes

• Carousel can use images or videos but must be in the same aspect ratio (ex: 1:1 or 16:9)

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Quora Ad Specs

Source: image ads, video ads

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Reddit Ad Specs

Source: reddit.my.site.com

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* Reddit Ads headlines will be truncated to 100 characters on mobile/mobile web for the conversation placement.

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Youtube Ad Specs

Source: support.google.com

Browse examples at adstransparency.google.com

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Google Discovery / Demand Gen Ad Specs

Source: support.google.com

Browse examples at adstransparency.google.com

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TikTok Ad Specs

Source: ads.tiktok.com

Browse examples at library.tiktok.com/ads

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‍Meta Ad Specs (Facebook/Instagram)

Source: business.facebook.com

Browse examples at: www.facebook.com/ads/library

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Resources for Mastering B2B Advertising

Hope you found this ad specs article useful!

If you’re serious about mastering B2B advertising then you definitely need to join 10,000+ B2B marketers leveling up their paid advertising skill sets in AdConversion. 

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Here’s 4 reasons why you should consider joining. Every one of our on-demand courses are:

✅ 100% free access.

✅ Taught by vetted industry experts.

✅ Have workbooks, resources, and templates.

✅ Less than 10 minutes per lesson.

‍

We believe every marketer should know how to scale paid ads so they can:

• Scale their ideas

• Level up their careers

• Make a positive impact

‍

Click Here to Join 10,000+ B2B Marketers Today and start leveling up your advertising skill set.

Takes < 90 seconds to sign up (seriously I timed it 😂)

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People Also Ask

How often do ad platforms update their ad specifications, and how can I stay informed about these changes?

Ad platforms periodically update their ad specs to accommodate new features or policies. To stay informed, regularly check the official guidelines of each platform and subscribe to their newsletters or blogs for updates.

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What are the common pitfalls to avoid when designing ads to meet platform specifications?

Common pitfalls include using incorrect dimensions, exceeding file size limits, and neglecting safe zones, which can lead to ad disapproval or poor display. Always adhere to the latest specifications and test your ads across devices.

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How can I ensure that my ad creatives are optimized for both desktop and mobile viewing?

Design responsive ads that adapt to various screen sizes. Utilize platform-specific preview tools to see how your ads render on different devices, ensuring readability and visual appeal across all formats.

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Are there tools available to streamline the creation of ad creatives that comply with multiple platform specifications?

Yes, tools like Canva, Adobe Creative Cloud, and Figma offer templates tailored to various platform specs, simplifying the design process and ensuring compliance.

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How do ad specifications impact the performance and effectiveness of my advertising campaigns?

Adhering to specifications ensures that your ads display correctly, preventing issues like cropping or distortion. Properly formatted ads enhance user experience, leading to better engagement and higher conversion rates.

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