In a recent LinkedIn post, Michel Lieben 🧠 discusses a sophisticated LinkedIn Ads funnel designed to generate qualified meetings and significant revenue. Lieben 🧠 argues that many B2B organizations mismanage their ad spend by employing a simplistic, direct call-to-action (CTA) approach across all audience segments, regardless of their stage in the buyer’s journey. Instead, he advocates for a multi-stage funnel that prioritizes building trust, providing proof, and then closing the deal.
Building Trust at the Top of the Funnel
The initial stage, according to Lieben 🧠, is crucial for capturing attention and establishing initial credibility. The primary goal is to be “unignorable” to potential prospects. He suggests using ad formats that deliver substantial value without aggressive selling.
“The goal here = being unignorable. We use the following formats: Document Ads (5-8 pages of pure value), Single Image Ads (Pain/Fear Hook + Solution), Thought-Leader Mini-Demo Videos (15 to 30s)”
As Michel Lieben 🧠 notes, the objective at this stage is not to sell but to make leads pause and recognize that the advertiser “understands them” or offers something “useful.” This initial engagement is key to moving prospects further down the funnel.
Providing Proof in the Middle of the Funnel
Once prospects have shown some level of engagement, Lieben 🧠 explains that trust is still not fully established. This middle-of-funnel (MOFU) stage requires demonstrating the efficacy of the product or service. He emphasizes the importance of retargeting audiences who have interacted with previous ads, such as visiting the website or viewing a significant portion of video content.
The formats that perform best in this phase, as outlined by Lieben 🧠, include user-generated content (UGC) from satisfied clients, case studies highlighting significant results with clear mechanisms, and before/after comparisons.
“At this point, prospects have seen you a few times already. They don’t trust you just yet. Thus, it’s time to show receipts: Build retargeting audiences with everyone who engaged (i.e: website visit, viewed half of your video ads, commented or liked ads… on a 90-day window)”
By presenting tangible evidence of success, Lieben 🧠 suggests that businesses can overcome potential skepticism, such as prospects thinking “this is too good to be true.”
Closing the Deal at the Bottom of the Funnel
The final stage targets the hottest leads – those who have engaged with ads, watched demos, and visited pricing pages. Lieben 🧠 recommends a 30-day retargeting window for these individuals, focusing on specific actions like high video view percentages or specific page visits. The ad creatives here should be more direct.
According to Michel Lieben 🧠, effective bottom-of-funnel (BOFU) ad formats include:
- Direct CTA Ads: Clearly presenting an offer and the benefits of a conversation.
- Testimonial Ads: Featuring concise quotes and key success metrics.
- Conversation Ads: Designed to mimic personalized direct messages.
“It’s time to double down. Retarget these hot leads (30-day window, 75% video views, contact/pricing page visits) with: Direct CTA Ads (offer + what they’ll get from talking to you), Testimonial Ads (short quote + success metrics), Conversation Ads (looks like personalised DMs)”
Integrating Ads with a GTM Flywheel
Beyond the specific ad funnel, Lieben 🧠 highlights that the true “magic” occurs when LinkedIn Ads are integrated into a broader Go-To-Market (GTM) flywheel. This involves synchronizing ad efforts with content marketing and outbound strategies. He shares that this integrated system has been instrumental in generating substantial revenue, citing an example of over $1 million in closed-won revenue for a 7-figure SaaS company.
Michel Lieben 🧠 concludes by mentioning that Ivan Falco has created a detailed 15-minute video breaking down this entire process, offering formulas, frameworks, and timing insights, which he offers to share with interested individuals.
📝 About This Content
This article is based on insights shared by Michel Lieben 🧠 on LinkedIn.
📅 Originally posted on November 3, 2025 | View original post on LinkedIn →