Podcast Summary: Social Media Marketing Talk Show

Episode: LinkedIn Updates: Competitor Research, User Privacy, Campaign Tools, and More
Date: October 27, 2025
Host: Jerry Potter (with LinkedIn strategist Judy Fox)
Theme: A deep dive into key LinkedIn updates affecting competitor analytics, privacy policies, campaign management tools, and advertising measurement—with actionable takeaways for marketers.

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode focuses on crucial recent changes to LinkedIn that impact marketers and businesses using the platform, including the move of competitor analytics behind a paywall, updates to user privacy and data sharing (especially concerning AI training), new ad campaign creation and measurement tools, and the broader trend toward more paid features and AI integration in social media platforms.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. LinkedIn Competitor Analytics Now Behind a Paywall

[02:04 – 03:21]

• Change: Competitor analytics, previously free, has become a paid feature—now available only with LinkedIn’s Company Page Premium at $99/month.
  • What’s changing: Previously, users could compare their company to nine competitors and view trending competitor posts; now, free access is limited to just one competitor.
  • Implication: Businesses must assess the value of in-depth competitor data relative to the new cost.

Notable Quote:

“It's tough to hear when something is getting pulled back, being put behind a paywall... The ability to see what nine other competitors are doing is basically what this feature is.”
— Judy Fox ([02:04])

• Industry Trend: Increasing subscription fees and pay-to-play models across social platforms as companies seek new revenue streams.

2. LinkedIn’s Privacy Policy Update (with AI Training Implications)

[04:03 – 06:27]

• Effective date: November 3, 2025.
• Scope: Expands LinkedIn’s use of user data to train their AI (large language models).
• User Options:
  • In some regions (notably Europe and Hong Kong), users can opt out of having their data used for AI training and targeted ads.
  • The ability to opt out remains an ongoing setting, not a one-time window.
  • Settings will remain consistent (no removal of existing privacy choices), with updates and new options being added.

Notable Quotes:

“The ability to opt out of training AI data is still available and it will continue to be available. It's not a moment in time that if you don't turn it off, you're opted in... take a deep breath, you're going to be okay.”
— Judy Fox ([05:24])

“They're now saying it's going to be more readable. They have a Dos and Don'ts section that you're going to want to read.”
— Judy Fox ([05:51])

• Host’s Perspective: Some users may want to allow ad tracking to observe marketing trends.

3. Improvements to LinkedIn Campaign Tools for Advertisers

[07:37 – 10:13]

• New Features:
  • Streamlined campaign creation—especially beneficial for SMBs.
  • Faster audience building via customer URL lists.
  • “Draft with AI” feature lets users generate multiple ad creatives and expand content using generative AI.
  • Integrations with Canva and Adobe Express for easy templating and image exports.
  • Enhanced support for A/B testing.

Notable Quote:

“It sounds like LinkedIn is listening to consumers, that it is all about speed and streamlining. The ability to do campaign creation and optimize for small businesses...”
— Judy Fox ([07:37])

• Accessibility:
  • New “one-hour launch plan” for rapid, efficient campaign deployment—lowers the knowledge barrier for smaller companies.
  • A more cost-effective approach to experimenting with ads versus more expensive platforms.

4. New LinkedIn Measurement Tools: Company Intelligence API & Conversion Lift Testing

[10:13 – 12:11]

• Company Intelligence API:
  • Offers improved B2B attribution, connecting LinkedIn campaigns to sales pipelines and revenue metrics.
  • Provides a holistic view of the buyer journey, including early-stage engagement and prioritization.
  • Initial users saw a 287% increase in companies reached—highlighting enhanced campaign impact.

Notable Quote:

“It’s basically a way to see the full buyer journey, early stage engagement... And apparently in the beta process, some of the users included said there was a 287% increase in companies reached.”
— Jerry Potter ([09:48])

• Conversion Lift Testing:
  • Directly compares conversion rates between users exposed and not exposed to ads, demonstrating real ad impact.
  • Tests run for 30–90 days; built into Campaign Manager for users with the Insight Tag or Conversion API enabled.
  • No longer have to rely on gut instinct or external research firms—true attribution is more accessible.

Notable Quotes:

“Now we can do all of this so much faster at scale… you can really see the true lift based on your ad exposure, which is really, really neat.”
— Jerry Potter ([10:46])

“I think the idea that a tool can do that for you and split the group and create those different test groups… for it to do all of that and see those final results, I can't even imagine what we did before any of this."
— Judy Fox ([11:00])

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• On the growing pay-to-play trend:

  “It's part of a growing trend that we're all seeing where subscription fees, pay to play are going to come into account for any social media app at this point.”
  — Judy Fox ([03:38])

• On privacy transparency:

  “They're not going to change your previous privacy choices. They're basically adding settings that you may need to address.”
  — Judy Fox ([05:51])

• On LinkedIn’s AI ad creation:

  “The small businesses can generate multiple ad creative that way, use existing content... with the Canva and Adobe Express integrations… optimize any kind of templates, export images.”
  — Judy Fox ([08:22])

• On true advertising measurement:

  “Most of the time it was just kind of like, let's hope this works... but now... so many different things simultaneously. So this is a pretty cool way to actually see if the specific campaign on LinkedIn worked.”
  — Jerry Potter ([11:21])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Competitor analytics paywall – [02:04 – 03:21]
• Rising subscription trend – [03:38]
• LinkedIn privacy update & opt outs – [04:03 – 06:27]
• Streamlined LinkedIn ad tools & AI drafting – [07:37 – 08:58]
• Company Intelligence API & B2B attribution – [09:48]
• Conversion lift testing – [10:13 – 12:11]

Conclusion

Takeaways for Marketers:

• Evaluate the ROI of LinkedIn's enhanced (but now paid) competitor analytics.
• Review privacy settings, especially opt-outs for AI training, ahead of the Nov. 3 update.
• Explore new campaign tools and AI drafting features for quicker, more effective ad creation.
• Leverage measurement APIs and conversion lift testing for true campaign attribution—the days of “let's hope this works” are numbered.

Connect with Judy Fox:

“Just find me on LinkedIn. It's J U D I F O X. Feel free to follow me. Connect and let's check our user agreements on LinkedIn, our settings.” ([12:33])

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