Key Takeaways
- •Thought Leader Ads get 10-20% engagement compared to 1-2% for company posts.
- •TLAs are the delivery mechanism for Sequenced LinkedIn Ads: They allow you to target named accounts with executive content and control the narrative order.
- •Unlike boosting, TLAs enable account penetration tracking: You can measure which accounts consumed Episode 1-7 and generate a Warm Account List.
- •The outcome is pipeline, not vanity metrics: TLAs move buyers from 'Problem Aware' to 'Solution Ready' across 7 episodes.
Thought Leader Ads (TLAs) are LinkedIn's organic post-based ad format that turn your executives' existing posts into targeted campaigns.
Unlike Sponsored Company Content (which requires creating net-new ads from your company page) or boosting (which can't target named accounts), TLAs let you:
- • Deliver executive content to named accounts + buying roles
- • Sequence posts into Story Arcs (Episodes 1-7)
- • Maintain authenticity (looks like organic content)
- • Track account-level engagement and generate Warm Account Lists
TLAs are built for ABM: you're not optimizing for reach, you're optimizing for pipeline.
Why TLAs Exist
Your execs post great content. Your target accounts never see it.
The organic reach problem:
- • LinkedIn shows organic posts to 2-5% of followers
- • If your CEO has 5K followers, 250 people see each post
- • Your 500 target accounts? Probably zero
Boosting is a lottery.
You pay for impressions, not attention. No control over who sees what. Random accounts, random order. Vanity metrics ≠ pipeline.
TLAs fix this by letting you target named accounts with existing executive content.
How TLAs Work
1. Native post format
TLAs promote existing posts from personal profiles. They look organic, perform like organic, but with targeted delivery. Can't be created from scratch—must use real posts.
2. Named account targeting
Upload a list of companies. Layer in job titles. Target VPs at Salesforce, and only VPs at Salesforce see it. Excludes followers (no wasted spend).
3. Sequenced LinkedIn Ads capability
This is where TLAs become powerful for ABM.
You don't just run one-off TLA campaigns. You run Sequenced LinkedIn Ads—a series of TLAs delivered in narrative order (Episode 1 → Episode 2 → Episode 3... → Episode 7).
The Frequency Squeeze:
- • Episode 1: High frequency (30 impressions/7 days) until 70% of your target audience has been reached
- • When 70% is achieved: Rotate to Episode 2 (while Episode 1 drops to maintenance mode: 3 imps/7 days)
- • Episodes 2-7: Same pattern—don't advance until 70% penetration
This ensures that the majority of your audience experiences your narrative in the correct order, building context progressively rather than randomly.
The Outcome: Warm Account Lists
Because you control the sequence and track penetration, you can identify which accounts consumed Episodes 1-7 and hand Sales a Warm Account List every week:
- • Microsoft - Episodes 1-7 consumed, 78% committee coverage → Ready for outreach
- • Salesforce - Episodes 1-6 consumed, 65% committee coverage → In progress
- • Adobe - Episodes 1-5 consumed, 72% committee coverage → In progress
Sales doesn't call blind. They call warm, with context.
TLAs vs Alternatives
| Feature | Boosting | Sponsored | TLAs | Sequenced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Targeting | Broad | Medium | Named accounts | Named accounts |
| Content | Existing | Net-new | Existing | Existing |
| Engagement | 1-2% | 2-5% | 10-20% | 10-20% |
| Sequencing | No | No | Manual only | Automated |
| Best for | Awareness | Demand gen | ABM campaigns | ABM pipeline |
| Outcome | Impressions | Leads | Engagement | Warm Account List |
The Key Difference:
Sequenced LinkedIn Ads = TLAs + automated narrative sequencing + account penetration tracking.
When to Use TLAs
✓ You have a named account list
ABM, sales-led motion, 500 target companies
✓ Your execs post regularly
Or can be convinced to create valuable content
✓ You want pipeline, not likes
Tired of vanity metrics from boosting
✓ You have a complex sale
Need multi-touch, narrative-driven approach
The Manual Problem
TLAs work. But managing them manually is tedious:
- • 15 minutes per post to set up targeting
- • No way to sequence posts automatically: You must manually rotate Episode 1 → Episode 2
- • Can't ensure accounts see Episode 1 before Episode 2: LinkedIn doesn't support "if-then" logic
- • Impossible to track account-level progression: Which accounts saw all 7 episodes?
- • Doesn't scale across multiple execs: Managing 3 execs × 7 episodes = 21 manual campaigns
If you have 3 execs posting weekly, that's 25+ hours a month just on TLA setup.
Ampy Automates This
Ampy is the automation engine for Sequenced LinkedIn Ads.
✓ Detect new posts from your execs automatically
✓ Map posts to episodes using AI-assisted categorization
✓ Set up TLA campaigns automatically—no manual work
✓ Handle narrative sequencing (Auto-rotates episodes based on 70% penetration goals)
✓ Track account penetration (See which accounts consumed which episodes)
✓ Generate Warm Account Lists for Sales every week
You focus on content. Ampy handles distribution.
See how Ampy builds Sequenced Campaigns from your existing content.
About the Author
Karl Newlin is the Founder & CEO of Ampy. With 12+ years in B2B Demand Gen, he pioneered the "Story Arc" methodology for LinkedIn ABM.
He helps B2B revenue teams turn executive thought leadership into targeted pipeline using Account-Based Influence.