From zero to hero:
How Creo built a LinkedIn ad program that outperformed industry benchmarks by 2x
0.92% average click-through rate, more than 2x the 0.4% industry benchmark, across an 18-ad LinkedIn program built from the ground up.
Summary
Creo, a B2B growth marketing agency, helped Digital Onboarding build a LinkedIn ad program from scratch that beat the industry benchmark on click-through rate (CTR) by more than 2x, while driving cost-per-click (CPC) 40% below the industry range.
The challenge
Digital Onboarding helps banks and credit unions replace slow, paper-based account opening with secure, automated digital workflows. With a compelling product and a clear market need, Digital Onboarding was ready to expand its marketing reach through a new channel: LinkedIn advertising.
But building a high-performing program from scratch takes more than budget. It requires deep platform expertise, a strategic understanding of B2B buying behavior, and the ability to rapidly test and learn what works across both the creative and the audiences.
Why Creo was brought in
Digital Onboarding brought in Creo as a B2B growth marketing agency to lay the strategic groundwork before a single ad went live. This work spanned content strategy and demand generation, combining audience research with full-funnel paid social execution.
Creo conducted content audits to surface Digital Onboarding's highest-performing assets, researched the motivations for three distinct buyer personas, and ran SME interviews to sharpen messaging around Digital Onboarding's key differentiators. Equipped with this insight, the team built a funnel-aligned demand generation strategy that guided buyers from awareness to action.
The results
Creo operated as an embedded extension of the Digital Onboarding team over a six-month program, launching and optimizing 18 ads across all three funnel stages. Creo treated every month as a chance to test, learn, and reallocate budget toward what was working.
The program delivered results well ahead of industry benchmarks:
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0.92% average CTR, more than 2x the 0.4% industry benchmark.
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$12.18 average CPC, roughly 40% below the low end of the $20–$40 industry range.
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Best-performing ads outperforming benchmarks by 16–19x.
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200,054 total impressions and 1,834 total clicks across the program.
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199 clicks to the book-a-strategy-call page generated directly from bottom-funnel ads.
Results reflect a six-month program.
Why this worked
The Creo + Digital Onboarding partnership illustrates how Creo, as a GTM agency for B2B companies, can help turn a new channel into a proven demand generation and content strategy engine. This illustrates that even a small team can outperform industry benchmarks with the right strategic partner and a repeatable, data-driven playbook.
Let's see how Creo can build this type of program for your team.
Results
Over the six-month program, Creo launched and optimized 18 ads across all three funnel stages, generating over 200,000 total impressions and more than 1,800 clicks.
0.92% average CTR
More than 2x the 0.4% industry benchmark
200,054 impressions
Across 18
optimized ads
$12.18 average CPC
~40% below the
$20–$40 industry range
1,834 total clicks
Driving real
engragement
$111.64 average CPM
With some ads as low as $14–$23, well below the $80–$100 benchmark
199
BOFU clicks
Best-performing ads outperformed industry benchmarks by 16–19x