LinkedIn Business Manager is a centralized platform for managing your company's LinkedIn assets—ad accounts, company pages, and team permissions—all in one place. It's essential for marketing teams, agencies, and enterprises running complex campaigns or managing multiple brands.

This guide covers everything about LinkedIn Business Manager: setup, roles and permissions, best practices, and how to maximize its features for your business.

Key Takeaways

Centralized control: Manage all LinkedIn assets from one dashboard
Granular permissions: Assign specific roles to team members and contractors
Agency-friendly: Share access with partners without sharing login credentials
Revenue attribution: Track how LinkedIn ads impact sales (Admin feature)
Free to use: Business Manager is included with LinkedIn at no extra cost

What is LinkedIn Business Manager?

According to LinkedIn's official documentation, Business Manager provides a single hub to:

Manage multiple ad accounts and company pages
Control team access with specific permissions
Partner with agencies and vendors securely
Track campaign performance across all assets
Share audiences between ad accounts

Who Should Use Business Manager?

User Type	Why Business Manager Helps
Marketing Teams	Centralized control over campaigns and pages
Agencies	Manage multiple client accounts efficiently
Enterprises	Coordinate across departments and brands
Multi-brand Companies	Organize showcase pages and regional accounts
Contractors	Provide limited access without security risks

Setting Up LinkedIn Business Manager

Follow these steps to create and configure your Business Manager account. According to Leadsie's Business Manager guide, setup takes about 15-20 minutes.

Step 1: Access Business Manager

Log into your LinkedIn account
Go to business.linkedin.com
Click on "Business Manager" in the navigation
Select "Get Started" or "Create a Business Manager"

Step 2: Enter Business Details

Provide your organization's information:

Business name: Your company or organization name
Primary LinkedIn Page: Connect your main company page
Business email: Company domain email preferred

Step 3: Link Your Assets

Connect existing LinkedIn assets:

LinkedIn Pages: Claim pages you own or request access to others
Ad Accounts: Link existing Campaign Manager accounts
Matched Audiences: Connect audience segments for targeting

Step 4: Invite Team Members

Add your team with appropriate permissions:

Click "People" in the left navigation
Select "Invite people"
Enter email addresses
Assign roles (Admin, Employee, or Contractor)
Send invitations

Business Manager Roles and Permissions

Understanding roles is critical for security and efficiency. According to LinkedIn's roles documentation:

Business Manager-Level Roles

Role	Capabilities
Admin	Full control—invite people, manage assets, form partnerships, share audiences
Employee	View-only access to Business Manager and assigned assets
Contractor	Limited view-only access to specifically assigned assets

Ad Account Roles

Role	What They Can Do
Full Access	Manage campaigns, billing, users, and settings
Edit Access	Create and manage ads, but no billing or user control
View Access	See performance reports only—no changes allowed

Page Roles

Role	What They Can Do
Admin	Full page control including settings and user management
Content Manager	Create posts and manage content—no settings access
Viewer	Access analytics and insights only

Best Practices for Role Assignment

Limit Admin access: Only senior team members need full control
Use Edit Access for day-to-day: Most team members don't need billing access
Contractors get minimal access: Assign only what's necessary for their work
Review quarterly: Remove access for departed team members immediately

Adding and Managing Assets

Adding LinkedIn Pages

According to LinkedIn's page management guide:

Go to "Pages" in Business Manager
Click "Add a page"
Choose "Claim a page" (you own it) or "Request access" (someone else owns it)
Follow the verification process
Assign team members to manage the page

Important: Each LinkedIn Page can only be claimed by one Business Manager.

Adding Ad Accounts

Navigate to "Ad Accounts"
Click "Add an ad account"
Choose "Create new" or "Link existing"
For existing accounts, enter the Account ID from Campaign Manager
Complete the linking process

Managing Matched Audiences

Matched Audiences let you target users familiar with your brand:

Website retargeting: Target visitors from your site
Customer lists: Upload email lists for targeting
Lookalike audiences: Find similar prospects to your best customers

To share audiences between accounts:

Go to "Audiences"
Select the audience to share
Choose destination accounts
Confirm sharing

Partnerships and Agency Access

Business Manager enables secure collaboration with external partners.

Creating Partnerships

According to LinkedIn Business Manager best practices:

Go to "Partners" in Business Manager
Click "Add partner"
Enter the partner's Business Manager ID
Select which assets to share
Choose permission levels
Send the partnership request

Partnership Benefits

No credential sharing: Partners access assets through their own logins
Granular control: Share specific accounts or pages, not everything
Easy revocation: Remove access instantly when partnerships end
Audit trail: Track partner activity and changes

Agency Best Practices

If you're an agency managing client accounts:

Create one Business Manager for your agency
Request partnership access to client Business Managers
Never ask clients for their login credentials
Use View Access for reporting, Edit for campaign management
Document all access in client agreements

Revenue Attribution Report

One of Business Manager's most powerful features is the Revenue Attribution Report—exclusive to Admin users.

What It Does

The Revenue Attribution Report connects your CRM (like Salesforce or HubSpot) to LinkedIn ads, allowing you to track:

How campaigns impact sales and revenue
Pipeline growth attributed to LinkedIn
Return on ad spend (ROAS)
Which ads drive actual conversions

Setting Up Revenue Attribution

Be a Business Manager Admin
Go to "Reporting" → "Revenue Attribution"
Connect your CRM integration
Configure attribution windows
Map CRM fields to LinkedIn data

Using Attribution Data

Revenue attribution helps you:

Justify LinkedIn ad spend to leadership
Optimize campaigns based on actual revenue impact
Identify high-performing content and targeting
Allocate budget to best-performing initiatives

Business Manager Best Practices

Security Recommendations

According to Social Media Examiner's guide:

Multiple Admins: Always have at least two admins to prevent lockout
Work emails only: Use company domain emails, not personal
Regular audits: Review access quarterly, remove inactive users
Document procedures: Create handoff processes for role changes

Organization Tips

Naming conventions: Use consistent names for ad accounts and audiences
Folder structure: Organize campaigns by brand, region, or objective
Asset tagging: Label assets for easy filtering and search
Documentation: Maintain a guide for your Business Manager setup

Team Management

Onboarding checklist: Standard process for new team members
Role definitions: Clear documentation of who does what
Training: Ensure team understands permissions and processes
Offboarding: Immediate access removal when people leave

Troubleshooting Common Issues

"Page Already Claimed" Error

If another Business Manager claimed your page:

Identify which Business Manager has the claim
Contact that organization's admin
Request they release the page
Alternatively, contact LinkedIn support with proof of ownership

Can't Access Ad Account

If an ad account isn't showing:

Verify the account ID is correct
Check if you have proper permissions
Ensure the account wasn't deleted or restricted
Contact the account's primary admin

Partnership Request Pending

If a partnership request is stuck:

Confirm the partner received the request
Check spam/notification settings
Have the partner check their Business Manager
Cancel and resend if necessary

Frequently Asked Questions

What is LinkedIn Business Manager used for?

LinkedIn Business Manager is a centralized platform for managing your company's LinkedIn assets—ad accounts, company pages, matched audiences, and team permissions. It's ideal for marketing teams, agencies, and enterprises who need to coordinate multiple assets and team members efficiently.

Is LinkedIn Business Manager free?

Yes, LinkedIn Business Manager is free to use. It's included with your LinkedIn account at no extra cost. However, running LinkedIn ads through Campaign Manager (which you manage via Business Manager) requires an advertising budget.

How do I add someone to LinkedIn Business Manager?

To add team members: Go to "People" in Business Manager, click "Invite people," enter their email address, select their role (Admin, Employee, or Contractor), and send the invitation. They must have a LinkedIn profile to accept, though the email doesn't need to match their profile.

What's the difference between Business Manager Admin and Employee?

Admins have full control—they can invite people, manage all assets, form partnerships, share audiences, and access revenue attribution reports. Employees have view-only access to the Business Manager and specific assets they're assigned to.

Can I manage multiple company pages in Business Manager?

Yes, you can manage multiple LinkedIn company pages within one Business Manager. You can claim pages your business owns or request access to pages owned by others. This is ideal for companies with multiple brands, showcase pages, or regional pages.

Ready to build authority that attracts leads without complex ad management? Learn how ConnectSafely helps businesses generate inbound leads through strategic LinkedIn engagement.