LinkedIn Ads User Management and Permissions

Overview

LinkedIn Campaign Manager provides role-based access control for managing team members across your advertising accounts. Proper user management ensures the right people have appropriate access while maintaining account security and billing control.

Access Model

Account-Level Permissions

LinkedIn Ads permissions are granted at the ad account level, not globally:

• Each ad account has its own user list
• Users must be added to each account separately
• No centralized management (unlike Google Ads MCC)
• Business Manager provides some centralization (optional)

User Roles

LinkedIn Campaign Manager offers four primary roles:

Role Details

Account Manager

Full Control:

• Create, edit, pause, delete campaigns
• Manage budgets and bids
• Access billing and payment methods
• Add/remove users and change roles
• Manage Insight Tag and conversions
• Create and manage audiences
• Download lead form responses
• Export reports
• Account settings and preferences

Use Cases:

• Account owners
• Finance team (for billing)
• Senior marketing leadership
• Agency account leads

Security Note: Limit Account Manager access to trusted individuals only.

Campaign Manager

Campaign Operations:

• Create and manage campaigns
• Edit budgets and bidding (within account limits)
• Create and manage audiences
• Upload creatives
• Download lead form responses
• View all reporting
• Manage conversions

Cannot Access:

• Billing information
• Payment methods
• Add/remove users
• Change user roles
• Account-level settings

Use Cases:

• Marketing managers
• Campaign specialists
• Agency campaign managers
• Day-to-day operators

Creative Manager

Creative Operations:

• Upload images and videos
• Manage creative library
• Create ad variations
• Preview campaigns
• View limited reporting

Cannot Access:

• Campaign creation/editing
• Budget management
• Audience creation
• Lead form downloads
• Billing
• User management

Use Cases:

• Designers
• Creative teams
• Content creators
• External creative agencies

Viewer

Read-Only Access:

• View campaigns
• View reporting
• Export reports
• View creative assets

Cannot:

• Make any changes
• Create campaigns
• Upload creatives
• Download leads
• Access billing
• Manage users

Use Cases:

• Executives
• Stakeholders
• Analysts (view-only)
• External auditors

LinkedIn Business Manager

Overview

LinkedIn Business Manager is an optional centralized platform for managing multiple LinkedIn assets including ad accounts, Company Pages, and team access.

Benefits

Centralized Management:

• Single place for all LinkedIn assets
• Easier user provisioning
• Better organization for enterprises
• Consolidated billing (optional)

Enhanced Security:

• SSO integration support
• Centralized audit logs
• Better access control

When to Use:

• Managing 3+ ad accounts
• Enterprise organizations
• Agency managing multiple clients
• Need for SSO integration

Setup

1. Visit LinkedIn Business Manager
2. Create business account
3. Add ad accounts to Business Manager
4. Add team members at Business Manager level
5. Assign accounts and roles to users

Note: Even with Business Manager, ad account permissions still apply per account.

Adding Team Members

Prerequisites

• Account Manager role on the ad account
• User's email address
• Determined appropriate role

Process

1. Access Campaign Manager

   • Log in to Campaign Manager
   • Select correct ad account (top-left dropdown)

2. Navigate to User Management

   • Click account name > Settings
   • Select Manage access

3. Add User

   • Click Add user or Add member
   • Enter email address
   • Select role:
     • Account Manager
     • Campaign Manager
     • Creative Manager
     • Viewer
   • Click Add or Send invitation

4. User Receives Invitation

   • Email sent to user
   • User clicks link to accept
   • User signs in with LinkedIn account
   • Access granted

Important: User must have a LinkedIn personal profile to access Campaign Manager.

Detailed Guide: Add User Access

Managing Permissions

Changing User Roles

Process:

1. Settings > Manage access
2. Find user in list
3. Click role dropdown
4. Select new role
5. Changes apply immediately

No re-invitation needed - role changes take effect instantly.

Best Practices:

• Downgrade when elevated access no longer needed
• Regular role audits (quarterly recommended)
• Document role changes for compliance

Detailed Guide: Update Access

Removing Access

When to Remove:

• Employee departure
• Contractor project completion
• Agency relationship ends
• Role transition
• Security concern

Process:

1. Settings > Manage access
2. Find user
3. Click Remove or delete icon
4. Confirm removal
5. Access revoked immediately

Post-Removal:

• User loses all account access
• Ongoing campaigns unaffected
• Historical changes remain attributed
• Reports/exports no longer accessible

Detailed Guide: Remove Access

Best Practices

Access Control

1. Principle of Least Privilege

   • Grant minimum access needed
   • Start with lower permissions
   • Elevate only when necessary

2. Regular Audits

   • Quarterly access reviews
   • Remove inactive users
   • Verify roles still appropriate
   • Document current access

3. Onboarding/Offboarding

   • Standardized processes
   • Checklist for new users
   • Immediate removal on departure
   • Transfer ownership of assets

4. Role Separation

   • Limit Account Manager access
   • Separate billing from operations
   • Creative vs. campaign roles
   • Read-only for stakeholders

Documentation

Maintain Records:

• Current user list with roles
• Date added
• Reason for access
• Review dates
• Change history

Access Request Process:

• Formal request submission
• Manager approval
• IT/admin provisioning
• Confirmation to requestor

Security

1. Account Manager Limits

   • Only 2-3 people per account
   • Must be trusted individuals
   • Billing access implications

2. External Users

   • Agency partners: Campaign Manager role
   • Freelancers: Creative Manager or Viewer
   • Contractors: Time-limited access
   • Audit trail for external access

3. LinkedIn Account Security

   • Enforce strong passwords (via LinkedIn)
   • Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)
   • Monitor login activity
   • Report suspicious access

Multi-Account Management

Agency Scenarios

Managing Multiple Client Accounts:

Option 1: Direct Access

• Added to each client account individually
• Separate login per account
• Switch between accounts in Campaign Manager

Option 2: Business Manager

• Clients add agency to Business Manager
• Centralized view of all client accounts
• Better for 3+ clients

Best Practice:

• Campaign Manager role (not Account Manager)
• Client retains billing control
• Document access agreements
• Regular access reviews

Enterprise Scenarios

Multiple Business Units:

Organizational Structure:

Parent Company
├── Business Unit A (Account 1)
├── Business Unit B (Account 2)
└── Business Unit C (Account 3)

Access Strategy:

• Business Manager for centralization
• Account Managers per business unit
• Shared Campaign Managers across units
• Viewer access for corporate stakeholders

Common Scenarios

Granting Billing Access

Situation: Finance needs billing visibility

Solution:

• Add with Account Manager role (only role with billing)
• Alternative: Account Manager exports invoices/reports
• Consider Viewer role + billing email recipient

Agency Access

Situation: Hiring external agency

Solution:

• Add agency team as Campaign Manager
• Retain Account Manager role internally
• Time-limit access in contract
• Remove immediately upon contract end

Temporary Project Access

Situation: Contractor needs short-term access

Solution:

• Grant appropriate role (likely Creative Manager)
• Document end date
• Set calendar reminder to remove
• Immediate removal upon project completion

Executive Reporting Access

Situation: Leadership wants reporting access

Solution:

• Viewer role for read-only access
• Alternative: Schedule automated reports via email
• No campaign editing permissions
• Consider Business Manager for multi-account view

Troubleshooting

User Can't Accept Invitation

Possible Causes:

• Email in spam folder
• No LinkedIn personal profile
• Incorrect email address
• Invitation expired

Solutions:

• Check spam/junk folders
• User creates LinkedIn profile first
• Verify email address correct
• Resend invitation (remove and re-add)

User Can't See Account

After accepting invitation:

Check:

1. User signed in to correct LinkedIn account
2. Account selected in top-left dropdown
3. Invitation actually accepted (check email)
4. Role assigned correctly

Solution:

• Have user refresh page
• Verify in Manage access list
• Remove and re-add if needed

Role Doesn't Match Expectations

User lacks expected permissions:

Verify:

• Correct role assigned
• Account Manager required for billing/users
• Campaign Manager required for lead downloads
• Business Manager settings (if applicable)

Solution:

• Update role to appropriate level
• Document which permissions come with which roles
• Train users on role capabilities

Compliance and Auditing

Access Logs

LinkedIn Campaign Manager doesn't provide detailed access logs, so maintain your own:

Track:

• User added/removed dates
• Role changes
• Access granted by whom
• Business justification
• Review dates

Format:

User: john@example.com
Role: Campaign Manager
Added: 2024-01-15
Added by: admin@example.com
Reason: Q1 campaign management
Last reviewed: 2024-04-15

Regular Reviews

Quarterly Access Review:

1. Export current user list
2. Verify each user still needs access
3. Confirm roles still appropriate
4. Remove inactive users
5. Document review completion

Annual Comprehensive Audit:

1. Review all accounts
2. Cross-reference with HR records
3. Verify external access agreements
4. Update access documentation
5. Report to leadership/compliance

API-Based User Management

For enterprise scale, LinkedIn Marketing API provides programmatic user management:

Capabilities:

• List account users
• Retrieve user permissions
• Audit access programmatically

Note: Adding/removing users still requires Campaign Manager UI or Business Manager.

API Documentation: LinkedIn Marketing API - User Management

Additional Guides

• Add User Access - Step-by-step user addition
• Update Access - Changing user roles
• Remove Access - Removing user access

Summary

Effective user management in LinkedIn Campaign Manager requires:

1. Clear role definitions - Right access for each user
2. Regular audits - Quarterly reviews minimum
3. Documented processes - Onboarding/offboarding procedures
4. Security focus - Limit Account Manager access
5. Compliance tracking - Maintain access records

By following these practices, you ensure secure, efficient team collaboration while maintaining account integrity and billing control.