diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index e2be890..0488ffb 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ AC_ARG_WITH(apxs, AS_HELP_STRING([--with-apxs=NAME],[name of your apxs executabl
 AC_CONFIG_AUX_DIR([.])
 AM_INIT_AUTOMAKE
 AC_PROG_CC
+AC_PROG_MKDIR_P
 
 # Copied from http://stackoverflow.com/a/10682813/9832 and tweaked for C (as
 # opposed to C++)
@@ -40,6 +41,13 @@ if test "$APXS" = no; then
     AC_MSG_ERROR([apxs not found. set apxs with --with-apxs.])
 fi
 AC_SUBST(APXS)
+
+LIBEXECDIR=`$APXS -q LIBEXECDIR 2>/dev/null`
+if test -z "${LIBEXECDIR}"; then
+    AC_MSG_ERROR([apxs returned empty LIBEXECDIR])
+fi
+AC_SUBST(LIBEXECDIR)
+
 AC_CHECK_HEADERS([maxminddb.h])
 AC_CHECK_LIB(maxminddb, MMDB_lib_version, [
     AC_DEFINE([HAVE_LIBMAXMINDDB], [1], [Have found libmaxminddb])
diff --git a/src/Makefile.am b/src/Makefile.am
index 4515d46..6fc91a5 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/Makefile.am
@@ -1,15 +1,18 @@
 AUTOMAKE_OPTIONS = foreign
+LIBEXECDIR = @LIBEXECDIR@
 WC=-Wc,"$(CFLAGS)"
+WL=-Wl,"$(LDFLAGS) $(LIBMAXMINDDB_LDFLAGS)"
 
 #   the default target
 all: module
 
 #   compile the DSO file
 module: mod_maxminddb.c $(TARGET)
-	$(APXS) -c $(LDFLAGS) $(LIBMAXMINDDB_LDFLAGS) $(LIBS) $(WC) $(APXS_LDFLAGS) mod_maxminddb.c
+	$(APXS) -c $(WL) $(LIBS) $(WC) $(APXS_LDFLAGS) mod_maxminddb.c
 
 install-exec-local: module
-	$(APXS) -i -a -n maxminddb .libs/mod_maxminddb.so
+	$(MKDIR_P) $(DESTDIR)$(LIBEXECDIR)
+	$(APXS) -i -S LIBEXECDIR=$(DESTDIR)$(LIBEXECDIR) -a -n maxminddb .libs/mod_maxminddb.so
 
 CLEANFILES=         *.la *.lo *.o *.so *.slo .libs/*