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For sales and outreach purposes, LinkedIn is a veritable treasure mine of prospect data. But it can be difficult to know where to start because the platform is so large. It may also be intimidating if you have a more subdued approach and don't want to come out as pushy or "salesy."
It's important to keep in mind that LinkedIn is a professional network where people look for connections and develop partnerships if you're having hesitations. Building professional relationships naturally involves engaging in inbound sales, which platform users expect and even want. In fact, data shows that "when making purchase decisions, 50% of B2B buyers rely on LinkedIn. (https://business.linkedin.com/sales-solutions/social-selling/what-is-social-selling)
Social selling on LinkedIn is a way of life for most salespeople. They utilise a range of related prospecting strategies, such as maintaining their own profiles in prime condition, monitoring what prospective clients post in groups, and checking out the profiles of their prospects before contacting or emailing. Representatives are also adept at finding prospects and refining their search results based on firm, region, industry, and other factors.
Does LinkedIn work for prospecting?
Indeed. Without a doubt. Compared to cold emails, LinkedIn messages typically have a greater reaction rate for prospecting communications. Using the LinkedIn search engine, it's also simple to create qualified lead lists because the desired prospect professional information can be easily directed through it.
- LinkedIn provides access to a vast network of professionals across various industries and job functions. This allows sales professionals to target specific segments of their target market and connect with decision-makers directly.
- LinkedIn's messaging feature, including InMail for premium users, allows sales professionals to reach out to prospects directly, even if they're not connected. Personalised messages tailored to the recipient's interests and needs can help initiate conversations and move prospects through the sales funnel.
10 ways to use LinkedIn for Sales Prospecting
Convinced from the above paragraph?
Now let’s see the effective ways which are used by salespeople across the globe to offer valuable insights into potential leads.
- Optimise LinkedIn profile for your specific Niche - Making your LinkedIn profile to your niche should come before you send any prospecting messages.
Regarding your LinkedIn profile, the same guidelines apply. There is never a second opportunity to make a good impression. When someone receives your message, they will go to your LinkedIn page first. Make sure that it is visually appealing and that your value proposition is easy to see. Check the points below to make sure LinkedIn profile is optimised before you send any message:
- Create a unique LinkedIn Company page and profile pictures.
- Create an easy-to-read headline.
- The About section contains a detailed value proposition.
- Provide links and social evidence in the featured area.
- Personalise your LinkedIn URL with information about your work history and education.
- Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator- In order to use LinkedIn as your primary source of B2B leads, you must have a Sales Navigator licence. And in order to locate and connect with your ideal consumer profile, it provides a plethora of additional search criteria and special features. Sales Navigator is an improved version of LinkedIn's standard search engine that makes it easy to reach your target audience. It's obvious that a high-achieving sales organisation needs Sales Navigator's powerful search features.
- Reach out to prospects in new roles- One of the best trigger events for sales is switching jobs. A person is more willing to try something different, such as buying a new service or product, when they take on a new responsibility.
If you act quickly, you might be able to acquire a new client. Click the "Notifications" tab and check every day for updates on which of your connections have a new job, a birthday, or a blog post that will inspire you to reach out in order to find out which of your contacts has recently joined a new firm.
- Inmail and Messaging- Even if you're not connected, you can still communicate with prospects directly using InMail and texting. This is a priceless chance to strike up a discussion and build rapport with possible prospects who might not have reacted to previous kinds of solicitation. It allows you to tailor your message to each prospect according to their needs, interests, and profile. In order to show genuine interest and raise the possibility of a favourable response, you can make explicit references to information from their profile or past encounters.
- Scroll through skill endorsements- People are drawn to other people who are similar to them. And occasionally, those people offer compliments. Analogous to the &"People Also Viewed" strategy, find out who has recommended a stellar client or potential client by swiping down to their "Skills" area. You'll discover that like-minded individuals frequently swarm (and support) one another.
- By reviewing skill endorsements on a prospect's profile, you can gain insights into their expertise and areas of strength. Identifying common skills relevant to your product or service can help you figure out whether the prospect is a good fit for your offering.
- Skill endorsements provide a snapshot of a prospect's competencies as perceived by their connections. This can help you understand their professional background, strengths, and areas where they may require additional support or solutions.
- See who’s commented on your prospect’s posts- The next time you scroll through your alerts or activity stream, pay attention to the comments left under the postings made by your connections. Since they are obviously engaged on LinkedIn, many of the individuals connecting with your prospects and customers will be potential good fits for your product. Furthermore, their comments provide the ideal starting point for a successful InMail. Congratulate them on their insight and offer a similar viewpoint, send them an article that is pertinent, or inquire as to whether they had thought about a particular fact or piece of data.
- Browse user-interaction on your posts- You can only view a restricted list of persons who have looked at your profile if you utilise a free LinkedIn account. Users who pay for LinkedIn premium access can view every person who views their profile. Regardless of the kind of membership you have, you are still able to view the users who have interacted with your postings.
Click "Posts & Activity" from the drop-down menu next to your profile.
Only the articles and posts you've shared will be shown in your feed, along with the names of everyone who has interacted with them.
To view who has recently followed you, select the "Your followers" option located on the left sidebar. You never know who among your most recent followers could also be a fantastic new lead.
- Use Boolean Google Search- This isn't quite a LinkedIn tip, but it will bring up a list of profiles. The next time you're utilising Google to find new leads, think about utilising Boolean search operators like AND, NOT, OR, and quote marks.A brief description of each is as follows:
- Quotation marks: Will show search results with that exact wording.
- OR: Displays results that either include search terms A or B.
- Results containing both search terms A and B will be shown using the AND operator.
- NOT: Will present search results with search phrase A but not B.
- Create a search alert- Pay particular attention to who they hire if you've had problems getting past a gatekeeper or finding the perfect person at a potential employer. Go to the company's page on LinkedIn and select the "Jobs" button to accomplish this. Turn the "Job Alert" button to the "on" position once you're on the jobs landing page. To select a cadence and notification channel that LinkedIn will utilise to notify you of hiring announcements and new openings, click "Manage Alerts." Look for job postings for "Marketing Managers" and click "Save" when one appears if you need to talk to a marketing decision-maker. Navigate to the "Jobs" tab to review stored jobs. Once the post has been removed, locate the fortunate receiver using your investigative abilities on LinkedIn.
A few days or weeks after starting their new job, the new hire should update their LinkedIn profile which will link them to the prospective company's LinkedIn page. Keep track of new hires by clicking the hyperlink "See all [number] employees on LinkedIn."
- Visibility and Brand Building- Consistently sharing valuable content, participating in discussions, and engaging with your network on LinkedIn helps increase your visibility and establish your personal or company brand as a thought leader in your industry. This can attract inbound inquiries and warm leads over time.
Summary
The next time your prospecting list seems empty and a standard LinkedIn search isn't working, try one of these unconventional methods. The finest aspect? Working on LinkedIn gives you access to personal information that can help you craft a sales pitch that is precisely tailored to the individual.
Magicpitch enables businesses to efficiently find their ideal customers from a population of over 8 billion people and 314 million businesses. Its AI algorithm simplifies this challenge by cross-referencing your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) with our comprehensive database, effortlessly identifying targeted and qualified prospects.
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(FAQs) about LinkedIn sales prospecting :
- Q.1 How effective is LinkedIn for prospecting?
Ans. Definitely. The reply rate to prospecting messages is usually higher with LinkedIn messages than with cold emails.
- Q.2 What are the best times to prospect on LinkedIn?
Ans. According to multiple studies, the golden hour for cold calling falls between 10 AM and 12 PM, and then again from 4 PM to 6 PM.
- Q.3. What are prospecting methods?
Ans. Sales prospecting methods are any way a salesperson conducts outreach to source new leads or engage with existing leads.
- Q.4. Why is prospecting important?
Ans. To improve your understanding of what your ideal customers look like, which will positively impact every aspect of your business, including marketing, branding, and product development.
- Q.5. How to increase engagement on LinkedIn?
Ans. The general advice for increasing engagement on LinkedIn is to post high-quality content consistently, use relevant hashtags, create nice visuals, and optimise your profile page.
