Mastering LinkedIn for sales Enquiries
You are one of 700 million business professionals using LinkedIn to grow your networks, share content, for recruitment and, like many of your targets, to make business decisions. If you’re marketing on behalf of a business, mastering LinkedIn should be a key part of your strategic plan to grow sales enquiries online.
There are many sales tools and add-ons that help with lead generation (perhaps too many!), from finding more qualified leads to streamlining outreach.
So, our focus here is on spending time rather than money to succeed on LinkedIn. It all starts with what you can’t see when you log in.
The LinkedIn algorithm.
Although LinkedIn hasn’t revealed exactly what this is, I’ll guide you through four of the techniques that are proven to work on the platform.
| Killer | Stats | from | the | Platform | Itself | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 700M | Business | Professionals | |||||
| 308.8K | Unique | Companies | |||||
| 1.2M | Decision | Makers | |||||
| 1.2 | Years | - | Average | Tenure | in | Current | Role |
#1 Master the algorithm – and win
Use the basics of how the LinkedIn algorithm works to grow your presence and connections.
Look to the top
Posts from people you regularly engage with go straight to the top of your feed, along with those of connections who post consistently (ideally at least weekly). Focus on this area.
Be aware of changing priorities
Your posts don’t need to include videos as they’re no longer prioritised over text-only or photo-based posts. In the earlier days, when new capabilities were introduced, videos would go straight to the top – so everyone posted them – but this is no longer the case.
Quality time matters
What does matter is the quality and relevance of your posts. The amount of time that someone spends looking at the content of your post is super important, known as dwell time. Scrolled-past content tells the LinkedIn algorithm that a post isn’t important, interesting or relevant. Absorbing articles and videos are boosted to the top.
Encourage more comments
Comments are more important than reactions to the algorithm. And reactions are more important than shares. Make sure what you’re posting encourages comments. The algorithm loves it when more people join in the conversation.
How many hashtags?
The 2019 LinkedIn algorithm gave preference to posts with three hashtags. Now the magic number isn’t quite so exact – more than three but less than 10. Some of these should be specific while others should be highly searched sectors – see our TOP TRENDING TOPICS for ideas.
Tips about clips
Short, succinct video clips are better than long ones. Videos should be uploaded onto the platform (native, not embedded) and 3mins max. Subtitles are good, as this makes video accessible and attractive to viewers. Users are also 20% more likely to share videos than other content types, and we know the LinkedIn algorithm loves this almost as much as comments!
| Know | Your | Audience | - | Seniority | of | Decision | Makers | in | this | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70% | Directors | |||||||||
| 22% | VIP | |||||||||
| 8% Other - Includes Chief Experience Officers, Partners and Owners |
#2 Master LinkedIn etiquette
And get your business noticed.
Have a stellar LinkedIn profile
The number one activity on LinkedIn is viewing member profiles so make sure yours appeals to the decision makers you want to connect with.
Become a source of good content
Share relevant content around topics your prospects are likely to engage with – and become a trusted source of insights (AMA Research could help with this).
Personalise your introductions
Warm introductions are better than cold outreach for building trust and relationships. No-one wants to see those default or generic LinkedIn introductions, so always personalise them.
Linking in for the win
Connect or reach out to others that may influence your decision makers. Getting noticed will help generate more leads to grow your sales pipeline.
| Top Trending Topics By Index of Shares, Likes and Comments | |
|---|---|
| Data | Centre |
| Cloud | Computing |
| Sales | |
| SAP | |
| SAAS | |
| CRM | |
| Computer | Security |
| Business | Intelligence |
| Scalability | |
| EHR |
#3 Master what YOU see
The LinkedIn algorithm decides which posts to place at the top of your feed based on your interests and prior interactions. Meaning you may see older or popular posts over recent ones.
You can’t change this on mobile, but if you access LinkedIn from a desktop browser, select the “Sort By” menu at the top of your feed and change your option to “Recent.”
This will revert to “Top” posts each time you leave the site and come back, or if your feed sits undisturbed for four hours or more, so you’ll soon do this automatically.
| Company | Size | Matters | of | Decision | Maker | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27% Enterprise - 10,000+ Employees | ||||||
| 28% Mid-Market - 500-9,999 | ||||||
| 46% | SME | - | Under | 500 |
#4 Master your sales prospecting techniques
Create a strong professional brand
Be seen as an active participant in your industry by joining relevant LinkedIn groups and engaging in discussions.
Ask meaningful questions
Follow news about your prospect’s business and join LinkedIn groups to keep up with any relevant discussions. Connect with prospects to understand their LinkedIn activity and what they care about. This way, you can find and share interesting industry publications directly.
Build trusted relationships
Get introduced through referrals or common connections. Meet the needs of your prospect by selling the problem and the solution, not the product.
Good luck, I’ll see you on LinkedIn!
This Marketing Mentors blog assumes that your professional profile and network is already up and running. If you’re new to the platform, there are plenty of guides out there to help, including on the LinkedIn Help page and guides on boosting the SEO of your company’s page.
