Why think about generating leads, customers and sales on Linkedin?
To begin answering this question, let's first think about the potential of this social network: Linkedin Brazil already has 50 million users.
The platform, which makes great use of professional recruitment, brand promotion and business networking, has been increasingly successful in networking and digital sales.
Talking about digital sales has been a constant during the health crisis, which has opened up a new perspective for sales teams. Where can you look for prospects in times of closed doors?
Even though the scenario is beginning to stabilize, with several activities returning to in-person activities, it is more than certain that the digital universe is here to stay and should be seen by sales teams as a great source of opportunities.
More than ever, after the pandemic, is it necessary to take a new look at sales?
What is Linkedin?
Operating within a strictly professional sphere, the social network Linkedin has more than 50 million users in Brazil. Worldwide, there are more than 575 million users, in more than 200 countries and other territories.
Linkedin has a decisive audience, a focus on B2B businesses and a powerful segmentation that is very promising for sales in different segments, because it is made up of professionals who are business owners, executives of large companies or managers from different areas.
According to the Linkedin Audience 360 study, 4 out of 5 professionals on the platform are decision-makers in their businesses. Therefore, the potential of Linkedin for companies is immense.
Furthermore, the new moment triggered by the pandemic revealed that the relationship became much stronger within the sales scenario.
This process was already moving towards sellers building another type of connection with buyers, using remote mechanisms. According to data from the study “2020 Sales Scenario in Brazil”, from According to Linkedin itself, salespeople were already learning new skills within Linkedin Learning 3,5 times more than other professionals to acquire new skills for use in the digital universe.
The trend already existed, however, the global health crisis accelerated this process of digital transformation in all sectors.
As a result, friendly approaches within Linkedin itself and the acceptance of new connections within the platform have increased.
Read more:
How to Use Linkedin: Make Professional Connections and Updates
Linkedin allows a professional, in addition to registering their CV, with their experiences, skills and education, to also make connections with several other people who are within their area of interest or even in other fields.
The news feed publishes a wide range of discussions about economic policy, the job market, innovation, training and much more information about the professional world.
In other words, do you want to talk about the fashion market? You can do that on Linkedin. Do you want to talk about tractor production? You can do that on Linkedin too.
This means that the range of options is immense and the variations of themes in the segmented groups are countless. Any market niche is there waiting for sales on Linkedin.
Thinking about ignoring the many potentialities of the network in prospecting potential customers is a strategic and economic loss.
So, finding ways to sell on social media is no big mystery.
Especially because today, in the connected world, more than ever, it is possible to find and offer solutions for the entire world.
For this reason, 70% of the decision to purchase a service or product is made during a search for prior information on the internet about prices, features and brands.
Read more about:
How to Join Linkedin: Start with an Effective Profile
The Linkedin profile needs to include elements that are reliable and more personalized.
In addition to filling in work experience, education and skill set, there are other little secrets that could be the key to your results.
Increase your brand visibility
To increase your brand visibility, customize your title with some keywords and specialized functions.
Enhance your summary of what you do, what you’re passionate about, and provide contact details for potential clients, along with a catchy phrase. You can also add three links to your Twitter profile, such as your company website, personal website, or blog.
Add resources like relevant documents, photos, links, and video presentations to your profile to boost your results.
Ask for recommendations for each position listed on your profile, such as testimonials. This initiative will be very important to boost your digital sales.
Incorporate some keywords to increase the chance of your profile appearing in search results. Think about who is searching for the product or service you offer. What would be the words that person would use? Add these words to your profile in a natural way.
Make connections and prospects
Once you’ve optimized your profile, the next step is to focus on growing your network, i.e., seeding contacts. The more quality connections you have, the greater your chances of thriving.
Import contact data
To do this, start importing the email contacts of people you already know, whether they are from your current relationships or from previous ones. This will allow you to evaluate connections and request an introduction when necessary.
But be careful – don’t bulk import contacts, as some of them may not be of substantial importance for making connections with your brand on Linkedin.
But this measure of importing data from people we already know is very important.
According to data from Linkedin itself, buyers on the network are five times more likely to participate if the promotion is carried out by a mutual connection.
Opt for advanced search
People searching is a very effective method of expanding your network and is an important tool for your Linkedin sales efforts and lead generation.
You can search for new connections using various fields to optimize your search, but the main idea is to look for people with characteristics that are interesting to your business.
Additionally, consider subscribing to a premium profile to have more search fields and the ability to save even more people, which can maximize prospecting efficiency.
Use Sales Navigator
In addition to these little secrets for prospecting, another tool that is dedicated to digital sales is Linkedin Sales Navigator.
The tool was created with the aim of creating, strengthening and deepening customer relationships and also prospecting new ones. It is ideal for companies that are looking for an ICP (Ideal Customer Profile). It even has some similarities to a CRM system for generating leads.
There are 3 types of accounts to serve companies: Professional, Team and Enterprise.
You can use the Lead Builder feature to create lists of leads using certain premium advanced search filters, such as:
- Occupation;
- Experience;
- Interests;
- Years of experience;
- Company size;
- Find good groups to join;
- Being part of groups on Linkedin is also of fundamental importance to find groups suitable for each professional or company.
Read more about:
Join groups
Linkedin groups are great opportunities to build relationships and create deeper connections and share ideas. The potential is immense.
Linkedin has also made some updates to groups, such as:
- Limitation of members;
- More incisive supervision;
- Privatization of groups;
- Moderation and monitoring of content;
- Sending a daily or weekly summary to participants.
To be more assertive in group participation, with keywords, for example, filter groups that can generate more returns, which are those where you can stimulate discussions and post relevant content.
Large groups generate more contacts, but smaller groups also have more guarantee that your message will be noticed.
It is also possible to create your own group and this can place the professional as a leader in that discussion.
But remember that it's not just about posting, you need to be active to generate authority within the group. Therefore, set aside some time in your routine to dedicate yourself to this, that is, you need to have a constant digital presence.
Furthermore, being in these groups provides knowledge of innovations and market trends, such as the increasing use of artificial intelligence in the market. Being actively aware of this information in groups can make your brand relevant to your potential customers.
It is interesting to know that it is possible to participate in up to 100 groups on Linkedin and, occasionally, switch groups that give less return to include other more promising ones.
Be good at giving answers
To create a good connection with your potential customers, you need to know that people usually buy from those they feel well treated with.
So don’t miss the opportunity to listen to your future client and give quick, personalized and appropriate answers.
Be more personal when responding and this will create a connection with your prospects. This will foster more meaningful relationships with them and a greater likelihood of generating sales.
Let's remember that 70% of purchasing decisions are also the result of how the customer felt treated.
If he felt that he was taken care of and had a problem resolved, he will probably buy your product or service again.
According to Marketing Metrics, good service can generate 60% to 70% of a new purchase.
To do this, you also need to track and manage your leads, use software such as CRM and personalize the message you want to send to your future customers.
Keep the status updated
Also remember to always keep your status updated, with e-book posts, slideshare presentations and even videos, which are initiatives of unquestionable value.
Some experts believe that updating your profile 3 times a day is the best option. One suggestion is to update it at the beginning and end of the workday.
This frequency will maximize your digital presence, establish credibility and add value when the updated topics are interesting.
To generate engagement, don't lose sight of Linkedin Pulse either. This social network publishing tool is designed for long-form content posts.
This is the best way to consolidate your status as an authority on the subject and increase your visibility.
But remember that good titles will help a lot when an automatic notification arrives to remind your network about your published article.
Metrics are also important on Linkedin
And since we can't get complacent after all this, it's very important to use metrics to know if your strategies are actually working for sales on Linkedin.
A very useful tool is the Social Selling Index, which allows you to measure your effectiveness across multiple criteria at the touch of a button.
These criteria include establishing a professional brand, finding the right people, interacting with insights, and building relationships.
But also remember that knowing a customer's purchasing journey helps you better decipher the profile of prospects and can greatly help with sales on Linkedin.
Use Linkedin ADS
Linkedin ADS is also seen as a very efficient tool for promoting businesses.
Since Linkedin already has an audience that has twice the purchasing power, with powerful segmentation that already brings more qualified leads, ads are also an effective way for those who need to find out how to sell more.
To do this, it is possible to combine several audience filters with Linkedin ADS and it becomes even easier to find a persona with a high chance of closing a deal.
There are a few main ways to advertise: Sponsored Content (appears in users' feeds), Sponsored InMail (private communication channel), Text Ad (texts that appear in the right column) and Dynamic ADS (large-scale ad campaign).
Finally…
Now that you know a lot about the Linkedin, what it is and its potential, lAlso remember that knowing a customer's purchasing journey helps you better decipher the profile of your prospects and can greatly help your sales.
1 comment
Joseph Willian Rossi
Very useful and practical, I recommend it