If you’re in sales or marketing, then you’ve probably spent a good few hours searching for prospects on LinkedIn. And why shouldn’t you? LinkedIn is a goldmine of potential leads where you can keep tabs on their profiles, check what they share and comment on, and which groups they’re interested in.
However, if your prospecting techniques are limited to using the search bar then scrolling until your fingers cramp, then you’re missing out on countless opportunities to fill up your sales pipeline.
Take a break from the search function and try out these five lesser-known ways of finding valuable prospects on LinkedIn to jumpstart your next sales conversations.
1. Check the sidebar
This one seems obvious, but there’s a good chance you haven’t checked the sidebar either. Next time you click on an ideal prospect’s profile, all you have to do is look a little further to the right and you’ll see a column titled, ‘People Also Viewed’.
Just like that, you’ve found yourself a new list of similar prospects to reach out to. That was easy.
2. Browse the notifications for job changes
When someone starts a new job, they’re in the prime position to be introduced to new products and services to make that job easier.
You’ll have to be following potential prospects to see their activity (which you should be doing anyway), then you just have to click on the ‘Notifications’ icon in LinkedIn to see who has started a new job. That’s your cue to swoop in and nab a new customer.
As a side note, you can also use Triggr to set alerts when a prospect changes roles. You’ll get a notification as soon as it happens to make sure you’re the first person they hear from. If you want to know more about how Triggr works, schedule a demo and we’ll give you the 101.
3. Look at the people who saw your profile
In online dating, when someone looks at your profile the first thing you do is look at theirs. Once that virtual dance is over, it’s time to reach out. Same thing happens on LinkedIn.
After you click on someone’s LinkedIn profile, they’ll see it in their profile stats and will likely click to see who you are. Unless visitors set their profiles to anonymous, you can click on the ‘Who’s viewed your profile?’ link on your homepage to see a list of them.
If they’ve checked you out, send a connection request and get the conversation started before they forget who you are.
4. Scroll through skill endorsements
You are who you’re friends with. Chances are a lot of the people who have endorsed your skills on LinkedIn are also in sales and marketing. That means the people who have endorsed your ideal customers are probably in the same industry themselves.
To add more prospects to your list, go into your ideal customer’s profile and scroll down until you reach the ‘Skills & Endorsements’ section, then have at it.
5. Keep a close eye on LinkedIn groups
LinkedIn groups are pockets of prospects at your fingertips. Check the ‘Recent Activity’ of the prospects you’re profiling and join the same groups they’re in. Then use that fun tidbit as a common denominator when reaching out to them.
Although these strategies work best when you actually make yourself visible in the group. Don’t just join one and call it a day. Take a few minutes to like and comment on their posts and even share new posts yourself. If you manage to come off as an authority in the group, you just made your outreach messaging a whole lot more convincing.
Another great way of using groups to your advantage is by checking who likes, shares, and comments on your posts (or your prospects’ posts). You never know which of those people might become your next customer.
Need a faster and smarter way to find prospects?
While using LinkedIn is all well and good, you might be wondering if there are faster and more effective ways to find prospects. There are. From low-cost tools to spruce up your marketing campaigns and insider tactics to get more outreach email responses, to social media strategies and automated sales prospecting platforms like Triggr.
We like automated solutions around here, so let’s focus on that last option. Triggr is a SaaS platform that helps sales teams identify and connect with their target buyer personas at scale. It’s ideal for B2B marketers, recruiters, salespeople, and anyone who wants to spend less time prospecting and more time closing deals.
So if LinkedIn isn’t quite cutting it, sign up for your free Triggr account to start finding hundreds of prospects today.
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