When you’re searching for new prospects the best tool you can use on LinkedIn is Sales Navigator. Searching for Leads is so much better on Sales Navigator LinkedIn itself gives free trials so members can see the difference. There are a lot of additional tools and features that make the upgrade more than worth its price tag.
Additional Filters
Filtering out people on LinkedIn helps your searches. When you’re more specific with your search the targeting can be a lot more focused. Here is a list of sales navigator filters that aren’t found on standard LinkedIn:
- Company size
- Company type (public, private, non-profit, etc.)
- Exclude contacted leads
- Exclude saved leads
- Exclude viewed leads
- Function
- Group membership
- Leads following your company
- Leads mentioned in the news
- Leads with recent job changes
- Leads with recent LinkedIn activity
- Leads with shared experiences/commonalities
- Location by postal code radius
- Posted content keyword
- Search within my accounts
- Seniority level
- TeamLink connections
- Years at current company
- Years in current position
- Years of experience
You can use as many of these filters as you’d wish to calculate the right search for your prospecting. A feature you can also use is the Save Search tool which allows you to call back to these searches after you’ve made them. This isn’t available on standard LinkedIn and can save you hours of researching for the same criteria.
Your Results Are A Lot Wider
On standard LinkedIn, you can only search for so many people outside of your network a month. Sales Navigator removes this limit, so you can create a wide list of companies and people you want to target with your social selling strategies. Now, we don’t recommend connecting with 3rd-degree connections out of the blue. This can lead to limits on your account for trying to connect with too many strangers. But you can use these features to understand who you need to target and connect with to make a connection and meeting happen down the road.
You Get a Lot More Data
As with anything in Sales and Marketing you can do a lot with the information you’re given. The more information you have, the better you can target your approach. With lists that update and information from Sales Navigator, you can make better decisions using the data you are given. By looking at profiles on Sales Navigator you are already greeted with a lot more information than a standard LinkedIn profile could give you. Such connections that can introduce you to the prospect and buyer intent. This means when you’re searching and saving leads you’ll have a better experience with Sales Navigator.
You Can Save a Lead List
Saving lists is probably the most useful tool on Sales Navigator as these lists themselves can update with the times. Job changes, promotions and intent data can all be leveraged to help you connect with the right prospects and improve your approach on the next. Adding more and more people to these lead lists is good practice and will fill your pipeline moving forward.
If you’re looking for a better way to search for leads on LinkedIn you’ll have a better experience with Sales Navigator than the basic features. That doesn’t mean the basic searches aren’t useful they just aren’t as effective as searching for leads on Sales Navigator.
You can reach active accounts
One of the most useful filters is the activity sections. Where you can see who has been on the platform in the last 30 days. Essentially giving you breadcrumbs for the accounts you should be targeting. This ensures you’re not targeting members who never sign in and won’t engage with your content.