How to Engage Prospects on LinkedIn for B2B social selling?

By thought-horizon | Jun 13, 2019

It’s not a secret anymore!

Salespeople struggle with lead generation.

Long gone are the days when you could pick the phone, make some cold calls to reach prospects, and book a meeting. Cold calling today takes an average of eight phone calls  – and you know when you finally reach them.

They are hardly interested in talking to you. In fact, over 90% of them never respond. But if you want leads, you need to stand out. While social selling serves as a great way to do this, the art of engagement was still unknown to many – but not anymore.

This how-to guide should be on every salesperson’s Evernote account, or even just printed and taped to the wall where he/she works. Get ready to read a critical resource that will tell you exactly what you should be doing on LinkedIn to engage your prospects.

1. Network

Networking has always contributed to sales success. It is a vital element of establishing the foundation for finding high-quality prospects and attracting them to your sales funnel. Make sure to follow these potential clients, all of their companies, and the decision-makers and influencers within the companies. While this tactic significantly helps you gain access to their content, it also enables you to stay abreast of the problems they face, and see what opportunities there are to help them out.  

Further, buyers buy from the brands they trust, and there is no easier way to gain their trust than having a mutual connection vouch for you.

Networking paves the way for you to explore the chances of engagement while building warm relationships to reach prospects and earn referrals.  

2. 30-minute Prospecting Workout, Twice Per Day

Carve out space for 30-minutes, twice per day, to scan through your network. Get insights on what content they are most looking forward to. What is the problem they are actively seeking a solution to? What are your competitors talking about? Find opportunities to engage and interact.

This simple workout gets you sorted with all the required details to build an outstanding relationship with your prospects.

3. Engage. Share. Repeat!

Simply put, this requires you to set a quota of Likes/Shares and Comments you would want to make each day. Keep it low initially, and find the optimized value as you grow your network. Look for the occasions companies are celebrating, and congratulate them. Maybe you can look to engage at least 10 times/day with eight likes and two shares. While likes are pretty straightforward, “shares” should be done strategically. Don’t go on sharing something just because you need to engage. What you share also impacts your brand value. Find out the things that talk about your industry/ niche. This is simply why it is so important to follow the prospect’s company, along with them.

4. Make Friends with LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is the most amazing friend you can ever have. And no, it’s not just about finding prospects. It can do more for you. It lets you organize your prospects and quickly scans the list to see who are among the “top talkers”. Additionally, it alerts you of relevant material being shared on the internet so that you can instantly engage and comment on the content.

5. Intelligent Commenting

Commenting should be done rarely. That said, don’t shut your minds off while doing it. Don’t simply satisfy yourself by writing “Great post” or “Nice!” More than engagement, it only acts as a filler, and could better have been done with a single like.

Learn how can you make a point, ask questions, and refrain from a know-it-all attitude. Even if you do, let others take charge sometimes.

Signing Off

B2B social selling arguably helps you sell more. Facts are facts! What do you think? Do you prefer B2B selling over B2C? Let us know.