Are you involved in OEM marketing or sales? Are you frustrated and unsure how to expand your reach and find new prospects?
While LinkedIn is already an extraordinary platform for generating connections, it can be even more beneficial if you use LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
It can help you find people with the search feature and businesses based on their size, location, and industry.
Unleash the Power of LinkedIn Sales Navigator!
The professional version of LinkedIn Sales Navigator takes your ability to target prospects up another notch. With this tool, you can access exclusive features such as lead recommendations and Company Search Plus that allow you to sort by job titles and functions of potential contacts at the company level. You can also segment and target companies based on size (number of employees) and revenue.
Additionally, you can use the advanced search feature to filter prospects based on their company’s size, industry, job title, location, and more. With this tool, you can save time by creating target lists of leads for immediate follow-up with a few clicks of your mouse. You can also send InMail messages directly from Sales Navigator to targeted contacts to schedule meetings or offers.
Finally, LinkedIn Sales Navigator allows you to keep track of your outreach efforts by providing comprehensive analytics that give insights into how your team is performing against specific metrics. These insights allow managers to identify potential areas for improvement and ensure that sales representatives use best practices in prospecting activities such as developing email campaigns.
10X Your Prospects in 2023
The key to your success in 2023 lies in your ability to find and connect with the right people, no matter what sector you are in for industrial manufacturing or services. At YoungCaesar, we have developed successful industrial sales and marketing lead-generating techniques that guarantee success if followed correctly. We have seen first-hand the positive outcome of following these prospecting tips – not only for our own company but for many of our clients too.
If you want to achieve this same level of success, here is what you need to do:
Optimize Your Profile
Optimizing your headline on LinkedIn is essential before commencing your prospecting process. Rather than leaving it as the default setting of your name, job title, and workplace, ensure the content you include accurately reflects what you do.
When a connection request pops up, the first thing people usually look at is your profile picture, name, and headline.
Your goal here should be to grab their attention with only 50-60 characters so that they click through to see how you are relevant to them – and accept your invitation!
Make sure each word counts by writing something engaging yet concise; this will ensure you make an excellent impression on those viewing your page.
Some ideas for headlines could be:
- The Future of Manufacturing – Unrivaled Precision & Quality
- Industry Leaders in Quality Manufacturing Solutions
- Creating Unrivaled Products with Cutting-Edge Technology
- Bringing Quality and Innovative Solutions to Manufacturing
- Revolutionizing the Manufacturing Industry for a Better Tomorrow
Outlining the industries in which you specialize will provide further clarity to potential connections. Be creative – there are many possible variations!
Now that you have an optimized profile, start connecting with people who would benefit from your services! Start by searching via keywords related to what it is that you offer.
Targeting Industry & Geographic Location
To start prospecting, you will need to build a search, and there are many different ways to get started.
The first step is to decide if you want to find companies you’re trying to go after. Or, you may want to find people in particular industries and/or find people at those companies.
When beginning your prospecting journey, it’s best to have a plan of action.
Do you wish to target specific companies, industries, or people? If so, there are numerous ways to go about it. Deciding on the best course of action is the initial step in this process.
By considering industry and geography when selecting prospects, you can guarantee you are targeting relevant audiences interested in your products and services.
Depending on what type of manufacturing business you are running and what type of clients or customers you want to attract, researching these two topics can be productive in finding potential buyers.
- To start, begin your search by entering a query, and you will see the filters section.
- It’s a good idea to start by filtering out industries to narrow down potential customers or prospects for your business.
- If you’re unsure who to target, try doing some research – enter the name of a company that is either already a customer of yours or one that could be an ideal fit for your services.
- Once on their company page, note what industry they are in. Knowing this should give you an indication of where to direct your efforts.
Don’t overlook this step, as LinkedIn provides only 150 industry categories. It is vital to ensure that a company is classified accurately within the relevant category; otherwise, you may make incorrect assumptions about the company’s sector.
If you are a regional manager, salesperson, or engineer, it is beneficial to filter the people and companies in your chosen industry by geography. Doing so allows you to focus on those within your specific region.
Targeting Job Function, Seniority & Company Size
Once you have decided on the specific industry/industries and preferred geographic locale, further refine your search by job function.
- Be sure to narrow down the list so that you can be more intentional about targeting potential connections and framing your messages.
- Choosing a specific role — such as purchasing, operations, or engineering — will help make this process easier.
- Next, consider the seniority level of positions you are looking for; are these entry-level roles, mid-level management jobs, or higher up? It will depend on where you stand in terms of experience and qualifications.
- Do not hesitate to widen your range if needed – even if it means casting a wider net – but always be specific about your criteria.
- Once you have a list of target roles and seniority levels, look for more ways to narrow down the search.
- Consider including more specific keywords related to the industry or field that you want to focus on.
At YoungCaesar, we categorize prospects by industry and job role to create tailored contact lists. This way, you can refine your search parameters to focus on specific positions – like CEOs or marketers – in a targeted industry. Then, if needed, you can modify the list to target different industries or job functions.
Once you have completed the initial steps outlined above, you can begin customizing your search. Instead of looking through the entire list, you can narrow your list strategically with each relevant category and let each layer of results guide your external research.
Save Your Search Parameters
Once you have compiled your strategic list based on the firms, roles, titles, seniority levels, and geographic locations to target for new prospects, make sure to save the search. Label it according to position, region, and sector to help keep it organized.
After saving your search, it is time to examine the people on your list. If someone appears to fit with what you are looking for, click ‘save’ next to their profile information and create another list. For example — Hit List Purchasing. Do this and gradually add more details about individuals who might be ideal prospects.
Discover how our team at YoungCaesar can help you get the best from your industrial marketing plan. We are a specialized industrial/manufacturing marketing agency with in-depth knowledge and experience to drive rapid growth for manufacturing businesses like yours. Find out how we do it.
Degrees of Connection
When deciding the extent of your network, consider whether you want to expand through strategic relationships or focus on adding value to current connections. This thought process will help set the tone for how much effort you put into growing your contacts.
Are you unsure of the extent of your connections?
- First-degree connections: refer to people that have a direct relationship with you.
- Second-degree connections are those who are connected to your immediate contacts.
- Third-degree connections do not have any direct or indirect connection to you – but are contacts of your second-degree connections.
The aim is to grow your network by adding contacts who are related or have a link to the sector you’re looking for, such as agriculture, mining, metals, or oil and gas.
Additionally, your connections can help get you in touch with people at the same company or within the same field of interest. Using this method will grow your prospect list rapidly.
Building Relationships with Connections
Keep your message concise yet engaging when you start reaching out and connecting with others in your network. Use a pre-written connection request or compose one of your own that you can reuse when necessary. Try to craft an impactful message that will draw people in.
Example
“Hi! I created a video discussing ways to streamline manufacturing processes and increase efficiency. Thought you might be interested in watching it [Insert link to video] — Enjoy!”
“Hello, I’ve put together a report on leveraging innovative lean manufacturing practices in business like yours. Maybe it could help your business? [Insert link to report]”
“Hi there, I thought this video highlighting our innovative manufacturing solutions might interest you [Insert link to video]” — Any questions, let me know…
If you are aiming to connect with first-degree contacts, there’s no need for you to use InMails. Better to use these credits from LinkedIn to message people who are not already contacts; you get approximately 30 of these credits each month free of cost.
Remember that networking is not necessarily about promoting your business and products straight away – but giving those you meet something of value to gain their interest and trust in you and your brand.
Dealing with Responses
If you’re already using the Native LinkedIn app, download the LinkedIn Sales Navigator app. It’s easier to stay up to date with all your messages. Doing this enables quick responses whenever someone contacts you and needs more information or wants to schedule a call.
The Ask
Once you’ve set up and optimized your profile, taken the time to build out your network, and used Sales Navigator as discussed, it’s time to make the ask.
Inquire if they’re facing any problems or challenges related to your field of expertise; should the answer be affirmative, ask if the prospect would be open to a 20-minute discussion about what you can offer.
Engaging with them on LinkedIn is essential, so take some time to scroll through their home feed and show your support by liking, commenting, and sharing their posts.
To benefit from this relationship, remember that it should be mutually beneficial – you will need to give to get something back.
Regularly Refresh Your List
By updating your filters regularly, you can adjust the scope of your search. Consider refining your criteria for industry, company size, job title, location, seniority level, and the number of connections to make sure you find the best possible results.
Being strategic with these changes will allow you to get the most out of your list.
Want to rapidly improve your industrial sales and marketing results on LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
YoungCaesar can help you grow your business and reach your business goals.
Contact us today to discover how!
