How to Use LinkedIn as an Outbound Marketing Tool?

When it comes to social media for maintaining professional contacts or for the growth of business, the name of LinkedIn is something that cannot be ignored. LinkedIn is now considered to be an essential tool for lead generation and many online marketers are even using an effective outbound tool for marketing purposes. If you are looking for tips to use this platform as a useful outbound marketing tool, you need to delve a little deeper.

Know Your Basics Well

When you are planning to adopt LinkedIn as a marketing tool, you need to do your homework well and get the basics crafted perfectly. Other than doing everything manually, using various Linkedin automation tools might help speed up the process a lot. These include finding email addresses of potential prospects, extracting LinkedIn searches and many more. Before starting with the work, you need to have a well-written profile of your own, comprehensive profile of the company, and some professional photography for displaying your business. Framing the profile professionally is essential as it will help in attracting more customers.

Tips to Find Leads

There are plenty of leads on LinkedIn. You just need to find the right one for your business by using some of the methods listed below:

Advanced Search

Whether you have a free profile or a premium one, using filters in the advanced search will help you generate leads for your business. With the appropriate filters, you will be able to detect the target audiences as it will point out the direct, second as well as third-degree connections in a sequence. Broader is the connection more is your contacts. Yet, to get the best value, you need to search at regular intervals.

Target Contact List of People in Your Contact

Apart from advanced search, you can target people whose names are there in the contact list of your contacts. This might be a bit difficult as many people prefer to hide these details, yet it is worth a try.

Groups

Participating in LinkedIn groups is also another great way of connecting with leads. Do not just join any group. Search groups using the appropriate keyword and socialize to increase your leads.

Approaching the Contacts on LinkedIn Network

Though LinkedIn is full of marketing leads, it is not quite easy to use them as the lead generation works only when you do not sound like a spammer. When approaching your contacts offer them some useful information instead of advertising your business. Interact with the targeted leads and help them in the desired way to reap the benefits. Initially, it may sound like hard work but once you start interacting, it will be a simple task.

Interacting with Strangers across the Web

When you are using LinkedIn as an outbound marketing tool, it is quite obvious that you will have to speak to strangers. So, prepare yourself properly. Start by introducing yourself yet do not take much time in the first go. Make frequent interactions of short duration and try to build the trust of your leads. After a few interactions narrate how your products or services have helped clients. Do not ever try to sell your product directly while speaking to a stranger as they may consider you a spammer. Instead, offer them information on the benefits of your product so that they automatically get attracted to it.

Using a Call to Action in a Softer Way

Anyone with little experience in sales and marketing would agree that you should always try and secure the second step in the first interaction and follow the same process for the rest of the interactions. Never offer excess information on the first day. Proceed gradually and offer the information which will help them. By offering some free yet useful information in the initial stage, you will be able to make bigger gains in the coming days. Also, try to reflect that you care for your clients so that your contacts start building faith on you.

Interacting with Known Contacts and Unknown Contacts

It is always easier to interact with known contacts as they know your details and there is no need to introduce yourself. Just refer to the things in common or previous interactions and proceed with the other details. However, when dealing with unknown contact, get connected with them when they are active and go slowly.

Make Use of the LinkedIn Groups

Apart from connecting individually with different people, you can try contacting people in different groups. When contacting with people in groups, you need to find the useful one by following some simple tricks:

• Join groups that are relevant to your topic
• Search for active groups with regular discussions
• Be a part of big groups but ensure that you are important in it

When using groups to increase leads, you must not ever start by posting a link to your e-book or blog. Instead, be a part of different discussions and come up with productive solutions to different queries. Try to get recognized for your usefulness and soon you might be awarded a significant number of leads. Do not stop participating in discussions as soon as you start generating leads. Always, keep the discussions going to get new leads for your future use.

You can also use the much-praised “ping-pong” tactics to increase the number of new leads. Using this technique is simple as you need to engage one or more of your colleagues and post articles with the help of publishing tools. Refer to the articles during different discussions on groups and attract the attention of the targeted audiences. This can also help you drive traffic to your landing page with your offer.

LinkedIn is one of the best platforms for lead generation. To make the most of it, you just need to understand this networking platform in the best way and apply an appropriate strategy to reap the benefits. You may integrate your LinkedIn account into Whatagraph reporting tool to see and track results in a visual way. You can even try our template. Irrespective of the type of your business or the class of your targeted audiences, you need to have the dedication and give the best efforts for your success.