Sales managers know that when it comes to social selling, it’s NOT so much about who you know, it’s about WHO knows YOU and what they know about you!
When you have a strategy on LinkedIn, you’re able to make the right connections, leverage your current ones for introductions, and build trust with your network.
How many of the RIGHT connections does your sales team have right now?
Your presence on LinkedIn and your network of the RIGHT people, will help position you and your team as thought leaders.
When a prospect perceives you or your team as thought leaders in their field, they’ll come to you when it’s time to buy.
That’s why being strategic when building your network is so important. No matter what your goal is, you have a certain audience you need to reach. And if your only goal on LinkedIn is to just have a big network, then you’re using it wrong.
Keep reading to learn how you can build a strategic network on LinkedIn that can help you generate leads and increase your sales revenue.
1. Connect with those relevant to your goals
When LinkedIn became big, people started adding everyone and anyone that would accept their request. And those who went with that strategy are paying the price today when they try to build genuine relationships to increase their sales.
You wouldn’t fill your sales pipeline with a bunch of people who had no need for your services, would you?
Probably not.
Everyone has a goal on LinkedIn, it’s no secret. There’s no shame in building your network with those who you know need your products and services.
It only becomes a problem if you aren’t trying to build a genuine relationship with them, you’re just using them for sales.
This will never work, especially on LinkedIn.
And as a salesperson, you know just how important it is to nurture your leads, nothing changes when you use LinkedIn as your sales tool.
So, when it comes to using your network to perform outreach or generate leads, having a relevant network will come in handy.
2. Build relationships with those outside of the decision-making process when needed
As a sales manager, you know that having ultimate decision-makers in your network is important, but you may need to venture out to those who don’t fall under the decision-making role.
There will be times when you can’t reach the decision-maker directly through LinkedIn, but there may be lower-level employees who have the access you need.
Adding connections who are in direct contact with the decision-maker of the company can be of value to you, especially when it comes to recommendations and referrals.
The decision-maker is likely to trust the opinion of someone who is directly handling the project, and if you have a connection with them, there’s a better chance of you closing the deal.
3. Add those who can provide value to you
As stated in number one of this list, you want a connection to not only be relevant to your goal but one that can also provide you with value.
Whether it’s information or new business, connections need to serve a purpose for you and vice versa.
Here are a few questions you can ask yourself when assessing new connections:
- Are we in the same industry?
- Are they a potential new client?
- Will they help me reach my sales goal?
- Do they possess information that would be of value to me?
- Are there shared connections between you both?
If you strictly build your network based on quantity over quality, you’ll end up with little to no results on LinkedIn.
Think of it this way, if you’re sharing helpful tips and tricks about sales to your network, but you’re connected only with lawyers and accountants, how do you think your post will perform?
Probably not that well, right? Because Lawyers and Accountants don’t care about sales tips, they want information tailored specifically to them that will make their jobs easier.
While it may be important in some cases to have a large network, there’s no point to it if they aren’t helping you reach your goals, especially when it comes to hitting your monthly sales quotas.
Anyone can make a LinkedIn profile and add a bunch of people, but if you’re serious about increasing your sales revenue through building genuine relationships, you need to put in the work.
If you want to learn more about networking on LinkedIn, check out the LinkedIn Accelerator Training by Evyrgreen Networking! Our LinkedIn Accelerator training teaches you how to use LinkedIn to get qualified leads for business
If you want to learn more about the course visit: https://www.evyrgreen.com/linkedin-accelerator-training/.
If you want more tips on how to leverage LinkedIn for your business, check out our guide 7 Amazing LinkedIn Hacks Cheat Sheet! For more helpful articles, check out the rest of our blog.