According to IDC, 75% of B2B buyers use social media to make purchasing decisions. It is a compelling reason to take a look at the buzz about social selling in a B2B environment. In order to meet customers where they are at, you need to be where they are, and in this case, to reach out to those three-quarters of potential buyers.
Insert a B2B solution: LinkedIn
While social selling happens everywhere, it is key to target where and how you connect to potential buyers. It is the same as targeting where and how you advertise to your market. In the channel, there is one clear platform offering a solution to B2B networking and influence: LinkedIn. LinkedIn’s mission is “Connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.” and has over 300 million members globally.
From a basic standpoint, LinkedIn as a sales tool can be helpful by providing insight about companies, who they are, stats about the business, who works there within your network, and which roles are being hired. These are all great starting places for social selling, especially if it is a new concept to you.
Take it to the next level: LinkedIn Sales Navigator
If you are serious about meeting these potential buyers and strengthening your social selling process and methods, then read on. LinkedIn Sales Navigator was made for savvy, social selling progressives like you and your sales teams are, or will be soon.
Three clear reasons why you want to take the next step:
(1) Generate new leads
Sales Navigator is LinkedIn’s most advanced search tool to date, leading out what LinkedIn calls, “An era of social selling.” The process of generating leads within Sales Navigator is quite simple through the standalone page and mobile app.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator has the ability to mine the mass of data it has about it’s members professional status. You are able to leverage this big data with the help of search capabilities built with sales professionals in mind. By narrowing your searches with industry type, location, company, titles, and other keywords, the system will generate lists of relevant individuals you’ve been waiting to find.
With these search results, the newly discovered contacts can be added to your “Lead List,” where you can make contact and track your interactions. Sales Navigator will also make recommendations with additional leads based on your lists without even searching. The advantage is that the search pulls contacts even if they are not a part of your personal network; to exponentially grow your position to find the right buyers.
(2) Stay aware of news from prospects and customers
Sales Navigator alerts you to updates in your leads’ LinkedIn accounts, personal, social, and company. This enables you to stay up to date on anything relevant to your prospecting and sales conversations. The value of knowing what is happening with your leads keeps you on the leading edge of knowing what business drivers are top of mind.
The most beneficial feature of Navigator is the information that becomes available once you’ve generated and saved leads. Even without making a personal link, you can see updates from accounts in your extended network beyond 3rd connections. This uncovers an expansive network to drive more leads, contacts, connections, and ultimately more opportunities.
(3) Connect directly to your CRM and sales tools
LinkedIn now works with your CRM system, allowing contacts to sync and activities to be tracked. By importing contacts from CRM into Sales Navigator you can easily stay in touch with these individuals. It is also possible to look at LinkedIn profiles within CRM, maximizing time spent in between the two systems.
The ability to link your data to the information found through Sales Navigator provides valuable visibility and tracking. It gives insight into trends and other business intelligence that can help identify best practices to help produce more and better results.
To upgrade? Or not to upgrade?
Instead of cold calling, these narrowed search results will prove a better match for solutions providers and prospects. The filters provided by Sales Navigator produce results that are appropriate and specific to what you’re selling and what people are buying. Reps can find the right people, engage, build trust and create more qualified business contacts and leads.
This is a new way to think about doing business, one that is arguably more efficient and insightful. Upgrade yourself, a trial team, or your entire Sales org and start dialing in this data. The decision is yours.
Subscribe to the Channel Partner Connection and receive email updates when we publish a new article.
