LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 740 million members worldwide. With so many professionals on the platform, it presents a major opportunity for sales professionals to connect with potential clients and generate new business. However, simply having a LinkedIn profile is not enough to be successful with sales on the platform. You need to know how to craft compelling sales messages that will capture attention and convert prospects into customers.
In this comprehensive guide, we will provide tips and strategies for writing effective sales messages on LinkedIn that get results. We will cover:
- Understanding your target audience
- Crafting an attention-grabbing headline
- Structuring your sales message
- Personalizing outreach
- Following up appropriately
Whether you are reaching out directly to potential customers via InMail or posting on your connections’ feeds, following these best practices will help you stand out and boost conversions. Let’s dive in!
Understand Your Target Audience
The foundation of an effective sales message is understanding who you are talking to. Take time to research your ideal customer profile on LinkedIn before reaching out.
Here are some key questions to ask:
- What industry are they in?
- What is their role or job title?
- What business challenges might they be facing?
- What goals might they have?
- What pain points might they need help with?
Spend time browsing LinkedIn profiles of your ideal prospects. Pay attention to keywords that are commonly used in their headlines, descriptions, and work experience. This will allow you to tailor your messaging to resonate with their needs and priorities.
You can also look at what groups your targets are members of and what content they are engaging with. This provides insight into what topics and discussions they find valuable.
The more you can understand your audience and what motivates them, the better you can position your offering as the ideal solution.
Craft an Attention-Grabbing Headline
Your headline is one of the most important elements for getting your sales message noticed on LinkedIn. Whether sending an InMail or sharing an update, you usually have very limited space for your headline. You need to make every character count.
Here are tips for crafting compelling LinkedIn headlines:
- Keep it short and scannable – aim for 50 characters or less
- Focus on their pain points or goals
- Use keywords they would search for
- Ask a thoughtful question
- Offer something valuable like a free guide
- Include social proof like ratings or testimonials
For example, a weak headline might be: “Check out our consulting services”
A stronger headline could be: “How leading companies generate 107% more leads with our digital marketing framework. Free guide.”
The second headline speaks directly to their needs, offers something of value, and incorporates keywords like “leads” and “digital marketing” that will appeal to the target audience.
Structure Your Sales Message
Once you have an attention-grabbing headline, you need to structure the body of your message in a compelling way.
Here are some tips for structuring effective sales messages on LinkedIn:
- Keep it short and scannable – LinkedIn messages should be concise and easy to read on mobile
- Highlight credibility – Mention awards, press features, case studies, or testimonials up front to establish authority
- Identify their pain points – Use insider language and specifics tailored to their role and industry to show you understand their challenges
- Present your solution- Explain exactly how your offering solves their pain points
- Include a clear CTA – Tell them exactly what action you want them to take next
A simple formula to follow is:
Attention -> Credibility -> Problem -> Solution -> Call-to-Action
For example:
Attention: Are you struggling to generate leads from LinkedIn?
Credibility: As a LinkedIn Top Voice in Marketing, I’ve helped Fortune 500 companies increase connections by 46% in just 3 months.
Problem: With over 750M users, tapping into the LinkedIn marketplace can be challenging without the right strategy.
Solution: My exclusive framework combines targeting ideal prospects, optimizing your profile, and implementing our tested messaging templates. Clients see 107% more leads within 6 months, guaranteed.
CTA: Schedule a free 30-minute consultation to discuss how we can help take your LinkedIn marketing to the next level.
This highlights credibility upfront, shows understanding of their pain points, positioned the solution as the antidote, and ends with a strong CTA.
Personalize Your Outreach
While having a structured template is important, you also want to personalize your sales messages to each prospect. LinkedIn makes it easy to customize at scale.
Here are some tips for personalization:
- Mention connections you share or groups in common
- Reference their company and role specifically
- Include recent content they engaged with
- Congratulate achievements like work anniversaries
- Comment on shared interests and experiences
Personalized subject lines also boost open rates significantly. For example:
Generic: Growing your LinkedIn presence
Personalized: John, let’s connect on growing [Company X’s] LinkedIn presence
Taking the time to adjust your messaging for each prospect shows you took the time to understand who they are. This increases engagement and response rates.
Follow Up Appropriately
Your outreach doesn’t end with the initial message. To convert prospects into customers, you need to follow up appropriately.
Here are some best practices for following up:
- Connect via multiple channels like email or phone in addition to InMail
- Offer to provide more value like a free audit or sample before asking for a sale
- Communicate next steps clearly and reiterate your CTA
- Respond promptly to replies and information requests
- Send reminders if you haven’t heard back after 3-5 days
- Know when to politely disengage with non-responders
The key is to persist without becoming annoying. Adding value throughout your follow-ups tends to convert better than repeated sales pitches.
Putting It All Together
Implementing these best practices takes some initial effort but pays off in the long run with higher quality leads and sales conversions.
Here are some action steps to get started:
- Research your target audience segments on LinkedIn
- Draft templated messaging frameworks using the recommended formula
- Personalize messages by integrating profile specifics and shared connections
- Continually test headline variations to determine what resonates most
- Develop structured follow-up sequences for hot, warm, and cold leads
- Track open and response rates to refine your approach over time
With over 50% of social network users trusting LinkedIn content for purchase decisions, it’s a channel you can’t afford to miss. Take the time to craft compelling sales messages tailored to your ideal prospects. This will position you for sales success on the world’s largest professional network.
Let me know if you have any other questions! I’m happy to help further optimize your LinkedIn outreach strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some common mistakes to avoid when crafting LinkedIn sales messages?
Some common mistakes to avoid include:
- Using a generic, one-size-fits-all message
- Making it all about you instead of tailoring it to their needs
- Sending overly salesy pitches without any value added
- Being too long-winded instead of concise and scannable
- Forgetting a clear call-to-action
- Not personalizing each message with custom details
What types of offers or free content work well in LinkedIn sales messages?
Some offers that tend to work well include:
- Free guides, ebooks, or templates
- Access to online tutorials or demo videos
- Entry to webinars or virtual events
- Complimentary audits or needs assessments
- Free trials of software or access to premium tools
- Consultations to discuss their unique needs
The key is to provide something of value at low or no cost that allows you to demonstrate your expertise. This content is an effective lead magnet.
What metrics should I track to optimize my LinkedIn outreach strategy?
Key metrics to track include:
- Open rates on InMail messages
- Response rates to messages and content offers
- Click-through rates on linked content
- Conversions from leads generated via LinkedIn
- Unsubscribe and complaint rates
Continuously monitor these metrics and tweak subject lines, offers, follow-up cadence, and other messaging variables to improve results.
Example LinkedIn Outreach Templates
Here are some example LinkedIn outreach message templates that incorporate the strategies outlined above:
InMail for New Connections
Subject: Brian, connecting on [shared interest]
Hi Brian,
I noticed we’re both members of [name of LinkedIn group] so I wanted to connect and introduce myself. I lead marketing efforts over at [your company], focusing on helping [target industry] companies generate more leads through content and social media.
In your role as Marketing Director at [their company], I imagine you’re facing challenges around [common problem]. We’ve developed a proven framework that has allowed companies like [namedrop recognizable brands] to increase qualified leads by 46% in just 6 months by optimizing their LinkedIn strategy.
Would you be open to a quick 20 minute call to discuss your current marketing initiatives and whether my team’s LinkedIn lead generation services may be a fit? I’d be happy to provide some value by offering a complimentary audit of your current LinkedIn presence as well.
Either way, I appreciate you taking the time and look forward to connecting.
Best,
[Your Name]
Commenting on Content
Really enjoyed your post on [referenced content]. As you mentioned, [reiterate their pain point] is a common struggle for [target audience].
At [your company], we’ve developed a unique framework for helping companies improve their LinkedIn lead generation by 47% on average. Would love to share some high impact tips that have worked for other [shared audience] like yourself.
Feel free to reach out if you’d ever like to discuss! I’m always happy to provide value to fellow marketers.
Follow Up Message
Hi [prospect name],
Just wanted to follow up on my earlier message about improving your LinkedIn lead generation.
In case it was helpful, I’ve attached a free guide that gives an overview of our proven 5 step formula. It’s helped companies increase connections by 53% and generate 167% more leads through optimized content and outreach.
Let me know if you have any questions! I’m always available to discuss if you’d like to collaborate on enhancing [their company’s] LinkedIn strategy.
Best,
[Your name]
Conclusion
Crafting compelling sales messages on LinkedIn requires understanding your audience, catchy headlines, concise structure, personalization, valuable offers, and consistent follow up. Implement these tips to boost the quantity and quality of your inbound leads. With the right messaging strategy, LinkedIn can become one of your most powerful channels for driving sales revenue growth.