How to Use LinkedIn for B2B Lead Generation

LinkedIn, more than any other social platform, is focused on networking, with business-to-business networking being one of the most productive types of networking. There is no better social media platform for paid or organic B2B marketing than LinkedIn. Companies can identify like-minded individuals to share knowledge, generate new business leads, fill open positions, and form new alliances. LinkedIn B2B lead generation is used by 96% of B2B content distributors.

LinkedIn members, in contrast to their counterparts on other social networking sites, are primarily motivated by the desire to further their careers and businesses. LinkedIn has been the platform of choice for business-to-business marketers due to the ease with which marketing strategies like LinkedIn b2b lead generation can be used there.

With over 160 million active users in the US alone and over 740 million globally, it is the most utilized B2B social media platform (for both organic and sponsored distribution).

B2B LinkedIn lead generation should be a top priority for any firm that needs steady, reliable income.

Do you have a firm grasp of how to generate LinkedIn b2b leads? You end up worse off when you don't use the appropriate SaaS lead generation strategy. To that end, it's wise to educate oneself thoroughly before further employing b2b LinkedIn marketing.

But the challenge is figuring out how.

Don't worry. Please don't hesitate to reach out to us for help. Master the ins and outs of LinkedIn's lead generation potential. Use our tried-and-tested tips to enhance B2B LinkedIn b2b lead generation.

How to Use LinkedIn for B2B Lead Generation?

Need help finding qualified leads on LinkedIn?

Earlier, we addressed how effective LinkedIn b2b lead generation can be for finding new business opportunities. Top performance, however, necessitates familiarity with effective methods.

Learn from our experience with LinkedIn lead generation b2b:

Optimize your profile 

To generate leads for sales on LinkedIn, your profile needs to stand out. Because of the high level of competition on LinkedIn, it is essential that your profile thoroughly searches engine optimized to generate business-to-business leads.

To begin, ensure that your profile contains all of the necessary information. Always be sure to include the following:

• A professional profile photo – ideally a headshot
• A professional LinkedIn background photo
• A fantastic, unique headline 
• A short LinkedIn summary that encompasses key points 
• Your portfolio and education
• Your volunteer experience, if you have one
• Skills and endorsements
• A customized, highly searchable URL 

Emphasize the strengths of yourself, your company, or your brand in your profile. Explain what you've accomplished. Leave a trail of clickable links to your online profiles. Show individuals how you can aid them, how you can fix their issues, and how much worth you can add to their lives.

In addition, search engine optimization (SEO) for your page is highly recommended. Put as many pertinent keywords as possible in the page's title and summary. You'll want to do this to be found on the platform and in search engines.

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The preceding image serves as an excellent example of a well-optimized profile because it features a crisp headshot. At the same time, the potential worth to the prospect is depicted clearly and briefly on the cover. Your profile will be more easily understood by your prospect if you use clear headings and provide relevant information about your education and job experience. The next part, "About," is where you can elaborate on your service's benefits and provide a direct call to action for your next b2b linkedin lead.

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Connect and engage 

Reaching out to others and making connections is a great approach to getting leads on LinkedIn. Remember that you are primarily on a social media site and act accordingly.

Start with the people you already know and work outwards to expand your network. Anyone in your social circle qualifies, whether they are an employee, a colleague, a customer, or a potential customer.

Next, research your intended market. Find customers who are a perfect fit for your company, and learn about them as much as possible. The next step is to initiate contact by sending connection requests.

Always put a little bit of yourself into your correspondence. Here’s an example of a personalized note you can send across while sending a connection request –

Hi [Person’s Name],

I noticed from your LinkedIn profile that you [List a few commonalities e.g., belong in the same LinkedIn group, share a mutual connection, work in the same field]. [Briefly explains how these relate back to you].

Hope these reasons are enough to send you a connection request. 

[Signs off]

Pro Tips: Pro Tip: Use this chance to keep talking to your prospects and get them more interested in what you have to say. You can do this by asking a lot of probing and open-ended questions.

If you, like Joey, offer services for B2B marketing, you could ask your prospects these questions as you talk to them:

• "What's the most difficult thing about creating B2B marketing funnels?"
• "I'm looking for feedback on a service I'm making. [Describes service] Are you interested in this?"
• "Why would it be useful to you?"

Who knows, maybe their answers will give you priceless information about your audience.

Here are some things to keep in mind while writing messages that people actually read:

1. Focus on your target audience 

Don't rush into making a deal; concentrate on the customer. To what extent do their interests and issues mirror your own? How, specifically, will they profit from your offering?

2. Avoid generic messages 

Keeping things both professional and personable is essential. You want to be likable and approachable, not salesy, so put your best effort in this regard.

3. Be clear and concise

Try to avoid going on and on as much as possible. LinkedIn messages have a character restriction, and it's easy for the reader to lose interest if the message goes too long. Keep your comments as brief and to the point as you can.

4. Have a clear call-to-action (CTA)

All of your communications should include an obvious next step for the reader to take if they're interested. It's early in the relationship, so don't expect a serious commitment.

After a few business days, write a thank-you message and initiate communication after your connection request has been accepted.

You can program your own unique lead-generating funnel—complete with LinkedIn actions, conditions, and delays—and have it all run at your convenience.

This lets you get in touch with more potential clients by automatically sending invitations and messages, viewing profiles, endorsing skills, and more.

Join LinkedIn groups 

Joining LinkedIn groups is a terrific way to expand your professional network and create leads. To achieve this, you may either conduct a generic search for groups or ask people in your network whether they know of any relevant groups.

Participate actively in the groups by answering questions and making regular posts after joining. This is an excellent way to network and becomes known as an expert in your field.

Make your own networked communities and invite your contacts to join. Successful group ownership is a fantastic way to expand your contact base. The networking site LinkedIn may be used to its full potential if you construct your interactions in this way. 

Here are a few good SaaS groups you can consider for community value.

Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, SaaS, Data Centre & Virtualization

14 Minutes of SaaS podcast

Cloud & SaaS Startups

Publish content regularly 

The data shows LinkedIn is the most effective B2B content marketing platform. LinkedIn feed material receives 9 billion weekly impressions, while only 3 million users report sharing content weekly.

Publishing interesting and useful content to readers is one of the most effective strategies for getting leads using LinkedIn. We suggest you publish two blog articles every week in addition to any other content you find interesting on Pulse.

If you want your posts to be noticed, you can do the following: 

• Keeping text posts short and concise
• Using video content to grab your audience's attention 
• Showing personality and making them interesting
• Avoiding using too many links 
• Using a hook to boost engagement 
• Sparking conversations to get more likes, comments, and shares 

LinkedIn Pulse is also an excellent platform for publishing in-depth articles. With this hub, you may generate leads from LinkedIn's massive professional user base.

Keep your specialization and your audience in mind while creating content. It's a good idea to use visuals like images and videos to break up the text and ensure the content is well-written, engaging, and valuable.

Last but not least, maintain uniformity in your content. Make a schedule of your postings and stick to it with an editorial calendar.

Sponsored content and ads 

When it comes to organic reach, LinkedIn b2b lead generation is unparalleled. However, it offers very efficient choices for sponsored content and paid adverts if you want to boost your posts and messages. Brand recognition, user participation, and revenue generation are all boosted by this.

LinkedIn advertising is effective because you can narrow your target demographic to the people most likely to convert. With LinkedIn's system, you can be sure that only qualified users will view your advertising.

One can accomplish this in several ways. The first is Sponsored Content, which relates to native ad forms. These are displayed in the LinkedIn news feed and can be viewed by desktop and mobile users. This advertisement might take the form of a single image, a video, text, or a carousel of images.

Here is an example -

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Sponsored content allows businesses to reach more people interested in their products and services. For example, this type of content is informative since it sheds light on the benefits we might reap as a result of their presence and the possibilities for the future. This is a great example of how to use LinkedIn to generate leads for your business.

Sponsored InMail is another alternative. You can use LinkedIn to send customized invitations to events, webinars, and product and service promotions.

The open rate is higher because InMails are only sent out when the user is actively using the app. LinkedIn InMail response rates can be improved by using a creative subject line.

Why is Content Important for B2B Lead Gen LinkedIn? 

You should use LinkedIn's content publishing platform if you're serious about business-to-business (B2B) marketing.

You may shift your focus from outbound marketing (getting people to notice you through ads) to inbound marketing (getting those interested in what you have to offer to find you) by producing high-quality content.

If you want to increase your visibility and readership, try using 

• Blogs 
• Infographics 
• Trends
• Instructional, informational content 

The next step, after publishing the content, is to actively encourage interaction. To that end, remember -

• Involving your intended audience in the conversation is a terrific strategy. Once you've got your target audience's attention, they'll move on to the solution-seeking phase.
• Use marketing materials like customer reviews, ebooks, case studies, and white papers. Your brand's credibility will increase, and your company's prominence will increase.

The truth is that decision-makers are constantly looking for new options, even on weekends. 

89% of LinkedIn members claimed they researched anonymously within the first 6 months of the buying process. A study by Isoline also found that B2B Buyers will consume 3-5 pieces of information before they contact a potential provider.

Your company has a fighting chance if it can participate in its research phase. You may assist them by providing helpful tips, thought leadership, and content. Although the term "thought leadership" has gotten overused, the idea behind it remains valid. 

You need credibility if you want people to listen to you, and B2B businesses with fresh perspectives tend to attract more attention. 

Thought-leadership content helps you stand out from the crowd and gain valuable prospects. To stay aligned -

• Make sure the "how-to" advice you provide is something your audience hasn't seen a hundred times before if you're going to create "how-to" material. If you really want to stand out, you should probably avoid the standard "how to" format and try to come up with something fresh instead.
• Companies are looking to partner with brands that have industry expertise and can predict future trends. Modern businesses seek experts in a given field to forewarn them of impending changes.

By providing them with helpful resources like blogs, in-depth guides, and industry trends, you can help your sales team break through to new prospects. 

Tips for Your LinkedIn B2B Lead Generation

LinkedIn's special features are what really make it shine. LinkedIn b2b lead generation is unparalleled in its ability to unite its users as a professional networking site.

We've compiled some tips to help you make the most of LinkedIn's unique features as a resource for finding new leads and expanding your professional network. When our clients implemented our recommendations, they saw a 30% increase in conversions. Get ready to take notes because this is important!

Create and improve your sales funnel

Converting prospects into customers is the goal of a well-designed sales funnel, which anticipates and satisfies their needs at each stage of the buying process. Brand awareness-focused content is ideal for the top of the funnel, whereas sponsored content postings work best in the middle. 

Using sponsored messages or conversational advertisements, you can send out low-intent-to-buy pitches. Furthermore, LinkedIn lets you alter their appearance to suit your needs. 

There are different approaches to optimize your sales funnel -

• Define your target audience.
• Create content that solves problems.
• Optimize your profile..
• Optimize your CTAs.
• Capture leads.
• Use email marketing to nurture leads.
• Reduce friction at the conversion stages
• Create measurable goals and track key metrics.
• Stay active

There is a wide range of possible conversion rates at each sales funnel level. Leads aren't expected to buy on the first encounter while entering a sales funnel. To avoid alienating your audience, avoid coercing them into taking any sort of action. Instead, you should optimize your sales funnel to encourage natural progression.

Micro-conversions, which occur frequently but infrequently, are the focus of this strategy, as is adapting creatives to meet customers' ever-evolving demands at each stage of the purchase experience.

Publish relevant and engaging content

Many professionals use LinkedIn to find their field's latest news and analysis. Although you currently have an audience, they may lose interest in you if you appear excessively salesy or self-promotional. If you produce content that is useful to your readers and conveys genuine ideas and facts, they will keep coming back for more. 

Since not everyone will react in the same way to a given piece of content or medium, it's a good idea to mix things up by including polls, videos, longer written articles, and shorter daily entries on a variety of themes that speak to the interests and concerns of your target audience.

And if you are a SaaS content marketer you can publish following types of content: 

• Case short anedotes
• Content marketing tips 
• Content writing hacks 
• Case studies on content marketing 
• Testimonials from industry leaders

Use B2B lead gen LinkedIn forms

One of the best features of LinkedIn's sponsored content advertising is the option to insert a call to action. You may get in touch with leads directly through LinkedIn by adding a form to your marketing materials and having it pre-fill with their details. Simply having them input their email address and click submit is sufficient. 

To make it easier for people to subscribe to a newsletter, download an ebook, or do any other desired action on their mobile devices, LinkedIn created Lead Gen Forms. Would it be a great tool to be around?

Below are a few LinkedIn lead gen ad examples:

• Marketo

Marketo created these LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms to promote a blog post they wrote about Omnichannel Marketing Automation. Users are prompted to enter their information in order to learn more about the posting.

• Driftrock

An excellent example of a LinkedIn Lead Gen Ad that can help you attract the kind of customers you want is one that Driftrock developed. By providing "The Ultimate Guide to Lead Generation" as a free pdf download, they hope to entice users to sign up and use their services.

LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms is a fantastic tool, if you wish  to expand your business's B2B clientele. It simplifies the process of filling out campaign paperwork, which in turn leads to better results for said paperwork.

Use conversational ads to your advantage

Conversation Ads are a great way to start a direct dialogue with LinkedIn users. Personalized content, call-to-action buttons, and lead-generation forms all contribute to the efficacy of these communications.

Conversation Ads, as the name implies, are more conversational by nature. The "If this, then that" formula can be used to create informal and interesting material. Optimize your efforts by employing the customization strategy.

Connect LinkedIn to CRM

Gathering and analyzing data is crucial for developing and qualifying leads. Therefore, you should link up with your customer relationship management system. 

Your sales funnel can be fine-tuned and individualized with the help of LinkedIn when it is linked to your customer relationship management system and any automated lead generation software. The best part is that there is no need to upload new CSVs because CRM continuously updates itself.

Make use of LinkedIn's matched audiences 

LinkedIn's matched audiences tool includes targeting choices that combine your business and professional data. Retargeting, contact targeting, account targeting, and lookalike targeting are all examples of Matched Audiences.

• Retargeting enables you to direct your marketing efforts toward those who have already visited your website.
• Account targeting enables account-based marketing campaigns to be executed. You may search the millions of LinkedIn pages for specific organizations to target.
• A list of email contacts that you upload can be targeted with the assistance of content targeting.

Use micro-segmentation

Leads can progress through the sales funnel if their questions, concerns, and needs are addressed. In order to achieve your goals, you must take a tailored approach. The process of segmenting your lead pool into smaller groupings with shared criteria is called micro-segmentation. 

It acknowledges that the requirements of one group may differ from those of another. Consequently, you must establish the specific needs of each group and the extent to which your solutions will be helpful to them.

Leads can be organized in several valuable ways. These include location, industry, cost per lead, and CPM. In order to help you better target specific demographics, LinkedIn provides you with the option of creating separate landing pages for each of these groups.

For optimal results while employing micro segmentation, consider the following tips and methods:

• Don't limit your audience segmentation to simple demographics like age, gender, and geography. Be as welcoming as possible to your audience as you divide them apart.

• Think about the company's size, revenue, industry, location, end market, and employee count and tenure as you select which businesses to pursue. Identifying the precise niche into which it would fit best will become much clearer after doing this.

• Before splitting customers into micro-segments, their behaviour should be carefully observed. It is important to think about where a client is in the buying process, the types of material they are interested in, and how they interact with brands online.

• Clients have varying reactions to each option. Most patrons are price, time, and quality conscious. Using this information, you may divide your customers into groups and provide more tailored service.

• Consider growth profile, regulatory weight, operational model, existing products, and customer maturity level when undertaking micro segmentation.

Sales navigator to fully utilize LinkedIn

LinkedIn's Sales Navigator aims to facilitate better lead tracking and communication between advertisers and LinkedIn members. It can help you locate decision-makers, gain insight into your current leads, and even recommend new leads to customers. If you pay the price, you can use the most important parts of Sales Navigator:

• Lead and account search with more filters
• Notifications about lead and account activity
• Ability to make your own list of leads and accounts
• Saved Search

Sales Navigator's PointDrive gives you a wide range of flexible options for monitoring lead interaction and sending personalized multimedia messages. Sales Navigator is a browser add-on that will find the corresponding LinkedIn profile for every email address you enter.

There are three pricing plans for Linkedin Sales Navigator:

• $99 per month for Sales Navigator Core (Professional).
• $149 per month for Sales Navigator Advanced (Team).
• $1600 per year for Sales Navigator Advanced Plus (Enterprise).

Final Takeaway!

The success or failure of your efforts to create leads on LinkedIn will depend heavily on the methods and resources you employ. If you don't have a steady flow of new clients, your company could go through periods of growth and decline. LinkedIn's pre-existing audience while increasing your profile's exposure will help. Partnering with specialized B2B PPC agencies can significantly impact the success or failure of your efforts, particularly in optimizing lead generation on platforms like LinkedIn.

‍TripleDart, the best B2B lead generation agency comes in handy since they have in-house experts to build you that strong profile to get started. There are several methods, both paid and free, that might aid you in your search, but some of them may be time-consuming and tiresome. Let Tripledart, the best B2B lead generation agency, be your savior here.

The more people you meet, the more likely it is that you'll be able to collaborate with them, sell them stuff, and ultimately keep your business afloat. Don't let a lack of leads be the reason to put your company out of business! 

Book an intro call with us today!