5 Tips for Booking More Sales Meetings Using LinkedIn

With over 900 million members, Linkedin can be a fantastic tool for networking and marketing. The platform is also great for growing a community by sharing content and polls. But whilst there’s no denying these advantages, LinkedIn can be used for so much more. 

Aside from building connections and social media marketing, did you know that LinkedIn is also a fantastic way of booking sales meetings? With the right tactics, you can get yourself in front of important prospects and generate sales. 

Wondering how? Here, we’ll explore five tips for booking sales meetings using LinkedIn. 

1. Building a better profile 

To secure more meetings, you need to start by looking at your profile. Your page is key for making the right impression with prospects. Let’s consider some of the most important aspects of your profile. 

Your profile picture 

It might sound obvious, but a professional profile picture is key to attracting prospects. An image that’s overly casual won’t cut it. Of course, your image also needs to appear welcoming. People need to want to interact with you. Try to strike a fine balance between appearing professional and friendly. 

It’s also important to remember the importance of picture quality. A low res image is unlikely to draw the attention of many prospects. 

Avoid being too generic – Think about your headline 

Prospects will see thousands of generic Linkedin profiles every day. A crucial part of booking sales meetings using LinkedIn is standing out. Start by thinking of the headline (this is the text that appears below your name on your profile). Your headline is a great opportunity to catch a prospect’s attention. 

Instead of posting a generic job title, try to think of something more imaginative. For example, instead of ‘marketing manager’, try ‘helping businesses to connect with customers’ or ‘crafting cost-effective product marketing strategy’. 

Consider your bio

After you’ve reeled in a prospect with your headline, you need to hold their attention. Just like your headline, if your bio is too generic, you aren’t likely to enthuse. 

A generic bio looks something like this, ‘I’ve been working in a senior marketing position for the past five years’. Instead, list some of your unique achievements and skills. You also might want to touch on a few hobbies, there’s no harm in appearing human. 

Just make sure that your bio isn’t too lengthy. A prospect isn’t likely to sit reading through reams of text. 

Include work experience 

If you haven’t already, it’s a good idea to include an updated list of your previous employers. The more they know about you, the more trust they have, and the higher your chances of making sales. As you list your employers, mention some of your experiences. Focus on your achievements throughout your time in each role.   

To add further validity to your profile, you might also seek recommendations from some of your previous employers. Having the approval of some influential figures in your industry will make it easier when booking sales meetings using LinkedIn. 

2. Focus on Networking 

Working in business, you’re probably already well-versed in in-person networking. It’s a fantastic way of forging valuable links and finding new prospects. But networking on social media is equally useful. Linkedin, with its vast membership, is a fantastic platform for building new connections. This can be achieved, for instance, by posting useful content (e.g., using LinkedIn scheduling tools) as a lead magnet for networking.

And when it comes to networking, there’s no better place than groups. There are thousands of groups, each dedicated to its own industry or topic. Important players in different fields can be found in each. 

Before joining a group, you can look at a list of members. Is there potential to network and make sales? If so, join! By spending time fostering these connections, you can gain future prospects. 

Of course, group posting is only useful if done properly. Below are some tips to consider if your group posting: 

• Avoid spam – Lots of people use groups to constantly promote themselves. Of course, this is your goal too, but you need to be careful about how you do it. 
• Engage in the community – Aside from spam, people will post general discussions in the group. Try to engage in these discussions and offer your own insights. If you contribute regularly, people will recognize you as a valuable group member. 
• Share resources – Have you come across an article that the group might enjoy? Share it! The best resources to share are those that will spark a debate in the group. 
• Don’t join too many groups – Sticking to the above points can be tricky, especially during busy periods. There are only so many groups that you can stay active in at once. Don’t 

bite off more than you can chew. 

3. Leave enough time 

Thanks to modern technology, some aspects of LinkedIn can be automated. For example, you can schedule your posts in advance. This takes some of the pressure off your shoulders. But of course, there are some aspects of LinkedIn that you can’t automate. Activities like networking and staying active in communities all take time. 

In the midst of day-to-day life, you might find that you don’t have enough time for LinkedIn. After a busy day, the last thing you’ll want is to put in more work. But remember, if you’re serious about booking sales meetings using LinkedIn, you need to put in the time. 

That’s why it’s better to plan out your schedule. Setting aside some dedicated time each day can make the process more manageable. Of course, don’t get too carried away either. Don’t put too much time into LinkedIn and neglect other tasks, such as to boost conversions on your website. 

4. Use advanced search 

Advanced search allows you to narrow down your results. That’s why It’s often used as a way of Finding candidates via LinkedIn. But it’s also a fantastic way of booking sales meetings using LinkedIn. With the right filters, you can gain a list of potential prospects.

To gain access to advanced search, you’ll first need to choose ‘People’, then click ‘All filters’. There are a lot of filters that make the job of finding the right people much easier. Let’s look at some of the highlights. 

The ‘Connections of’ section is one of the handiest filters. Let’s say that you are trying to sell to people in the healthcare industry. Luckily, you have some connections that work within that industry. With this filter, the search will only show users that are connected to the people that you have specified. 

Using the ‘Talks about filter’, you can find people that are talking about the same subjects as you. This helps to guarantee that you’re reaching people interested in your product or service. 

Keywords help you to narrow your search even further. Here you can specify results by job title, employer, and education. You can even be as specific as using full names. 

5. Think about each stage  

Try to think of sales in the context of your wider funnel. Plan each stage well in advance. You might think that you’ve already done this. But all too often, the focus is placed on the sales pitch and not enough on what happens next. 

After you’ve had a successful meeting and closed a sale, you might be thinking that the deal is done. But, if you aspire to long-term success, this mentality won’t work.

Take time to look at each step in the sales process. Let’s look at what this means in practical terms. 

Pre-pitch

You should be doing everything you can to secure a call. This means working around the schedule of a prospect. And yes, when it comes to scheduling with overseas prospects, you might be making some late-night calls. Clearly plan your schedule so you don’t end up double booking and disappointing a prospect. 

During pitch 

Remember, you don’t always need to be in sales mode. If a customer is persuaded, you don’t need to keep selling to them. If a customer needs a little more time, don’t push them. You might want to point them toward materials that will help them learn more about your product or service. 

Post pitch 

Once a sale is made, it’s important to stay in contact with customers. Are they happy with your service? Do they want to leave feedback? This way, you’ll keep customers happy and increase the chance of them coming to you again.

Ultimately, future sales will be determined by the happiness of your current customers. So, do everything you can to keep them happy at each stage of the sales pipeline. 

Wrapping up 

There are certain areas of business that are common sense. For example, You wouldn’t neglect to invest in conversion rate optimisation tools for your website. The process of booking sales meetings using LinkedIn should be viewed with the same importance. 

Take a moment to look at your LinkedIn profile. Is it sending the right messages, or could it use a little smartening up? If the answer is the latter, don’t worry, lots of people are in the same boat as you. Luckily, the solution is simple, although it will take a bit of effort. Go through the different tips outlined in this document. 

Start by smartening up your profile. Pic a better profile picture, liven up your bio and choose an eye-catching headline. Next, you’re ready to start networking. Join groups and become a valued member of the community. Don’t forget that the sales call shouldn’t be the only focus. What happens before and after are equally important. 

With the right dedication, you’ll gain more meetings and boost sales. So, why not get to work? 

Guest Author Bio: Will Rice

Will is an SEO & marketing manager at MeasureMinds, a leading SEO, CRO, Google Tag Manager, PPC, and Google Analytics agency. He specialises in SEO and content and has helped enterprises achieve #1 rankings for heavily contested keywords through thoughtful strategy and implementation. You can reach him on LinkedIn or Instagram.