Why LinkedIn direct messages are your ticket to sales success

If you’re not using this underrated channel for lead gen, you’re missing out. Here’s why you need to slide into LinkedIn DMs.

If you want to get hold of a decision-maker, what do you do? Are you a cold caller or an emailer? Maybe you’re on the new direct mail bandwagon or you’re experimenting with video messages? For success in sales, you have to get comfortable using as many channels as you can.

One you might be underusing (or not using at all) is LinkedIn direct messages. Maybe you think they’re not attention-grabbing enough, or too similar to emails, but when you LinkedIn DMs effectively, you can find wins. Here are four reasons why:

1 — Direct access to the big dogs

There are over 660 million people on LinkedIn. Everyone in the B2B world has a LinkedIn profile, where they volunteer information about where they work and precisely what they do. Locating the decision-maker you need is simple.

You don’t need to find their phone number or negotiate your way past the gatekeeper. You don’t have to guess their email address or make sure you’ve spelt their name correctly. All the info you need is there, next to a bright blue button that lets you message them directly.

2 — Scalability

LinkedIn DMs take a few minutes to compose. It’s much quicker to write a quick DM than make a cold call. There’s no limit to the amount of DMs you can send to first degree connections. Plus, messaging your primary connections is free!

All of this means that you can run a LinkedIn sales operation at scale.

3 — You can build connections

LinkedIn DMs are a casual way to start communicating with your prospects. They’re a way to get a conversation going and build rapport, rather than a way to close a deal.

More than a cold email, LinkedIn direct messages let you inject some personality into your outreach. Because you have all the information about your prospect at your fingertips, you can look for conversation starters, such as something you have in common, or a piece of content you’d like to talk about.

4 — Increased trust

The problem with cold calls and emails is that they’re cold. The prospect has no idea who you are when you make contact with them, with no real way of finding out if you are someone they can do business with.

When you send a LinkedIn DM, the prospect can see exactly who you are. They can go on your profile and find out more about you and your company. They can see social proof of the great job you do for your customers. All of this helps build trust.

How to do it right

Now you know why you should use LinkedIn DMs to start conversations with your prospects, here are some tips for doing it well:

  • Personalise, personalise, personalise! — Do not use a standard template. Make your LinkedIn DM as much about your prospect as you can.
  • Do your research — Show your prospect that you have made an effort to find out about them before you message them. Comment on a post or piece of content they made, for example.
  • Don’t start selling too early — build a relationship with your prospect before you try to move things on. Always give value first.
  • Ask questions — The best way to get a reply from your prospect is to ask them something. They’ll be itching to answer you!
  • Move your conversation off LinkedIn at the right time — When you’re ready, ask your prospect to jump on a call.
  • Once you’ve mastered LinkedIn DMs, why not try LinkedIn voice messages?

Over to you

Now, we want to know what you think. What are your tips for LinkedIn DM success?

Share your insight with the Sales Confidence community by leaving a comment below.