Which LinkedIn Sales Tool Is right For You?
by Kathy Bernard
LinkedIn offers two premium sales options to reach your potential customers.
LinkedIn Business Premium allows unlimited prospect searches by title, industry or demographics. (A free account allows only 60.) It also lets you send 15 Inmail messages to non-connections, search by 15 filters, save seven searches, and see who visited your profile unless they visited anonymously. This option costs $59.99 per month and may work well for you if do frequent prospect searches. However, with only 15 non-connection messages per month and few premium tools, you may find it limiting.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator allows unlimited prospect searches with 50 filters relevant to prospecting (e.g., by industry and business function). It provides prospect-company news alerts and the ability to save leads and account information and to customize prospect lists. It also allows integration with most Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, so you can import existing accounts, leads and contacts as well as streamline processes. As with Business Premium, you can see who visited your profile, plus Sales Navigator lets you send 50 messages to non-connections. Core Sales Navigator costs $99 per month. An Advanced (Team) option costs $149.99 per person, and an Advanced Plus (Enterprise) option with significant team tools starts at $1,600 per person, per year.
Your first month of either option is free, so visit business.linkedin.com/sales-solutions to consider the right one for you.
Kathy Bernard (kathy@wiseru.com), CEO of WiserU.com, is a St. Louis-based LinkedIn expert/trainer who trains and equips individuals and businesses to maximize LinkedIn for sales, marketing, or fundraising.