Posted by Ben Kniffen in LinkedIn Marketing Insights
So… you’ve decided to utilize the #1 Lead Generation Tool for B2B Marketers: LinkedIn.
And why not?!
According to our industry report over 80% of leads generated through social media for B2B marketers come from LinkedIn!
But now, you might be wondering, “Should I utilize the Free Account given to every person that is signed up on LinkedIn …OR… should I shell out a little bit more money for access to a Premium Account?
What Type of Accounts Are Available?
Let’s start with the basics… literally.
There is the basic (free) account for anyone who wants to create and maintain a professional profile online using LinkedIn.
However, if you’re wanting just a little bit more from LinkedIn, there are some restrictions to note when it comes to the basic account:
- You have a limited number of saved searches per month. Max: Three (3) saved searches with weekly updates/alerts.
- Limited amount of search filters. When searching for people and/or prospects, the filters provided in the free account are limited. For instance, in the free account you cannot search for prospects based on company size. (For more details on using the Advanced People Search on LinkedIn, click here.)
- Limited amount of Prospecting per month. The free account limits the profiles you are allowed to view each month of potential new connections. They call this the Commercial Use Limit. There isn’t a set number of profiles that LinkedIn publishes, but once you hit your unique limit for the month, they won’t allow you to view any new profiles.
- Cannot send any InMails.
Next, there are your premium accounts. There are options for job seekers, sales and talent professionals, as well as the general professional who wants to get more out of LinkedIn.
But we want to focus on the best option for users looking to prospect, connect, and generate leads and sales opportunities. And for that, you’ll want to look no further than a Sales Navigator account.
Sales Navigator
This account level is what we recommend to anyone looking to get the MOST results out of LinkedIn. It makes any outbound lead generation campaign much more efficient, and allows you to spend more time meeting with prospects and signing new clients.
Sales Navigator has some of the top features available within LinkedIn. It’s designed, to help you find and connect with the right people and companies you want to do business with.
You’ll get all the benefits of LinkedIn, plus…
- Additional search filters in LinkedIn’s Advanced People search so you can get the most qualified prospects in your pipeline.
- Extended Commercial Use Limit – this one is MASSIVE. If you are building a database of new connections, you won’t be restricted by the amount of profiles you can view per month.
- 20 InMail messages per month – these allow you to message your BEST prospects whether or not they connect with you.
- Lead Recommendations – based on the types of prospects you are targeting, LinkedIn will recommend other prospects that are similar to your initial targets. This saves you more time by putting more high-ticket prospects right at your doorstep.
- Real-time insights on existing accounts and leads – get notified immediately when your best prospects or leads have exciting news, company updates, or other information that will help you build a stronger relationship.
Total: $64.99/month* LinkedIn offers a free month trial to new users. We recommend utilizing this free month once you are ready to build your database of prospects (new connections).
When Is It Time To Upgrade?
This is an important question to answer. If you’re just starting out, money could be tight and every dollar spent is just as valuable as the next one.
However, we believe there are some simple questions you can answer that can determine if upgrading is the right move.
- Are you doing a lot of prospecting, looking to build your network and connect with a lot of your potential clients?
- Are you tired of viewing someone’s profile who is “out of network” and not being able to “connect” with them?
- Do you keep getting hit with the “commercial use limit” message when you’ve reached out to a certain amount of contacts per month?
- Are your searches just not as “dialed-in” as you’d like them to be? Do you need additional filters to find your UNIQUE prospects?
If you answered “Yes” to some of these questions above, it could be beneficial to consider upgrading your account.
How Would An Upgrade Benefit You?
At LinkedSelling, we recommend that our clients and members have the Sales Navigator Account level at a minimum during their database build phase.
That upgrade allows our clients to more efficiently find and qualify their best prospects with the additional filters.
And you have an extended Commercial Use Limit. The limit on a free profile can slow your prospecting to a grind until your limit resets the next month. When we are looking to connect our clients with hundreds or thousands of their ideal clients, speed and efficiency are the name of the game and there’s no better choice for that than Sales Navigator.
What About The Next Steps?
The next steps will have to come down you.
How valuable is your online prospecting for your business?
Don’t know? To understand the in’s and out’s of LinkedIn to make sure you you are able to utilize it to generate more leads and clients, we recommend our free LinkedIn Masterclass.