3 Reasons People Aren't Replying To Your LinkedIn Sales Messages

You've found your prospect on LinkedIn and sent them a well crafted LinkedIn message, but then something happens that you didn't expect...

They don't reply.

Come to think of it, not many of your prospects are replying to your LinkedIn messages, what's going on?!

Let me share you the 3 most likely reasons people aren't replying to your LinkedIn messages (and what you can do to get them to reply):

Number 1 - You Didn't Personalise The Message!

The amount of messages that I get (and have seen decision makers get) that have ZERO personalisation. On occasion they might add your name in, but that's about it.

If the message is more about YOU than it is about them, you're unlikely to get a reply. One of the easiest and quickest changes you can make to your social selling process is to make more of your messaging about THEM.

• Not about your company, but about theirs
• Not about your product, but what it will do for them
• Not about you, but about them

Before you write your message, do your homework. Look through their LinkedIn profile, search through their recent LinkedIn activity, look at their companies page on LinkedIn and if you're still struggling to find good usable information, look at other people working at their company, there is always someone sharing good insights.

Number 2 - They Have No Idea Who You Are!

A lot of LinkedIn messages go unanswered because they're just too cold. The prospect is looking at this message thinking...

The beauty of LinkedIn and social selling is that your messages don't actually need to be cold, and there are a few things you can do before messaging (that will only take a few days) to warm them up, then increasing the response rate.

Step One: Engage on a few of their posts that they're sharing on LinkedIn. Click like and then write a nice CONTRIBUTING comment. This means not just a "Great Post Sarah!" comment, but something more tangible like "Really enjoyed this post Sarah, a similar thing actually happened to me a few years back...". A good comment may even get a reply by them, starting the conversation already.

Step Two: Connect with other people in the company and engage on their posts as well. This will likely get noticed by the decision maker, further warming up their relationship with you (before you've even directly spoken).

Step Three: Share your own content during this time as well so they're getting value from you and getting to know you. Make sure the content is industry relevant and valuable to them to make the right impact.

Number Three - You're Only Sending Text-Based Messages

As of today, I would say around 99% of the messages I get in my LinkedIn inbox are text based written messages. From the conversations I have with leaders all over the world, it's the same for them. This means that if you're only sending written messages, it's just another written message in a huge pile of other written messages...

If you want to stand out, capture their attention and increase your chances of a reply, it might be time to get more creative.

Utilise the 2 other ways that you can send messages on LinkedIn right now, audio voice notes and video messages. Not only do they stand out because so few are using them, but they allow you to take your message to the next level adding in voice/tone and even body language/eye contact into it.

Audio/Voice Notes - Keep it short and sweet, around 30-60 seconds. Make it as much about them as possible and have a simple CTA for them to respond to.

Video Messages - You can send a maximum of 2 minutes, although 60-90 seconds is optimal. Look at the camera for good eye contact and be aware of lighting, what you're wearing and what's behind you in the camera shot.

There it is...

3 of the most common reasons why your prospects and probably not replying to your LinkedIn messages. Hopefully some of these tips will help you generate more replies and from those replies, more pipeline and sales!

For some extra tips on LinkedIn and social selling, feel free to check out this video on my YouTube channel with 7 Social Selling Tips in 7 Minutes -

It's short and sweet but will help you with a few tips and tricks to get you and your team started with LinkedIn and social selling.

If you and your team are really keen to get the most from LinkedIn and social selling then check out my latest book "The Ultimate LinkedIn Sales Guide" which is available on hardback and Kindle on Amazon right now.

It's the most up to date and comprehensive book on turning LinkedIn into a lead generating, sales generating and revenue generating machine. It covers everything from fully optimising LinkedIn profiles, building industry leading personal brands, sending effective written, audio and video messages, using all of the search filters and features, creating super engaging content, winning strategies, tools, cadences and so much more.

Thank you again for taking the time to read this blog! If you enjoyed this post please click LIKE and click SHARE to share it with your network.

If you enjoyed it please do take time to read some of my other recent posts:

Just Pick Up The Phone and Call!

The ABC Of Social Selling

The Modern-Day Sales Prospecting Stack

The 10 Things That Will NEVER Change In Sales

About the author: Daniel Disney is one of the world's leading Sales, Social Selling, and LinkedIn experts and is the author of the #1 Amazon Best Selling book, "The Million-Pound LinkedIn Message".

Daniel is currently delivering LIVE LinkedIn Social Selling virtual training sessions and virtual SKO's and keynote talks for businesses and salespeople around the world.

For more information please check out danieldisney.online or email [email protected]