The New Inbox for B2B Sales

If you’ve heard me speak at an event, then inevitably you’ll know I’m constantly working with clients to test “what’s working now” in B2B sales.

Here’s something I’ve increasingly found effective.

Busy prospects are opening and responding to email less and less. ?? Nothing new here. The increasing use of spam filters, the growing volume of email that everyone is managing, and the multitude of channels to communicate on mean emails are a dying strategy for prospecting.

To clarify before the naysayers get fired up – email is still effective, but your ability to use it to reach prospects is lessening, and I don’t see this letting up.

So, the obvious question then is, if not email, what should you use?

The answer, specifically in B2B sales, is your LinkedIn Inbox.

10 years ago, it wasn’t uncommon during a flight for me to spend time screening older emails to see who I hadn’t spoken with in a while. ?? I’d line up dozens of responses or outreach emails to these connections, and upon leaving the plane and connecting to Wi-Fi, it wasn’t uncommon for me to send out upward of 50 emails.

The goal here was to keep conversations and relationships going, and invariably this led to new opportunities.

Well, there’s a new inbox in town, and it’s not in Outlook.

Today, this same strategy works using the LinkedIn Inbox, and many of my coaching clients are raving about the great results they’re achieving using it to engage with prospects. ??

As long as you are making LinkedIn personalized connections with prospects and engaging in a brief discussion when they do connect (you’ll be prompted in notifications to send a message – so when someone connects, make sure you do), then you have opened a conversation in what is often a less congested inbox.

Now, to be clear, not everyone is active on LinkedIn — or even using LinkedIn.

But for those that are, this is your new strategy for keeping conversations and relationships going.

So, if outreach and follow-up are part of your prospecting strategy, make sure you are using the LinkedIn Inbox as part of your process.

For prospects that are active on LinkedIn, you’ll find you have a much better chance of connecting and engaging in a dialogue.

Best,

Shawn

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