Find the Right People Faster By Becoming an Advanced Search All-Star

Two sales pros devote the exact same amount of time to prospecting. Yet, one finds way more prospects and they are more qualified. Why? You probably already guessed that the more successful prospector is working smarter. And you can, too. Read on to discover LinkedIn Advanced Search tips that are sure to improve your sales lead generation results.

First, Understand the Advanced Search Basics

There are a seemingly limitless amount of field and filtering combinations you can use to find people on LinkedIn. But that doesn’t mean searching needs to be complicated. If you are just getting started, try using a few basic variables that are likely to generate qualified sales prospects. Remember, you can always refine your searches later.

For example, if you sell a technical solution to financial services companies you may want to list a few common titles or job descriptors of your sales prospects in the “Keywords” field (below). You can also add specific job titles in the “Title” field.

If you sell to local companies (or if you have a specified geographic region) you will want to specify a region in the “Location” drop down box, or you can use the “Location” field to choose multiple regions. For this scenario, you will also want to click on the industry field and select “Financial Services.”

Start by identifying your high-probability prospects. Use the numbers to your advantage:

• Prospects are 5x more likely to engage when you have the backing of a mutual connection, so you may want to limit your initial search to 2nd-degree connections where a common connection can potentially introduce you
• You are 70% more likely to get an appointment if you cite a common LinkedIn Group, so be sure to identify your fellow group members as well by checking the “Group Members” box

Visit the LinkedIn help page for more information on performing basic searches, advanced searches, and using Boolean advanced search operators that can help to increase your search effectiveness.

Next, Create Advanced Search Efficiencies

Now that you’ve done some tinkering and you’ve performed searches that are delivering the results you are looking for, it’s time to search even smarter. Did you know that you can save your most effective searches? Even better, you can setup automatic notifications so that you are alerted when new results meet your search criteria. It’s easy to setup. After conducting your search:

1. Click the “Save search” icon in the top of your results page
2. Provide a name for the search
3. Choose how often you’d like to receive emails with new results. You can choose daily, weekly, or monthly
4. Click the green checkmark to save

Keep Using Advanced Search to Uncover New Opportunities

When it comes to sales lead generation, it pays to be creative and opportunistic. Has your company developed a new product or feature that opens the door for new prospecting opportunities? Are there partnership opportunities where you can collaborate with sales professionals at other companies to build new relationships? Are there upcoming events where pre-event prospecting can help you gain more from your attendance?

Reps focused on new business who exceed quota perform 52% more people searches per month. How can you use LinkedIn Advanced Search to beat your number this year?