In today's competitive landscape, LinkedIn emerges as a networking platform and an indispensable deep-selling tool that transcends traditional, "shallow" sales tactics. Shallow selling—characterized by volume-based prospecting and templated outreach—falls short as buyers crave meaningful interactions. LinkedIn, by contrast, is pivotal for deep selling, a strategy focused on building genuine relationships, understanding nuanced buyer needs, and delivering tailored value.
Most CEOs would say that based on their LinkedIn and email inbox, few salespeople understand or implement "deep selling," I agree. Everyone wants the magic, the quick win, the tool that will help them show up high on the sales leaderboard.
The 10x lift and the guaranteed appointments that will show up on your calendar abound, all fueled by automation and no insight. Stop the utter madness.
As someone in or leading business development and sales, you know the need and importance of forming meaningful connections that drive more significant, sustained deals. Yet shallow selling behaviors like rapid prospecting and templated outreach deliver diminishing returns.
Over three days of training, most marketers agreed that inbound and email marketing response rates were down even though more emails were delivered and more content was created and posted.
The Data-Backed Case for Deep Sales
LinkedIn's extensive research revealed that high-performing "deep sellers" outpace quotas by nearly 2x through three habits:
- Prioritizing high-potential accounts.
- Identifying and building buyer relationships.
- Uncovering timely insights to inform relevant outreach.
These practices contrast sharply with shallow sellers who rely heavily on volume-based activity devoid of context. Deep sellers persistently nurture connections, multi-thread into buyer groups, and convey deep customer understanding, earning trusted advisor status and uncovering potential unmet needs or tells that may lead to a new opportunity.
Here's the catch — only 18% of sellers exhibit deep behaviors today, leaving massive revenue growth on the table. As CEOs and sales leaders face pressure to meet targets, how can you make a necessary pivot - a sales culture shift?
The Power of LinkedIn-Enabled Depth
This is where LinkedIn, especially Sales Navigator, the world's largest professional network, offers unmatched potential through visibility into identity, interests, relationships, and professional role changes. LinkedIn can reveal customer propensities and history as a data asset, illuminate organizational structures, and map introduction pathways no other platform can touch.
Rather than viewing LinkedIn as another direct sales channel, recognize its power to enable sales depth. Purposeful nurturing of brand and employee profiles builds credibility. Prospect research capabilities allow sellers to deeply understand targeted accounts before ever reaching out. Tracking tools help identify relationship opportunities based on role changes and company news—sellers who actively apply these capabilities through Sales Navigator excel at refining their research sales skills.
Transform Your Culture Through Depth
Want to lead your sales organization to better long-term success? Make an organizational commitment to deep-focused selling powered by LinkedIn.
- Set expectations for relationship nurturing and insight sharing versus response metrics.
- Incentivize publishing credible content that attracts followers over cold calls.
- Sharply reduce the emphasis on activity volume in favor of rich 1:1 customer dialogues.
Sharply reduce the emphasis on activity volume in favor of rich 1:1 customer dialogues. While this shift challenges assumptions, the proof points are tangible. A culture that delivers customer value, builds trust, and develops resilience fuels results over time. An in-depth investment now returns exponential gains for years as your organization steps forward as an accountable, ethical leader with whom customers want to build a long-term business relationship.
It doesn't happen overnight; however, it's best to start. LinkedIn will be rolling out several new changes this year, so it's best to get started today. The longer you wait, the further behind you will be.
