By Jules 
Good practices for personal selling on LinkedIn can be a game changer for salespeople. If you want to be successful in today’s market, you need to build a personal brand and gain visibility and credibility on social media.
According to a 2020 Sales Benchmark Index survey, 70% of B2B companies have a formal social selling program in place. It’s a widely used tactic, and for good reason. Social selling can help you shorten the sales cycle, improve win rates, and even increase deal size.
LinkedIn is the most important social network for salespeople. It’s the best platform for building your professional network, and it’s the most powerful tool for finding and engaging with your prospects.
1. Make your LinkedIn profile client-focused
Your LinkedIn profile is your digital storefront. It’s the first place potential customers will go to learn more about you and your business.
So, it’s important to make sure your profile is client-focused. This means that your profile should clearly communicate how you help your customers and what you can do for them.
Your profile should include a professional headshot, a compelling headline, a well-written summary, and a list of your skills and expertise. You should also include any relevant work experience and education, as well as any awards or certifications you’ve received.
In short, your LinkedIn profile should be a comprehensive, client-focused overview of who you are and what you do.
Just like a good exit survey helps a company learn from departing employees, your LinkedIn profile should reflect the lessons, outcomes, and value you’ve gained from each career move.
2. Use a professional photo
Your LinkedIn profile photo should be professional and high quality.
You don’t need to hire a professional photographer, but you should choose a photo where you look professional and approachable.
The background of your photo should be plain and uncluttered, and you should be the only person in the photo.
You should be facing the camera and looking directly at it, and you should be smiling.
You should be dressed professionally, and your face should take up about 60% of the frame.
Your photo should be a headshot, and it should be cropped so that your head and shoulders are visible.
You should also make sure that your photo is up to date.
3. Make your headline about the client
Most people use their headline to describe their title or role at their company. But this is a big missed opportunity.
Your headline is the first thing people see when they find you on LinkedIn. It’s your first impression. Why not use it to show that you understand the challenges your prospects face and can help solve them?
Here’s an example of a headline that does just that:
This headline is all about the buyer. It doesn’t talk about what the salesperson does. It’s a great headline because it speaks directly to the buyer and the challenges they face. And it offers a solution.
In this case, the salesperson is targeting VPs of Sales at tech companies. She’s speaking directly to them and offering a solution to their problems. This headline is sure to resonate with her target audience.
To write a headline that speaks directly to your prospects, think about the challenges they face and how you can help solve them. Knowing the difference between revenue enablement vs sales enablement will help you tailor your content and messaging to align with your company’s strategic approach. Then, write a one-sentence headline that clearly communicates the value you bring to your prospects.
Your headline should be a value proposition that speaks directly to your prospects and clearly communicates how you can help them.
4. Write articles and posts that help your ideal clients
LinkedIn is a social network and a content platform. It’s where business professionals go to learn and grow.
One of the best ways to build trust with potential clients on LinkedIn is to provide value before you ever ask for the sale. For founders of a B2B marketplace platform, writing niche-specific content on LinkedIn helps attract the right audience and demonstrate thought leadership. And one of the best ways to do that is by writing articles and posts that help your ideal clients.
For example, if you’re a career coach, you could write an article about how to build a personal brand on LinkedIn. If you’re a financial advisor, you could write a post about how to save for retirement.
When you provide valuable content on LinkedIn, you position yourself as an expert in your field. And when potential clients see that you know what you’re talking about, they’re much more likely to want to work with you.
5. Use LinkedIn search to find your ideal clients
LinkedIn’s search function can be a powerful tool for salespeople. You can use it to find potential customers who fit your ideal buyer profile, and then reach out to them.
You can also use LinkedIn’s search function to find people who work at specific companies, or who have specific job titles. This can be a great way to find new leads and build your network.
LinkedIn’s search function also allows you to filter your results so you only see people who are in your network, or who are in a certain location. This can be a great way to find new leads who are close to you.
6. Use the “People also viewed” feature on LinkedIn profiles
LinkedIn provides a feature on profile pages that allows you to see other profiles that are similar to the one you’re viewing. This is a great way to find new prospects that are similar to your current customers.
You can use the “People also viewed” feature to find new prospects that are in the same industry, have similar job titles, or work at similar companies. This can help you build a list of potential leads that you can then reach out to.
You can also use the “People also viewed” feature to find potential connections that you have in common with your prospects. This can be a great way to get introductions to new prospects and build your network on LinkedIn.
7. Ask for introductions
If you find a potential lead that you have mutual connections with, ask for an introduction. This can be a great way to build trust with a new lead from the start.
If you don’t have any mutual connections, you may want to consider connecting with some of their connections and building relationships with them. This way, you can ask for an introduction in the future.
8. Join LinkedIn groups where your ideal clients hang out
LinkedIn groups are a great way to connect with people who have similar interests and goals. They’re also a great way to connect with your potential customers.
Join groups where your ideal clients hang out. Then, get involved in the conversations. Don’t just try to sell your products or services. Instead, focus on providing value and building relationships.
You can also use the advanced search feature to find people who are members of the same groups as you. This is a great way to find common ground and make a connection.
9. Use LinkedIn as a customer relationship management (CRM) tool
LinkedIn is a powerful tool for finding new leads and customers, but it’s also a great way to stay in touch with your existing customers.
You can use LinkedIn to track your customers’ activity on the platform, and you can also use it to send them messages and updates.
By using LinkedIn as a customer relationship management (CRM) tool, you can stay top-of-mind with your customers and make sure they know about any new products or services you have to offer.
10. Share your LinkedIn content in other places
You can also share your LinkedIn content on other platforms, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Just make sure you’re not sharing the same content in the same way on all platforms. Instead, tailor your content to each platform and your audience there.
For example, you can share a link to your LinkedIn article on Twitter, but you can also pull out a quote from the article and turn it into a tweet.
Or you can share the link to your LinkedIn article in a Facebook post, but you can also turn the content of the article into a graphic and share that on Facebook and Instagram.
By sharing your LinkedIn content in other places, you can reach a larger audience and get more exposure for your personal brand.
11. Do not send spammy messages
Sending spammy messages is the fastest way to get your LinkedIn account restricted or shut down.
Spammy messages include things like:
• Sending a sales pitch to someone who doesn’t know you or your company
• Sending a sales pitch to someone who has explicitly said they are not interested in your products or services
• Sending the same sales pitch to multiple people
• Sending a sales pitch that is not relevant to the person you are contacting
Instead of sending spammy messages, take the time to build relationships with your prospects.
This will help you to get to know them better, and to understand their needs and challenges.
It will also make it more likely that they will be receptive to your sales messages.
12. Use affiliate programs to improve your reach
Beyond direct selling on LinkedIn, consider setting up or promoting an affiliate program to encourage others to sell on your behalf. Affiliate programs allow partners, influencers, or even satisfied customers to earn commissions by referring new clients to your business. This can create a scalable, performance-driven sales channel that complements your personal outreach.
Tools like ReferralCandy make it easy to launch, track, and manage affiliate programs. With ReferralCandy, you can automate rewards, customize referral incentives, and monitor the success of your affiliates—all while freeing up your time to focus on relationship-building and high-impact selling on LinkedIn.
Conclusion
The most important thing to remember about personal selling is that it’s personal. People don’t buy from companies; they buy from people. So, be yourself, and you’ll set yourself up for success.