Ending Soon! Save 33% on All Access

How to Leverage LinkedIn for Lead Generation and Sales LinkedIn can be a powerful sales tool. Here are four tips for taking advantage of the platform to grow your business.

By James McKinney

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

With 700 million users, LinkedIn provides a massive opportunity for businesses to increase sales leads and revenue. In this video, the creator and host of "The Startup Story" shares tips for leveraging LinkedIn to start conversations with cold contacts, namely:

  1. Research, learning more about the contact you're reaching out to from their profile as well as other social media accounts
  2. Requesting to connect, adding a personal message using the information you've discovered in your research and suggesting next steps
  3. Delivering on your promise to follow up, inviting your contact to a phone call and requesting their assistance (as opposed to selling)
  4. Nurturing the relationship with engagement via the platform by liking, sharing and commenting on their posts, keeping your name top-of-mind for when they enter a buying cycle

Related: Finding Validation in Serving Customers

James McKinney

Creator & Host, The Startup Story

James McKinney is the Founder & Host of The Startup Story, a multi-channel brand platform that brings the lessons of highly successful founders directly to the everyday founder. Whether it is through The Startup Story podcast or via the Startup Story LIVE event series, entrepreneurs everywhere can receive tactical and practical guidance from founders who are a few steps ahead.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Leadership

How a $10,000 Investment in AI Transformed My Career and Business Strategy

A bold $10,000 investment in AI and machine learning education fundamentally transformed my career and business strategy. Here's how adaption in the ever-evolving realm of AI — with the right investment in education, personal growth and business innovation — can transform your business.

Science & Technology

3 Major Mistakes Companies Are Making With AI That Is Limiting Their ROI

With so many competing narratives around the future of AI, it's no wonder companies are misaligned on the best approach for integrating it into their organizations.

Business News

A University Awarded a Student $10,000 for His AI Tool — Then Suspended Him for Using It, According to a New Lawsuit

Emory University awarded the AI study aid the $10,000 grand prize in an entrepreneurial pitch competition last year.

Leadership

Want to Enhance Your Influence as a Startup Leader? Here's What You Need to Know.

Discover the foundational influence styles of "pushers" and "pullers," and learn practical tactics to refine your natural influencing approach. Enhance your performance in startup environments by adopting the most effective elements of both styles.

Business News

He Picked Up a Lucky Penny In a Parking Lot. Moments Later, He Won $1 Million in the Lottery.

Tim Clougherty was in for a surprise when he scratched off his $10,000-a-month winning lottery ticket.

Side Hustle

These Brothers Had 'No Income' When They Started a 'Low-Risk, High-Reward' Side Hustle to Chase a Big Dream — Now They've Surpassed $50 Million in Revenue

Sam Lewkowict, co-founder and CEO of men's grooming brand Black Wolf Nation, knows what it takes to harness the power of side gig for success.