What is LinkedIn Sales Navigator ?

Finding customers today? It shouldn’t be a headache anymore! With all our modern tools, prospecting is easier than ever 🚀

Among them, LinkedIn Sales Navigator stands out for :

🔍 Prospect effectively on LinkedIn.
🎯 Target ultra-relevant prospects.
🤝 Interact easily to move them along your conversion tunnel.

Ideal for sales reps and recruiters, Sales Navigator is perfect for boosting your marketing strategy.

In this guide, you’ll discover everything you need to know about LinkedIn Sales Navigator to get the best performance. On the program ⬇️ :

• 📘 What is LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
• 🤔 Why and when to use it to boost your prospecting.
• ✨ The best features for generating qualified leads.
• 🛠️ Tutorial: master Sales Navigator step by step.
• 💰 Focus on LinkedIn Sales Navigator subscriptions and pricing.
• 🤖 Automate LinkedIn to simplify your prospecting.
• ⚔️ LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Waalaxy.

What is LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

Sales Navigator is LinkedIn’s premium plan, like Recruiter Lite, Business Plus and Job Seeker 🌟.

Designed for sales people and those with a sales strategy looking to sell a good or service. With Sales Navigator, we have an advanced LinkedIn search engine that goes far beyond the classic 🕵️‍♂️ filters.

It also lets you tag prospects and send a multitude of inmail per month, useful features for prospecting. ✨

Sales Navigator facilitates social selling, a four-step method for locating the right people, selling a product or service, building your pro brand, sharing information with your prospects and creating trusting relationships 🤝.

Why and when should you use LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

When you use LinkedIn to prospect and find new or potential customers, the first step is to conduct a search. So far, so good.☺️

The catch? LinkedIn’s standard search is handy, but limited: the results aren’t always precise, especially if you really want to narrow down your criteria 🎯.

LinkedIn restricts standard search for two reasons:
1️⃣ To limit spam and protect its users.
2️⃣ To encourage premium subscriptions.

That’s where Sales Nav comes in: more filters, more precision and results that match your prospecting needs!

If you opt for Sales Navigator, you’ll have access to advanced features! 🔥

➡️ Among them:

• 🔍 Advanced filters and Boolean combinations.
• 🔔 Update alerts on prospect profiles.

With Sales Navigator, marketing targeting and search are powerful, even if the cost may make you hesitate 💸. Here are some key filters:

• 🏢 Hierarchical level: to target specific roles,
• 🏬 Company size: handy for targeting large groups,
• 📝 Recent publications: ideal for spotting active profiles on LinkedIn.

Another advantage of Sales Navigator is that it displays up to 2,500 search results (100 pages of 25) compared with just 1,000 for the standard search (100 pages of 10).👀

Although effective, Sales Navigator can seem complicated for those new to LinkedIn prospecting. For those who prefer to avoid the cost, the Chrome extension Waalaxy lets you automate your prospecting campaigns in just a few clicks, and import your LinkedIn searches so you can re-sort them in one click thanks to AI! 🤖

Now that we’ve seen why and when it was necessary to switch to Sales Navigator, let’s take a look right now at the top techniques for using it in the best possible way.✨

The best search functions on LinkedIn Sales Navigator

As we’ve seen in previous sections, LinkedIn offers several options for prospecting:

1️⃣ Option 1 : choose LinkedIn Sales Navigator, with a premium subscription (at a somewhat high cost 💸).
2️⃣ Option 2: opt for an external solution like Waalaxy, which is secure, affordable and easy🔍.

3️⃣ Option 3: combine the two tools for incredible results 🤩

So here are our top features for generating leads automatically with LinkedIn Sales Navigator!

Boolean search operator

Boolean search operator is a powerful way of refining your searches in LinkedIn Sales Navigator. It’s based on Boolean algebra, allowing you to combine keywords with operators like 👇🏻 :

• AND: to include several words.

AND adds up! The results will include all the categories indicated (example: « SEO AND SEA AND SMO »). Perfect for targeting profiles with multiple skills.

• NOT: to exclude certain terms.

Add a NOT operator after your main keyword to exclude certain sectors. Example: « Consultant NOT SEO ». Here, you’re targeting consultants, but not SEO consultants.

• OR : for an alternative search.

To broaden to several sectors, use OR between keywords (example: « SEO OR SEA OR SMO”). LinkedIn will display people associated with any of these areas.

Advanced search with LinkedIn Sales Navigator

Most people sign up for a LinkedIn Premium account for this feature, which gives access to several dozen filters divided into two categories: to find people or companies.💼

Advanced people search on Sales Navigator

➡️ In this category, you’ll find :

1. Company size and type.
2. Existence (current, past, past OR current, past, NOT current).
3. Exclusion of prospects already contacted or saved in a list.
4. First name, last name and current position.
5. Industry.
6. Prospects: mentioned in the feed, who have recently changed position, active on LinkedIn, with shared professional experience, date of registration on the platform…

Advanced company search on Sales Navigator

➡️ There are also a number of filtration criteria for finding the ideal companies:

1. Headcount growth (overall and in a specific division).
2. Size and revenues (overall or in a specific division).
3. Head office location (by zip code, region, country).
4. Whether or not the company is on the fortune list (fortune 50/100/500).
5. Presence or absence of recruitment on LinkedIn.
6. The industry in which it operates.
7. Job offers.
8. The number of subscribers and contacts on a company page.
9. Recent changes in hierarchy.

By playing with all these parameters, you can target exactly the people you’re looking for. ➡️ From here, you have two choices:

1. Send the person an invitation to join your network.
2. Send them a welcome message with or without the initial invitation (you can do this automatically).📮

InMails

When you switch from the classic version of LinkedIn to LinkedIn Premium, you gain a little visual extra: the gold dot 🥇, which adds credibility to your profile.

With LinkedIn Sales Navigator, in addition to this lozenge, you unlock the ability to send InMails. These messages stand out from classic LinkedIn messages and often generate a better open and click rate 📈. However, there are a few drawbacks:

❌ When used appropriately, the typical response rate of a LinkedIn InMail is between 10% and 25% which is quite low. 😧

❌ We don’t recommend LinkedIn InMail because it contains the words “sponsored” at the beginning of the message and this can be unattractive for your recipients! 👎

✅ it’s better to use an automation tool (not natural, 100% robotized, you already know you’re getting prospected without even clicking on it).

To make this message stand out and for greater effectiveness/engagement, use the A.I.D.A. copywriting structure:

1. Attention: Grab your prospect’s attention right from the start.
2. Interest: Generate interest using the “Set Yes” technique described above.
3. Desire: Create desire with a bulleted list filled with more for your prospect.
4. Action: End with a call to action, whether it’s advice, an action to take or a question.

We’ve rounded up the best LinkedIn Sales Navigator features to use!😎

To make things clearer for you, we’re now going to get our hands dirty with a full LinkedIn Sales Navigator usage tutorial.🤩

Tutorial: How do I use Sales Navigator?

To get you off to a good start with LinkedIn Sales Navigator, I’m going to walk you through all the prerequisites and key steps for setting up your account.✨

Getting started with LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a super-complete premium plan designed for pros who want to boost their sales prospecting and find new customers.

➡️ Before using it, make sure you have a good idea of :

• Your main target: who are you really looking for?
• How to adapt your marketing funnel to the temperature of your leads (cold, lukewarm, hot).
• The content that captivates your audience: what attracts and engages them.
• Their fears and aspirations: understand what motivates (or hinders) them.
• Their socio-professional profile (CSP): to further refine your targeting.

Once you’ve defined your customer avatar, you’re ready to go! But there’s no mystery about it: a subscription is required to access Sales Navigator. 🎟️

After that, it’s time for the magic ✨. Sales Navigator gives you access to ultra-precise marketing targeting and specific data on your prospects. By varying combinations with advanced features, you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for!

Here’s what you can specify in your searches:

• Location: by city, region, country…
• Languages: native, secondary…
• Industries: industry, commerce, tech…
• Specific positions: SEO strategy consultant, Full-stack developer…
• Years of experience: junior, senior, etc.
• Size of company: SME, ETI, GE…
• Keywords for further refinement 🔑.

Now that you’ve got everything you need to accurately target your future prospects, let’s get on with it!

Tutorial: how to search for prospects on LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

LinkedIn Sales Navigator lets you search by keyword. Let’s say you’re looking to generate a list of prospects with developers. It’s very simple:

• 1️⃣ Log in to your Sales Navigator account.
• 2️⃣ Enter your keyword (here, we’ve chosen developers).
• 3️⃣ On the screen, you’ll have a whole list of potential prospects, but they may not all match your criteria. That’s why, on the left, you’ll have a column with additional information where you’ll be able to do much more precise targeting.✨

• Once you have selected all your criteria, you can save the search and name it.🙌🏻

Don’t know which criteria are essential for your search? Here’s a quick overview of the most interesting ones! 🧐

1. Target decision-makers

This is one of Sales Navigator ‘s most effective filters: the hierarchical level (even if we don’t know how LinkedIn’s algorithm determines this information).

When you want to sell, it’s rarely to a junior (and if it is, you can always filter on « young graduate »).

We recommend using it in combination with other properties. For example, if you’re looking for people in marketing automation, also add the hierarchical level you’re targeting (directors, managers…).

2. Base your search on seniority

Seniority in the company or position is another interesting and complementary indicator. If the prospect has been there for less than a year, he’s probably less likely to be able to buy a service or product from you (except in exceptional cases).💸

3.Use company size

For me, this is one of the most useful filters in LinkedIn Sales Navigator. A product/service or an approach is often defined by a specific size (you don’t sell the same things in the same way to CAC40 companies as to a very small company) 😉

Here, you can target « independent » to « +de 10,000 employees ». A good way to personalize your approaches and keep your pitch tailored to each prospect. 🥹

4.Publication in the last 30 days

Want to contact only people who are active on LinkedIn? This is a great option!👀

You only contact prospects who have published in the last 30 days and who are therefore at least active, with a profile that’s at least up to date (well, we can hope so).

How does it work? You need to use the « LinkedIn activity filter ». This identifies prospects active on LinkedIn in the last 30 days. 🥳

5.LinkedIn Groups

With LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can target people in specific LinkedIn groups, often named with relevant (theme-specific) keywords.

This can be particularly useful for so-called satellite solutions to your product/service (around your theme).

For example:

• Digital communication France.
• Growth Hacking.

And school and university groups such as :

• Harvard Business School.
• École Polytechnique Fédérale of Lausanne.

Let’s take a concrete example. If you have a SaaS company for the creation of online course platforms (LMS) and want to target your direct competitor’s LinkedIn Group, here are the steps:

1. Perform an advanced group search.
2. Write a personalized message for the group’s members, for example (see sample template below):

✨ What’s great about it? With Sales Navigator, you don’t need to join the LinkedIn group to filter the prospects who belong to it, which is very powerful and achieves up to 50% acceptance with this method.

6 .prospecting on published keywords

In LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can target people who have written posts with specific hashtags.

For example, if you want to prospect people who have posted « #seo », then :

• Add it to this filters section.
• Add the number of LinkedIn hashtags you want.

• Send your prospecting message. 💌

Here, the example is an e-book, but you can do the same for :

• 🎥 Video series.
• ✅ Checklist.
• 📄 White paper.
• 🎁 Free trial.
• 💻 Webinar.
• 📞 Appointment by phone, videoconference, physical…

7.search registration

Now that you’ve targeted your potential customers, there’s something important to know 👀

You can save your searches directly from the Sales Navigator dashboard and easily rename them. This allows you to return to them later to launch a prospecting campaign for each list.💡

8.Job change alerts

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is perfect for contacting people who have just changed companies. You can target them and grab their attention by mentioning their new position.🙌🏻

It’s a simple and effective way to start a conversation.

With LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can assign tags to individual prospects or to a group of people, and carry out targeted actions for each tagged group.

➡️ For example, you can send them :

• An invitation to join your network.
• A welcome message/direct prospecting…

LinkedIn Sales Navigator subscriptions and rates

As one of the LinkedIn Premium solutions, using this platform naturally comes at a cost 💸

Is Sales Navigator free?

Not quite… But LinkedIn does offer a 30-day free trial (with no obligation), ideal for exploring the platform and seeing if it’s right for your needs. During this trial, you can discover the power of Sales Navigator, test out all its features and see if it sticks with your company’s objectives. 💼

Which Sales Navigator subscription should I choose?

There are three LinkedIn Sales Navigator plans, each tailored to specific needs. Let’s take a look at what each plan offers 👀 :

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core

Sales Navigator Core costs (€74.36/month and per access), but on a yearly basis, it’ll cost you otherwise less (€951.95/year and also per access).

This basic « plan » offers everything you need for advanced research and effective prospecting, with features such as :

• Advanced filters to exclude certain terms and refine targeting.
• Alerts on your registered prospects and accounts.
• Customized lists to segment your targets.
• Access to LinkedIn Learning, unlimited searches, InMails (50 / month) and integration with other tools.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced

About LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced (€161.99/month or €1555.20/year), again, if you decide to go for an annual fee, it will cost you less than a monthly subscription.

Advanced contains the same features as LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core, but you’ll also be able to interact with prospects through your team’s network (TeamLink):

• Optimize your lead generation.
• Access administration and reporting solutions.
• Access internal platforms and centralized billing.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced Plus

For LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced Plus the budget will be determined according to your needs, you can request a demo and then make a commitment.

This plan includes all the features of the Core and Advanced versions, with additional team-oriented options, such as the Sales Navigator Team tools.🛠️

How to automatically scrape LinkedIn profiles?

Sales Navigator already lets you browse groups and identify qualified prospects. But, if you want to go one step further, there’s an even more effective trick: automated data scraping, and yes, it’s compatible with Sales Navigator! 🤩

With scraping tools, you can automatically extract the information you’ve defined with Sales Navigator.😎

➡️ Here’s how to do it, step by step:

1. Log in to your LinkedIn account 🔑
2. Define your criteria on Sales Navigator. 🎯
3. Use a “data scraper ” tool compatible with Sales Navigator, like Waalaxy: define the number of profiles you want to extract and off you go! 🔍
4. Launch a scenario, an invitation note, a message…✉️
5. Let automation work its magic. Once configured, the scraping tool will extract essential information from targeted profiles, while your invitations or personalized messages are sent automatically. 🪄

With this Sales Navigator + scraping combination, you save time, refine your targeting and maximize your chances of converting your prospects! 🎉

Waalaxy and LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn Sales Navigator and automation are complementary, as I explained above. But, if I had to recommend one automation tool… it would be Waalaxy. We’ll tell you why.👀

What is Waalaxy?

Waalaxy is a subscription-based Chrome extension that lets you automate your LinkedIn and e-mail prospecting campaigns in total security 👽.

Quite simply, it’s the simplest, most intuitive and effective digital solution on the market! 🚀

To use it and get started on your project, you will NOT need :

• A pre-existing prospecting database.
• Special technical skills.
• Additional training or awareness.

Waalaxy has been designed for all types of customer: salespeople, marketers, managers, agencies, recruiters… But, and this is its strength, it’s accessible to beginners and pros alike. 😇

Automate LinkedIn Sales Navigator with Waalaxy

Waalaxy makes it easy to export b2b profiles from Sales Navigator and launch scenarios based on these searches. You save time and get more accurate results by automating your campaigns and optimizing them with A/B tests. For example:

• Profile visit + add request with personalized note.
• Automatic follow-up if request remains unanswered.
• Cancellation of add request after a certain time…

Waalaxy also lets you save on your Sales Navigator subscriptions! But how? 🧐

To equip your teams, our Team plan centralizes key functionalities to simplify exchange and prospecting. 👻

Why is this great? You’ll be able to import directly from LinkedIn Sales Navigator into any team CRM. So you only need one account. 😍

Conclusion – Is LinkedIn Sales Navigator indispensable for prospecting on LinkedIn?

Sales Navigator is the perfect ally for sales professionals and recruiters alike: it provides ultra-precise targeting, access to advanced profiles, alerts on prospect activity and the famous InMails to boost engagement 😉

But, if you want to save time, money, automate follow-ups and organize prospecting as a team, using an automation solution like Waalaxy is the best option. ✨

By combining these two tools, you have everything you need to get your sales prospecting off the ground!🚀

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Is LinkedIn’s standard search sufficient?

LinkedIn’s standard search offers basic filtering, but is primarily designed to direct you to a paid offer for more precise results.🧐

If you’re looking for an old mate or manager by first and last name, the standard search does the job. But for more specific searches, it can quickly show its limitations. Especially if you don’t know how to do a good LinkedIn search. For example, a search for « IT manager » might bring up « managers » and « IT » profiles in mixed fashion.🥲

Even with quotation marks, precision decreases as early as page 8ᵉ… so imagine on page 70 or 80! 😅

For accurate results, the standard search won’t suffice. But, if you just want to expand your network without ultra-targeted segmentation, it may be suitable. We don’t recommend it for advanced prospecting. ❌

How do I get an invoice on LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

LinkedIn will not provide you with invoices for Premium offers 😁. However, you will be able to retrieve your purchase history by :

• Connecting to your LinkedIn page.
• Clicking on your portrait.
• Selecting « preferences and privacy ».
• Clicking on « View purchase history ».

How do I install Sales Navigator?

No complicated installation for LinkedIn Sales Navigator! 🚀 You don’t need to download or configure anything.

To get started, simply visit the site. From the home page, request a demo and take advantage of the 30-day free trial to test the tool thoroughly. It’s the perfect time to explore the features and launch your first prospecting searches, with no obligation. 🎯

To link Sales Navigator to your LinkedIn account, enter your bank details (rest assured, no debit for the first month!). Once the tool has been activated, a Sales Navigator logo will appear at the top of your LinkedIn page: click on it to access your dashboard directly. 📊

LinkedIn will send you a reminder 7 days before the end of the free trial so you can decide whether or not to continue 😉

How do I unsubscribe from Sales Navigator?

➡️ If you think you’re done with Sales Navigator, you can unsubscribe :

1. Click on your profile and select « Settings ».
2. « Account preferences » and « Manage Premium account ».

3. All that’s left to do is « Cancel subscription ».

Please note! You will lose all your information once the subscription is cancelled 🚨. If you take one up again at a later date, the entire recovered database will be permanently lost. Think about it 😉

Sales Navigator training with LinkedIn Learning

When you take Sales Navigator, you also get access to LinkedIn Learning🎓. There are many interesting courses on the platform, covering a wide range of topics:

• Digital marketing.
• Programmatic.
• Personal development.
• Online advertising.
• Technology.
• And much more…

Thanks to this array of tools and resources, the world of prospecting has never been so accessible! 🎯 All that’s left is to implement the right practices to turn your prospects into loyal customers committed to your brand. 💼

Integrate Waalaxy Inbox to save time

It allows you to exchange with your prospects and contacts, while offering the following features: 👇

• Tag your contacts for easy segmentation, quickly find a conversation and filter your messages.
• Set a conversation to « Snooze » to make it disappear and come back to it later.
• Automatically relaunch your contacts by choosing the date on which a message should be resent.

🎬 That’s it! Now you know how to use LinkedIn Sales Navigator 😉 Get out there and prospect! 🎈