TL;DR
Before deep diving into messaging on LinkedIn Sales Navigator, let’s take a moment to address the elephant in the room. It’s quite obvious that LinkedIn doesn’t endorse mass messaging. Why is that?
First, direct bulk InMail is not supported (designed to encourage personalized communication and to maintain professional integrity). Secondly, it’s always been known that sending more than a reasonable amount of messages per day can get accounts flagged, if not banned.
But that’s enough safe play. Can you actually bulk message on LinkedIn Sales Navigator? You bet, and we’ll show you how! There are multiple ways and reasons you’d want to do it, especially if you’re into sales automation.
Just ensure you provide genuine value and use LinkedIn’s premium features as they’re meant. If connections are built on solid foundations, leads and sales will naturally follow. It’s common to use the platform for sales or networking purposes.
So, here’s all you need to know about using Sales Navigator’s out-of-the-box messaging features. Plus alternative strategies and tools you can use to reach a broader audience. Efficiently.
Why LinkedIn Sales Navigator?
That’s a good question to ask. Why would you spend $80 each month on LinkedIn Sales Navigator when you can’t even natively send bulk InMail? Especially when you can build and message connections. Or send multiple messages at once, for free.
Well, if velocity matters to you, it’s probably reason enough. On top of that, there’s a ton of features packed into that subscription. Here’s what most sales professionals love about it:
- Unlimited LinkedIn searches, with 40+ advanced filters
- Saving searches to export, A/B test messages, or target LinkedIn groups
- Access to about 700M professionals and decision-makers
- Advanced profile analytics, recommendations, and real-time updates
Last but not least, there’s InMail - your shortcut to reaching any LinkedIn member. How else can you mass message on LinkedIn Sales Navigator, if limited to confirmed connections?
Sending mass messages on LinkedIn Sales Navigator
This is what you came for. So, without further ado, let’s break it down into a 3-step guide:
1. Identify your recipients
This one is quite obvious and usually starts from LinkedIn searches. You have those advanced filters to narrow down by industry, role, seniority, or geography. A lot of manual work - browsing lists to qualify profiles into relevant leads.
For a second, imagine you can automate qualification, using criteria you define. How much time can that save you? Well, here’s where Bardeen’s AI comes in, with pre-built automations (or playbooks) such as this:
Or how about saving the currently opened search results to a Google Sheet, in seconds?
Or, do you prefer to start qualifying from a list of companies? Just prepare your search, then use this automation to extract the currently displayed companies from Sales Navigator, and into your preferred Google Sheet:
2. Create a personalized message
Each of your prospects is unique. So any message you send out should be unique. Or at least built on a personalizable message template. What can you include to stand out and maximize chances of reply?
- recipient's name
- their industry or role
- common values, connections, or interests
- a (preferably free) offer
But, wait a second! If you didn’t download our extension yet, this will convince you - Bardeen can AI-generate personalized messages for any lead. You can either start from a list of profile links in a Google Sheet, or directly from the currently opened LinedIn profile:
No matter if you intend to develop rapport, build connections, or sell something - avoid overly pitching and salesy phrasing in your first message. Instead, share insights, valuable content, or simply express sympathy for that person.
3. Send that message
Before clicking on send, take a second to assess the best timing for your message. With sequences, you can schedule when messages go out. Or prepare a follow-up message, in case there’s no reply in the next 1-2 days.
But be on the lookout for any replies, it’s best to action as soon as they come in. If you download Bardeen, you can:
- monitor your LinkedIn inbox in real-time
- extract messages that follow the criteria you set
- enrich with profile URLs and even email
We can even create a personalized message. And you’re ready to go.
To maximize your chances of hearing back, you can consider backing up your message with a short email. And guess what? We’re here to make that easy for you, too. Just use this playbook to enrich lead profiles with verified email addresses:
Understanding LinkedIn Sales Navigator messaging limits
As you already know, LinkedIn Sales Navigator offers the InMail feature, allowing users to compose messages directed at people they’re not connected with. Each InMail has character limits:
- 1900 for the message body
- 200 for the subject line
Users are allocated a certain number of InMail credits based on their subscription level. It's crucial to use these credits wisely, as sending bulk messages directly through Sales Navigator is not possible.
Additionally, LinkedIn monitors user activity to prevent spam, so sending a high volume of messages in a short period can flag your account for suspicious activity. Most people can’t request over 100 connections per week, for example.
If you want to stay as safe as humanly possible, follow the golden rule - never perform more than 250 LinkedIn actions per day.
And in case you still have uncontacted leads left for the week, why not continue over email? You can use Bardeen to create an email right from the current profile link:
Or if this better fits your workflow, you can start from a LinkedIn search instead:
Alternative LinkedIn features to message multiple prospects
While direct mass messaging is not an option in Sales Navigator, users can still communicate with multiple contacts through other means:
Messaging LinkedIn connections
Users can message up to 50 connections at a time through LinkedIn's native messaging system. This method is suitable for reaching out to existing connections but requires a more manual approach for each message.
Once you start hearing back, why not automate keeping track? If you download and install Bardeen, you can export messages you receive in LinkedIn to a Google Sheet.
As soon as you do, there’s another playbook you can plug right in. Use it to enrich those profiles, and find emails their emails in no time:
Sharing posts with connections
Another way to engage with multiple contacts simultaneously is by sharing relevant posts and including a personalized message. This can be done by clicking the 'Send' button below a post and selecting up to 10 recipients at a time.
Using LinkedIn automation tools for mass messaging
This is where it gets interesting. Why should you even care about LinkedIn automation? First of all, there’s the flexibility that comes with automated messages (a common feature).
That’s a message you write and schedule for broadcasting at the ideal time, to maximize response rate. Then, there are advanced analytics that not even Sales Navigator offers: connection acceptance rate, daily summaries, and more.
So, for users looking to send messages to a larger audience without manual effort, third-party LinkedIn automation tools like Dripify offer a solution. These tools allow for the automation of:
- Connection requests and follow-ups.
- Sending personalized messages based on recipient profiles.
- Targeting specific profiles and companies.
- Smart sequencing.
It's essential to choose a tool with robust safety features to avoid LinkedIn account restrictions. Automation tools operate in the background, enabling users to focus on other business aspects while maintaining active engagement on LinkedIn.
Track your results
If you don’t want to take the route of automation, but still need some detailed analytics, the stock LinkedIn Sales Navigator options should be good enough:
- opened messages
- link click
- InMail response
Keeping close tabs on these, at a minimum, can inform your future efforts. You might discover what industries are more receptive, or what offer resonates best with them.You can then implement A/B tests to validate any hypothesis you come up with - but always change one thing at a time, so you know what worked, or didn't.
Final words
While LinkedIn Sales Navigator does not support direct sending of mass messages, users can employ other out-of-the-box LinkedIn features, alternative strategies, or third-party tools to efficiently reach a broader audience. It's crucial to balance the use of automation with personalized communication to maintain the effectiveness of your LinkedIn outreach efforts. Always ensure compliance with LinkedIn's policies to avoid potential account limitations or bans.
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