LinkedIn Prospecting vs. Cold Emailing: Which Is More Effective?

It goes without saying that lead-gen is pivotal to a successful business. The oldest trick in the book is via cold emailing (and calling). However, newer tech gurus all say that LinkedIn prospecting is the way to go. In this article, we’ll explore both types of prospecting for you to learn which is best for you. 

LinkedIn Prospecting

Let’s start with the new: LinkedIn prospecting. 

Definition and Explanation of LinkedIn Prospecting

LinkedIn prospecting is just like normal prospecting – just on Linkedin. To keep things simple, this method involves searching for potential customers based on specific criteria, such as job title, industry, and location, and then reaching out to them through LinkedIn messaging or event campaigns. 

Benefits of LinkedIn Prospecting

There are plenty of benefits when using LinkedIn prospecting. Here are a few of my favorites: 

• Targeted Connections: There’s no better place to find a vast network of professionals. LinkedIn allows you to find and connect with people who align with your specific professional goals, whether it’s finding clients, partners, or job opportunities.
• Rich Professional Insights: Thanks to the detailed look into a prospect’s career path, education, and interests, you’re able to run more detailed campaigns than you would with email marketing. 
• Networking Opportunities: LinkedIn prospecting opens doors to networking with professionals you may not have had access to otherwise. Additionally, there’s a wide range of knowledge people speaking about interests you may care about (and can follow).
• Industry Insights and Trends: By connecting with professionals in your industry, you gain access to valuable industry insights, trends, and updates. This knowledge can help you stay informed and make informed decisions.
• Brand Building: If you’re posting, connecting, and engaging with others on LinkedIn, you have the opportunity to build your own personal brand. 

Techniques for Effective LinkedIn Prospecting

Here are the streamlined steps to successfully prospect on LinkedIn:

1. Define your goals and objectives.
2. Optimize your LinkedIn profile – we recommend your headline and summary!
3. Identify your target audience based on criteria like industry, job titles, location, etc.
4. Utilize advanced search filters to find prospects – or use this handy trick to find 10k prospects. 
5. Personalize connection requests with specific details (we recommend automating this process).
6. Engage meaningfully through likes, comments, and sharing.
7. Send personalized messages highlighting the value you can provide. Don’t forget you can run a mass messaging campaign as well. 
8. Follow up with prospects to nurture relationships.
9. Track and measure your prospecting efforts for optimization.

These streamlined steps will help you effectively prospect on LinkedIn, building valuable connections and unlocking professional opportunities.

Cold Emailing

Second, we’ll cover the tried and true method of prospecting – email campaigns. Here’s what you need to know: 

So… What Is Cold Emailing?

There’s nothing fancy about cold emailing. It’s exactly what it sounds like – sending an email to a cold lead. Most of the time, these are through lead-gen campaigns that go to hundreds, if not thousands, of contacts. 

Cold emailing is the golden standard for marketing campaigns. However, as things start to change, many people are favoring LinkedIn over emailing – as people are more engaged on LinkedIn than in their emails. 

Benefits of Cold Emailing

There are plenty of benefits of cold emailing. Here are some of the top ones: 

• Reach Thousands of New Contacts in Minutes: LinkedIn has limits – specifically on the number of people you can message within a week. The same rules don’t apply to email.
• Business Development: Cold emailing enables you to explore new business partnerships, collaborations, and sales prospects by introducing your product or service to a wider audience.
• Cost-Effective Communication: Compared to traditional marketing methods, cold emailing is a cost-effective way to reach a large audience, as it requires zero tools (or some tools for automation). 
• Scalability: You can start small with cold emailing.  Based on the success of your campaign, you can scale your efforts – giving you more chances for conversion. 
• Market Research: Through cold emailing, you can gather valuable insights and feedback from your target audience, helping you refine your offerings and better understand market needs. All that means is – hopefully – more business. 

You can nail down your cold lead outreach messages using our own cold lead template.

Techniques for Effective Cold Emailing

If you want to run a successful email campaign, you need a plan. Here’s what to do:

1. Define goals and understand your audience.
2. Build a quality email list.
3. Choose a reliable email marketing platform – plenty of options to choose from here. 
4. Craft compelling subject lines and content.
5. Personalize and segment your emails.
6. Use clear CTAs – we’ve got plenty of advice here.
7. Test, optimize, and analyze.
8. Ensure mobile optimization.

LinkedIn Prospecting vs. Cold Emailing: Which Is Better?

Method	Pros	Cons
LinkedIn Prospecting	Allows you to target specific individuals who may be interested in your product or service. Provides an opportunity to build relationships with potential customers before attempting to sell to them.	Requires more time and effort to reach out to potential customers one at a time. LinkedIn limits the number of people you can message at one time.
Cold Emailing	Allows you to reach a larger number of potential customers quickly. Can generate interest in your offering among individuals who may not be actively searching for your product or service	May be less personalized and may not be as effective in generating leads. May result in a high rate of unopened or unresponsive emails.

How To Measure the Effectiveness of Each Method

To measure the effectiveness of your LinkedIn prospecting or cold emailing campaigns, it’s essential to track certain metrics. Here are some metrics you should consider tracking:

LinkedIn Prospecting

• Number of connection requests sent
• Number of connection requests accepted
• Number of LinkedIn messages sent
• Number of LinkedIn messages responded to
• Conversion rate

Cold Emailing

• Number of emails sent
• Open rate
• Response rate
• Conversion rate

Tracking these metrics will help you understand the effectiveness of your campaigns and identify areas for improvement.

Conclusion

There’s no right or wrong when it comes to lead-generation campaigns. Both techniques are used successfully. That being said, for the most targeted results, you should focus on LinkedIn. On the other hand, if you’re following the “number’s game approach,” cold emailing is the better option. Overall, we recommend using both techniques for the most well-rounded lead-gen strategy. 

If you want to automate your LinkedIn prospecting to focus on other things, explore We-Connect’s 14-day free trial.