When it comes to prospect outreach, sales teams must be skilled at using a range of different methods.
Sending potential prospects a LinkedIn voice note is one way to stand out from a sea of copy-and-paste InMails.
We spoke to Alex Knight, Cognism’s SDR Manager. She’s known to be something of a voice messages wizard! In this blog, Alex shares her insights on what works and what doesn’t regarding LinkedIn voice messaging.
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Sales reps are constantly evolving their methods of reaching potential prospects.
Some methods stand the test of time, like cold calling and emails. But newer ways of communicating are also becoming popular. These include LinkedIn voice messages and WhatsApp.
One of the reasons why Alex thinks voice messages are ideal for salespeople is because (right now) they’re still a novelty. She said:
“It’s something new, and people love new things. The people we’re selling to are in sales and marketing. So they’ll be having hundreds of cold calls and emails sent to them every day.”
“I’ve had loads of people come back to me saying ‘it was my first sales voicemail, and it was great! I’m going to get my sales team to do it’.”
While some impersonal salespeople use tools like B2B chatbots and AI for their sales outreach, Alex thinks differently. In her opinion, personalisation requires a human touch.
“The fact that you’ve gone out of your way to record something for them especially just proves that it isn’t copied and pasted, and you do want to speak to them. It makes the person receiving your sales voicemail feel like you’re more engaged with them.”
“People don’t want to speak to a robot. They want to hear a human voice attached to the message.”
Those are the pros...but what about the cons?
Alex has found that voice notes aren’t every prospect’s cup of tea.
“I guess a lot of the time, Gen Z and Millennials already do a lot of voice notes over WhatsApp. We’re used to kind of going back and forth. It’s a part of our daily life. Whereas sometimes the older generation isn’t as used to them.”
“Sometimes they don’t like messaging on LinkedIn for X, Y, and Z reasons. But, sometimes, they love them. They’re like, oh, this is new!”
Another barrier is that cold prospects can’t skim-read a voice note the way they can skim an email or initial text message. This means that your prospect might forget to listen to your cold outreach message.
Alex confirmed this happened in her own outreach campaigns:
“When you send the message, people might just glance at their phone, but they won’t [immediately] listen to it.”
“For example, if they’re in a meeting, they might think, ‘oh, I’ll listen to that later’. And sometimes, they just forget.”
While this shouldn’t put you off sending voice notes, remember to tailor your outreach to your target prospect.
If they’re not active on LinkedIn or any social platforms, consider a more traditional approach, such as cold calling and cold email.
Sending a note to a LinkedIn prospect shouldn’t be complicated. But it isn’t something you should rush into without preparation, either.
After all, you wouldn’t pick up the phone to cold call without doing some research, would you?
Alex explained that she splits her time looking for potential prospects and sending connections to good fits. Then she follows up the connection with an audio message.
“I’ll connect with everyone that’s a good-fit job title at one of my target accounts.”
“I’ll also connect with SDRs and account executives to ask them a bit more about how they find the tools and whether they use [any others]. Just to get more feedback from an end user’s point of view.”
“I usually send out the connection request. Not everyone’s going to accept, obviously. But [if they accept], then I go straight in with a voice note.”
Using the right tone of voice is vital in prospect outreach. No one wants to listen to a mumbled message!
Alex likes to put across some positive vibes:
“People don’t want to get a cold message and listen to someone being monotone. Hearing someone happy and asking about their day will (hopefully) cheer them up and make them want to reply!”
“So a positive tone is definitely important. You want your prospects to listen to you and hit reply!”
B2B sales has the bad rep of being ‘uncool’ compared to its more glamorous B2C counterpart.
But the truth is, B2B doesn’t have to be boring!
Adding value and creating memorable customer experiences is key.
Alex follows a standard format for her voice notes, but she personalises the generic message to make it customer-centric. She also asks relevant questions about the prospect’s industry.
She said:
“I have a generic voice note, but I’ll adapt it to who I’m speaking to.”
“If there’s something really specific on their LinkedIn that I want to relate to, then I’ll bring that in. For example, if they’ve just been promoted, I’ll congratulate them and ask how it’s going.”
Here is Alex’s voice note:
“Hey (first name), it’s Alex. Great to connect with you!”
“I was reaching out as I was looking at your company and saw that you’re heading up the sales team over there.”
“Not sure if you’ve heard of Cognism before, but we’re a B2B contact data provider. We provide verified mobile numbers and email addresses for when it comes to the outreach and prospecting that your sales team does.”
“So, just wanted to have a quick chat to see if you use anything like this at the moment?”
There are lots of positives to sales personalisation. Most of the prospects you reach out to receive tons of messages every day. So why should they reply to you?
Alex told us that voice notes can set you apart from the cut-and-paste InMails that most SDRs send.
“Voice notes are a good way to stand out. People usually come back with, ‘oh, this is my first one’. Or, ‘great way to stand out’.”
“People see you’ve actually spent the time to record this for them specifically.”
“Sometimes people don’t reply. If that happens, I send a follow-up message asking for feedback.”
Alex shared her message script with us:
“Hey, I’m still pretty new to prospecting and tech sales in comparison with your experience. Just wondering if my outreach wasn’t great?”
What was the response rate to this approach?
“People usually reply by saying, ‘sorry, I was busy. Let me listen to it, or they tell me they’re not interested’.”
Top tip for more impactful voice messages:
Always personalise your generic voice messages with relevant questions about the prospect’s job, industry or possible pain points; the latest LinkedIn stats indicate it’s the key to success.
Alex shared some best practices to follow:
Asking the prospect for permission to send a voice note is a great way to gauge interest. It can also take the sting out of cold outreach. She said:
“Recently, Maddy Hopkins, one of our SDRs, suggested that instead of just sending a voice note, we ask for permission. This is something we do on the phone.”
“So I would say, great to connect. Do you mind if I send a voice note? [If they say yes], then I’ll send one straight after we connect.”
It’s good to be aware that your prospect’s time is limited. So don’t waste it with a five-minute voice note!
“You don’t want to send lengthy messages. Keep them to 30 seconds max; remember it’s time out of your prospect’s day.”
Do you feel like a natural rambler when you leave a message? Don’t worry! Practice beforehand with team members. Or send a voice note to your manager asking for feedback.
Alex said:
“The more you do it, the better you’ll get. But don’t spend time redoing the same voice note.”
“The first recording will always be the best because it’s the most authentic. You don’t want to sound scripted.”
This is how Alex finishes her messages:
“I’m sure you can probably tell, but I’ve just started using voice notes. So any feedback on what I’m doing here is much appreciated. Cheers. Speak to you later.”
She said:
“People love to give feedback. So if they think, ‘someone’s asking me for feedback. That must mean that I’m special.' That’s a nice touch at the end to get people talking.”
“I find that if you’re asking for feedback, prospects are going to think, ‘oh okay, this person is quite new to this.’ And they’ll be a bit more lenient and engaged in the sales process.”
Alex’s final tips:
“LinkedIn voice messaging can get a bit repetitive. I record them in message blocks and send a few at a time.”
“And when you hit the record button, don’t forget to smile. Even if it’s a fake smile, you sound happier. Prospects really respond to that.”
“If you feel nervous beforehand, record it as if you’re sending a friend a WhatsApp voice note. Don’t panic; if it’s a bit rough around the edges, that’s all the better. Just send it and see!”