- The BDR Newsletter
- Posts
- Is LinkedIn The New Cold Call?
Is LinkedIn The New Cold Call?
thebdrcommunity
May 16, 2025
While recovering from the harsh hang-ups and the countless “where did you get this number from?”, you might be able to find refuge behind LinkedIn DMs.
In this issue:
Hot From the Press - send to your unemployed friend
Why LinkedIn DMs matter
🔹 LinkedIn messages get 3x higher response rates than cold emails (LinkedIn Sales Report).
🔹 62% of buyers say they respond more positively to LinkedIn messages than emails (HubSpot).
🔹 Personalized InMails get 44% higher response rates than generic ones (LinkedIn).
Why? Because LinkedIn is where your buyers actually engage. They check emails out of necessity, but they scroll LinkedIn for insights.
How to Book Meetings with LinkedIn
1. Send a connection request. Don’t pitch just yet, keep them intrigued—you can play around with short sentences in the request “Hi Mark, would love to connect” > “Would like to be in your network”.
2. Engage before you DM – Comment on their posts, like their updates. Be visible before you pitch and of course, the less you sound like AI, the better—avoid the “great post” or “so thoughtful, agreed” comments and go for thought provoking ones like “interesting, I’ve seen similar insights in {industry}, how would you say things have changed over time?”. Questions like that are a great DM starter that organically lead to a meeting.
3. Personalize without being creepy – No need to stalk their kid’s school, a simple: “Noticed you’re hiring SDRs” > “I see you’re in {Industry}…” > "Saw you presented at {event}…” is sufficient. Use this personalization as a way to spark up a DM.
4. Make it a conversation, not a pitch—Nobody logs into LinkedIn hoping to get sold to. If you couldn’t find ways to engage or personalize, warm them up first by asking questions about their experience or thoughts; “I’ve spoken to a lot of {role} in {industry}, curious how you’re dealing with {pain point}…?”.
5. Ask for a meeting with value; “to share insights into how others in the market like {competitor and customer} are dealing with the {pain point}” > “to exchange perspective and network” > “to explore how {product} can be of help”.
6. If they don’t connect, you can always InMail. Just remember, it’s not an email—keep using the same personalisation methods and keep it short.
If they reject the meeting, it’s not game over. Be nice, even though you might want to cry inside, and invite them to an event or simply share insights to show how valuable you are. Over time, they might change jobs or timing might be better for them to speak to you.
Bonus hack: Voice notes & video DMs. Hardly anyone does it, but it’s personal and cuts through the noise—what’s the worse that could happen?
LinkedIn isn’t replacing cold calls, but it’s becoming a must-have channel for prospecting and you should be leveraging it.
Hot From the Press
Looking for a new opportunity? Make sure you follow us on our Linkedin page for weekly job updates.
More jobs, insights, and memes on our LinkedIn page here.
Make sure you’re subscribed here so you don’t miss any insights, latest jobs, and events in your city.
Cheers,
The BDR Community Team
Written by Nancy Tabash
Reply