When we talk about Account-Based Marketing (ABM) on LinkedIn, we often focus on identifying the right decision-makers, crafting the perfect advertising strategy.
When we talk about the organic person-to-person approach, we consider the outreach message, choose between free vs. premium LinkedIn features, and post your content so your target audience sees it.
But what happens once someone actually accepts your request to connect? How do you move that relationship from “cold contact” to a meaningful pipeline?
At Pitch121, we call the personal profile strategy, Profile-Based Marketing (PBM). By capitalising on personal profiles rather than purely relying on a corporate page, you can more seamlessly nurture prospects and guide them into the next stage of the buying journey.
This article will delve into how you can optimise that post-connection experience—turning LinkedIn acceptance into genuine opportunities for your ABM programme.
Traditional ABM campaigns sometimes revolve around marketing automation, adverts, and targeted landing pages. While these tactics help with broader awareness, we’ve seen personal LinkedIn profiles play a pivotal role in accelerating deals. Why?
Let’s break down the key stages that typically occur once a prospect has clicked “Accept” on your connection request.
Immediate Introduction or Conversation Starter
Once they accept, the window is open. We wouldn’t jump into a sales pitch; instead, send a brief “thanks for connecting” message that references any recent conversation triggers (e.g., their post on industry trends or a mutual contact).
Ongoing Micro-Engagement
Over the next few weeks, comment on their new posts or like a status update they share. This consistent but light-touch approach keeps you on their radar without being intrusive.
Sharing Insightful Content
Once you’ve established a bit of familiarity, share articles, case studies, or insights that genuinely solve challenges they might face. This helps transition from a casual connection to a value-driven conversation. However, this technique has been so heavily used that it can seem like a ‘canned’ message sequence, so keep it light and get permission. Content shares can be another form of spam.
Taking It Off LinkedIn
Ultimately, you want to move promising conversations into a more direct setting, be that email, a phone call, or a video call. LinkedIn is the catalyst, but the real pipeline acceleration typically happens once you can delve deeper into their pain points and propose solutions.
Account-Based Marketing typically involves multiple touchpoints across the buying committee. Each one can stall or expedite a deal. Using your personal profile to nurture connections means:
Because of the goodwill your senior sales or marketing leaders create on LinkedIn, an SDR’s subsequent phone call or email to the same contact typically sees a higher success rate. When the prospect already recognises your brand and even sees multiple team members sharing consistent messaging, the next step in your ABM funnel (like scheduling a discovery call) becomes far easier.
We’re still gathering new data for the LinkedIn Outreach Handbook, but here are some observations we’ve made at Pitch121 from past campaigns:
You might be wondering how Sales Navigator (discussed in our previous article) fits into this post-connection landscape. If you have a premium plan, you can set alerts for the prospect’s activity, making it easier to engage them at the right moment. However, even on a free account, if you’re diligent about regularly checking your feed or visiting their profile to see what they’ve posted, you can stay in the loop. The critical difference is whether you’re consistently leveraging personal outreach to build momentum.
Our Q1 polls and website pop-up focus on exactly these micro-engagement strategies:
All of these insights will funnel into our research for the LinkedIn Outreach Handbook, where we’ll analyse what truly accelerates or slows down the path from connection to pipeline.
Set a ‘Welcome’ Message:
Draft a friendly, short note you can personalise for each new connection. Keep it genuine, referencing one relevant detail about them. Video messages will make you stand out in the inbox.
Schedule Regular Engagement:
Block out 15 minutes a day to see if your new contacts have posted anything you can comment on.
Offer Value Early:
If you’ve got a relevant case study or quick insight, offer to share it in a personal message.
Nurture Before And After You Connect:
Build rapport and create goodwill so when you finally suggest a call, it feels like the logical next step rather than a sales ambush.
Moving a connection from acceptance to tangible pipeline opportunities on LinkedIn is not about hard-selling or over-automating your follow-ups. It’s about leveraging personal profiles to make deeper, more authentic connections, exactly what ABM strives to achieve.
If you’ve got your own stories or tips about how you turn new connections into pipeline opportunities, we’d love to hear from you. Join our Q1 polls to share your thoughts. Your experiences will help shape the final findings in our LinkedIn Outreach Handbook, launching in Q2.
Until then, keep focusing on the human side of LinkedIn. Every new connection is a chance to build genuine trust and, ultimately, accelerate your ABM pipeline.
