Sales navigator prospecting

Sales Navigator Prospecting

Overview

Most teams treat Sales Navigator as a $99/month contact export — find prospects, paste the same message 4,000 times, wonder why LinkedIn "doesn't work." Morgan J. Ingram (Founder, AMP Social; 4x LinkedIn Top Sales Voice) treats Sales Nav as an intent engine: stack behavioral filters (posted recently, following your company, viewed your profile, tenure windows), pair each filter with its own message, and run a 15-minute daily saved-search alert workflow.

This skill is the tactical Sales Nav layer. Load social-selling for profile optimization, SSI, and general DM sequencing; load linkedin-algorithm when reps also publish content and need feed reach mechanics.

When to Use

• "How do I actually use Sales Navigator?"
• "Sales Nav isn't generating meetings"
• "Morgan Ingram Sales Navigator playbook"
• "Filter-specific LinkedIn messages"
• "Get executives to respond on LinkedIn"
• "10-minute Sales Nav saved search"
• "Posted in last 30 days filter"
• "Build a Sales Nav workflow for my SDR team"

Authoritative Foundations

Morgan J. Ingram (AMP Social) — filter-specific prospecting. Public thesis: each Sales Navigator filter is a signal that deserves its own message — not one recycled script. Core motions: high-intent filter stacks, insight + question comments on recent posts, 24–48 hour wait before connect, saved-search weekly alerts, and multi-thread plays per account. Trained teams at Zoom, HubSpot, Snowflake (public positioning). Full filter tables, message library, and weekly workflow → references/morgan-ingram-sales-navigator.md.

LinkedIn SSI Methodology — professional brand, finding people, engaging with insights, building relationships. Use SSI as a diagnostic; Ingram's motion is the operational layer on top.

Richard van der Blom (Just Connecting) — when reps also post content, apply feed mechanics (dwell time, golden hour, no external links in posts) so profile traffic from Sales Nav outreach converts. → linkedin-algorithm.

Prerequisites

• Sales Navigator Core or Advanced seat
• ICP defined: titles, seniority, company size, geography
• Optimized personal profile (social-selling Phase 1)
• CRM or spreadsheet to log filter variant → response rate

Step-by-Step Process

Phase 1: Audit the Current Motion

1. Export last 30 days of LinkedIn outreach: message text, filter used (if any), sends, accepts, replies, meetings.
2. Flag one-template abuse — same body copy across unlike filters.
3. Baseline response rate by message variant; set improvement target per filter.

Phase 2: Build High-Intent Saved Searches

Create one saved search per motion (enable weekly alert):

1. Active executives — Posted last 30 days + VP/C-suite + ICP geo/industry.
2. Warm to brand — Following your company + target titles.
3. Profile viewers — Viewed your profile in last 90 days.
4. New in role — Years in company < 1 year + buyer titles.
5. Buying window — Years in company 6–12 months + buyer titles.

Document each search in a playbook table: filter stack, message variant ID, owner.

Phase 3: Write Filter-Specific Messages

Build 12+ variants minimum (see template table in reference). Rules:

• Open with the filter signal ("Noticed your post on…", "Saw you're [N] months into…", "Thanks for following [company]…").
• No product pitch in connection request or first DM.
• One clear question per touch; invite conversation.

Phase 4: Executive Engagement (Posted-in-30-Days)

1. Find recent post from saved-search lead.
2. Comment: insight + question (not "great post").
3. Wait 24–48 hours.
4. Connection request referencing the exchange.
5. After accept: DM with value; meeting ask only after rapport.

Phase 5: Weekly 15-Minute Rhythm

• Monday: triage saved-search alerts; rank by intent (viewed profile > posted > following company).
• Tue–Thu: comments + connection requests (batch 10–15/day per rep).
• Friday: DM follow-ups; log meetings; retire underperforming variants.

Phase 6: Multi-Thread Target Accounts

For ABM accounts, assign different filter plays per persona on the same account (exec, champion, technical). Coordinate in CRM to avoid duplicate pitches same week. → multi-thread-orchestration.

Output Format

Sales Navigator prospecting playbook: current-state audit, five saved-search definitions with filter stacks, 12 filter-specific message variants, executive engagement runbook (comment → wait → connect → DM), 15-minute daily/weekly calendar, multi-thread map for top accounts, and measurement dashboard (response rate by filter, meetings per search).

Quality Check

• Every saved search has a unique message variant (no generic blast)
• Executive motion uses insight+question, not "great post"
• 24–48 hour wait between comment and connection request documented
• Weekly alert enabled on each saved search
• Profile optimized before outreach scales (social-selling)
• CRM logs filter type for reply-rate analysis
• Multi-thread plan exists for tier-1 accounts

Common Pitfalls

1. One script for every filter. Wastes the strongest Sales Nav signals; Ingram's 5× pipeline lift illustration comes from filter-message matching.

2. Instant connect after comment. Reads as automation; breaks trust.

3. Skipping "viewed your profile" and "following company." Highest-intent free signals in the stack.

4. No tenure-based plays. New leaders (< 1 year) and month-6–12 operators have different pains — same message misses both.

5. Sales Nav without profile investment. Prospects check your profile; empty activity kills accept rates.

6. Attribution only in last-touch CRM. LinkedIn pipeline is often dark social — add self-reported source fields.

Execution Artifacts

• references/framework-notes.md — Framework index and authority routing
• templates/output-template.md — Deliverable shell
• scripts/check-output.py — Lightweight deliverable validator
• references/morgan-ingram-sales-navigator.md — Filters, messages, workflows

Related Skills

• social-selling: Profile, SSI, general DM sequencing
• linkedin-algorithm: Organic content reach when pairing with outbound
• list-building: Multi-source lists; Sales Nav as one source
• multi-channel-outreach: Email/call steps on same prospects
• multi-thread-orchestration: ABM persona coordination