How to Target Qualified Leads

I used to waste 3 hours every morning on LinkedIn with a pathetic 2% response rate. It was soul-crushing, especially when I knew high-value clients were out there somewhere. Then I discovered five hidden Sales Navigator features that completely transformed our approach. We now generate 50-100 pre-qualified prospects consistently, scaling our agency to $600K monthly. The game-changer? Competitor Connection Mining. Instead of basic filtering, I started connecting with sales reps at competing agencies, then used the "connections of" filter to see who they were talking to. This single tactic landed us a Fortune 500 client worth six figures. Buying Intent Signals was next. By filtering for people who "changed jobs in the last 90 days" AND "posted on LinkedIn in the last 30 days," we found prospects actively seeking solutions. These weren't cold leads - they were practically raising their hands for help. Technology Filtering revealed which tools companies were already investing in. For our PR agency, finding businesses using Sision or Meltwater showed they valued communications and were serious about growth. Smart Links with Advanced Analytics let us bundle case studies and proposals while tracking exactly which pages prospects viewed and for how long. No more generic follow-ups - we knew precisely what interested them. Boolean Searches refined everything to laser-precision. Combining "VP of marketing OR director of communications" with funding stages like "Series A OR Series B" connected us with decision-makers at companies with budget. The results speak for themselves: from struggling to find qualified leads to a consistent pipeline of perfect-fit prospects. Our close rate tripled within weeks. Want to see exactly how we implement these strategies? I've created a detailed walkthrough video showing these techniques in action. Watch the full breakdown here: https://lnkd.in/g-kbwNEe

Marketing to target accounts isn't about you. It's about solving their real, messy, human problems. The number 1 reason marketing campaigns fail? They're all about “us” when they should be about “them”. I see it every day; campaigns obsessing over: 💬 "Our unique differentiators" 💬 "Our feature set" 💬 "Our market position" Meanwhile, your prospect is lying awake thinking: 👉 "My team is drowning in work" 👉 "Our project is completely stuck" 👉 "I'm not going to hit my targets" 👉 "Leadership is pressuring me and I can't deliver" 👉 "If we screw this up, I'm on the hook" You need to know them on a human level. Because if you miss their pain points, you're invisible. Ready to make it about them? Here's your playbook: 1. Talk like a peer, not a pitch deck → Replace "leverage" with "use", "utilize" with "try", "implement" with "set up". Strip away the corporate speak. Write like you're messaging a colleague. 2. Lead with their pain points → Start messages with "I know you're dealing with..." or "Many [job title] tell me they struggle with..." Show you understand their world before pitching yours. 3. Focus on specific situations, not generic personas → Instead of “VPs at enterprise companies", try “Sales VPs with “X“ goal". Context beats demographics. 4. Educate first, sell second → Share frameworks, templates, and lessons learned. Build a content library that helps them win “right now”, whether they buy or not. The sales conversations will follow. 5. Show up consistently → Enterprise deals take 6-18 months. Map out a year of helpful content. One great post won't cut it - you need to become their trusted guide through the journey. 🎤 Your best campaign won't sound like a brag. It'll sound like empathy. It'll sound like: "Been there. Tried that. Here's what actually works." Looking for some legend-level stories of closers. Share a line or tactic that turned empathy into pipeline. 👇 _______________ If this post resonated with you, I’d be grateful if you could like it and follow me Jennelle McGrath for more insights. And if you’re feeling generous, a repost would mean the world. If there is anything I can do to help you in your journey, please do not hesitate to DM me! Thank you so much! ❤️

Trick question. The real secret? You don’t pick one. The best reps, founders, and marketers don’t choose a channel, they orchestrate them. Here’s how the top 1% actually do it: 📞 1. Cold Calling: Best for high-ticket, high-stakes deals. Why it works: Instant feedback. Real-time objection handling. Hard to ignore when done right. Example: You’ve emailed a $50k ARR prospect twice. They opened but didn’t reply. Pick up the phone: “Hey, saw you opened our last note on [XYZ pain]. Thought I’d check if it’s relevant or just bad timing.” Boom. Personalized, timely, human. 📧 2. Cold Email: Your best bet for scale + authority. Why it works: It’s scalable. Decision-makers scan emails more than DMs. When well-written, it builds authority. Example: Instead of “just following up,” you write: “Hey [Name], Saw your recent post on [Topic]. Really resonated with your take on [pain]. We worked with [Competitor] to solve the exact same bottleneck and cut their churn by 18%. If it’s on your radar too, happy to send over the playbook. Best, [Your Name]” Clean. Clear. Helpful. 💼 3. LinkedIn Outreach: Slow burn. Big payoff. Why it works: Warms people up through content. Lets you build visibility before the pitch. Adds social proof to your name. Tactical Example: Someone liked your LinkedIn post about lead gen. You shoot them a message: “Hey [Name], Thanks for engaging with my post on outbound. Curious, are you exploring new strategies for [topic] or just browsing ideas? Either way, would love to stay in touch.” Now you’re not a stranger. You’re relevant. 🔄 So... which one should you use? ➡️ All three. Together. Intentionally. Here’s a flow: Cold email → they open but don’t reply → follow up with a call. They engage on LinkedIn → send a DM → follow up with a helpful email. They’re cold → connect and engage for 2 weeks → email with value → call after warm intro. The goal: Be seen. Be helpful. Then be invited in.

How to Increase MQLs: Turning Interest into Intent In the world of growth marketing, traffic is just noise unless it leads to a qualified pipeline. If your funnel is full but your sales team is starved for viable leads, it’s time to shift your focus from quantity to quality—specifically, Marketing. So how do you increase MQLs without wasting budget or time? Here’s my forward-thinking plan: 1. Define What "Qualified" Really Means Start with alignment. If marketing and sales aren’t speaking the same language, your MQLs will always miss the mark. Build a lead scoring model based on firmographics (e.g. company size, industry), behaviors (e.g. demo request, content downloads), and engagement. Use historical data to reverse-engineer what a high-converting lead looks like. Tip: A shared MQL definition ensures smoother handoffs, higher close rates, and better attribution. 2. Create Content That Drives Action Top-funnel content builds awareness—but MQLs come from value-driven, mid-funnel assets: Case studies that show proof, Webinars that educate ROI calculators that engage, Product comparisons that signal intent. Each piece should guide the prospect to the next logical step—form fills, demo requests, or free trials. 3. Optimize Conversion Paths Look at your landing pages, forms, and CTAs. Are they aligned with your ICP? Are they frictionless? Shorten forms for cold leads; go deeper with warm ones. A/B test headlines, layouts, and calls to action. Use intent pop-ups, progressive profiling, and retargeting to re-engage visitors who didn’t convert. Remember: Small UX tweaks can lead to big MQL gains. 4. Leverage Marketing Automation & Lead Nurture Most leads aren’t ready to buy right away. But they can become MQLs with thoughtful nurturing: Drip campaigns tailored to behavior, Lead scoring updates based on engagement, and Dynamic content personalization. Done right, this doesn’t just keep your brand top-of-mind—it creates buying momentum. 5. Amplify What Works—Kill What Doesn’t Use your martech stack to track which channels and campaigns drive the most MQLs—not just clicks. Shift spend to high-converting audiences. Double down on SEO pages that capture intent. Eliminate vanity metrics from your dashboard. Data-driven iteration is the heartbeat of sustained MQL growth. Growing MQLs isn’t about casting a wider net—it’s about casting a smarter one. By aligning teams, refining your funnel, and focusing on real buyer intent, you don’t just generate more leads—you generate better leads. And that’s what fuels predictable, scalable growth. Need help building a strategy that delivers high-quality MQLs? As a Fractional CMO, I can bring the vision, team alignment, and executional rigor to make it happen—without the full-time overhead. Let's connect! #marketing #fractionalcmo #marketingmatters #cmo #growth #mql #pipeline #strategy #alignment #execution