LinkedIn Releases Sales Navigator App for Android, Integrates with Microsoft Dynamics CRM

LinkedIn added to its CRM toolbox today, announcing two updates to its Sales Navigator—integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM and an Android app.

Like its integration with Salesforce's CRM system, Sales Navigator's integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM lets users sync contacts and accounts from within the CRM interface, without forcing them to shift between the two.

The Sales Navigator app, previously available only on iOS, is now accessible to Android users through the Google Play app store. The app, LinkedIn says, is of use to salespeople on the go when they're trying to manage their accounts and stay in the loop regarding sudden job changes or work anniversaries, for example.

Launched last July, the LinkedIn Sales Navigator platform aims to help sales professionals stay focused on the key prospects within their social media networks. Drawing from a user’s LinkedIn profile, the program employs an algorithm to sort through saved preferences and settings to generate custom lead recommendations. A dashboard points out how a user is connected to a company and who the key influencers are within that firm at any given time. Instant notifications alert the salesperson about their prospects’ activity. With the tool, reps can save and keep track of leads, see who has been showing interest in their account, and track personnel changes within a company. Marketers can also leverage the tool for lead generation.

For LinkedIn, the updates come as the logical next step in efforts to encourage companies to drop traditional selling methods and prospect primarily through its platform. "Cold calls and emails are much less effective than they were in the past," Diana Kucer, director of global product marketing at LinkedIn says. "Sales professionals really need to change the way that they approach their job if they are to be more effective."  

The better option for B2B reps, Kucer suggests, is to leverage social connections and create lasting, meaningful relationships with multiple people within each organization. With the TeamLink edition, reps can leverage the connections of those who work within their company to introduce themselves to professionals outside of their immediate network. "We believe it's no longer about quantity, but quality. [It's about] finding the right people and really building quality relationships," Kucer says. "There is no longer just one decision maker within an organization. There are multiple people a salesperson needs to reach out to to make a sale."

The company points to research that supports these assertions. According to a recent Social Selling Index, which the company cited in a statement, the more connections salespeople have on social media, the more likely they are to perform at a high level. "We have a way of measuring effectiveness," Kucer says. "We have found that people with higher… social index scores are 51 percent more likely to meet their quota, and [that they] have 45 percent more opportunities per quarter."  

The index also indicates that those with more than 5,000 connections on LinkedIn are 98 percent likely to meet quota.

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