A few words on LinkedIn first
LinkedIn has evolved far beyond a digital CV platform. With over 1 billion users worldwide, including 65+ million decision-makers, it’s now the go-to B2B social platform for targeted lead generation and relationship building.
For Swiss-based SMEs and European business leaders, LinkedIn offers an unmatched opportunity to connect with the right people at the right time with the right message.
So… A few things about LinkedIn before we get into the interesting stuff:
- Professional-first platform: Users are there to talk business, not selfies or memes
- Data-rich profiles: Enables hyper-targeted searches based on job title, industry, company size, region, and more
- Trust factor: Engagements tend to be more serious and direct compared to other platforms
If your company on yourself isn’t leveraging LinkedIn as a lead generation and relationship engine, you’re leaving real revenue opportunities on the table.
Think of it as a digital networking salon.
Using LinkedIn ads to drive visibility and capture leads
Running ads on LinkedIn isn’t about vanity impressions. It’s about strategic visibility in front of the exact people who make purchasing decisions. Unlike other ad platforms, LinkedIn’s targeting lets you narrow down by professional demographics, such as:
- Seniority level (e.g. Director, VP, C-level)
- Company size (e.g. 11–50, 51–200 employees)
- Industry (e.g. manufacturing, finance, IT services)
- Job function (e.g. marketing, operations, procurement)
Types of LinkedIn ads you should consider
- Sponsored content: Promote thought leadership or use-case-driven articles directly in the feed. These work well for top-of-funnel visibility
- Lead Gen forms: Auto-filled forms capture user data with minimal friction. Great for whitepapers, webinars, or free consultations. Check out how we used Lead generation ads for one of our client.
- Message ads: Deliver personalized offers directly to the inboxes of targeted users, though use sparingly to avoid fatigue
- Dynamic ads: Useful for brand awareness at scale; less performance-focused than other formats
Best practices for LinkedIn ads
- Clear CTA: Always direct people toward a next step like book a call, download a resource, or attend an event
- A/B test aggressively: Headlines, creatives, and audience segments all need validation
- Use retargeting: Retarget website visitors or past ad engagers to warm up colder leads. You can now even retarget people who visited your company page. Pretty cool no?
Check out this LinkedIn Ads Guide, which is pretty interesting and filled with relevant information.
LinkedIn Social Selling, how to do it right
Social selling isn’t cold calling via DM. It’s about using personalized, data-backed outreach strategies to connect with the right people in a non-intrusive way. This approach is especially powerful for Swiss SMEs targeting niche buyers or decision-makers.
Tools like Waalaxy & Lemlist streamline the process and help automate outreach without losing the human touch.
Waalaxy:
- Multichannel workflows (LinkedIn + email)
- Prospect based on LinkedIn search filters
- Automated follow-up sequences with personalization variables
Lemlist:
- Focus on cold email but integrates with LinkedIn
- Allows image personalization (e.g. prospect’s logo or name)
- Tracks opens, replies, and link clicks
When used correctly, these tools allow your sales team to:
- Scale outreach to hundreds per week
- Personalize messages based on role or context
- Track lead funnel performance over time
Of course… Avoid spamming. LinkedIn has become stricter with connection limits and activity thresholds. Quality > quantity.
Social Selling strategies that work
- Engage before the pitch: Like, comment, or share a prospect’s content before reaching out. Build familiarity
- Use common ground: Mention mutual connections, groups, or events
- Always give value first: Offer insights, resources, or solutions, not generic sales pitches
Building relationships, not just a pipeline
This is where most people get it wrong.
Leads are only as good as the relationships behind them. LinkedIn excels not just at acquisition but retention and trust-building over time.
Use content to stay top of mind
- Post weekly with relevant content: Industry trends, client wins, behind-the-scenes, use cases
- Repurpose whitepapers or blogs into carousel posts, polls, or short videos
- Tag clients (with permission) and celebrate milestones. It boosts visibility and credibility
Is LinkedIn worth it for lead gen? 100%. If you have the right strategy
Many Swiss-based B2B companies are under-utilizing LinkedIn. Why? Because they either:
- Post inconsistently
- Run ads without strategic targeting
- Over-automate outreach without personalization
To fully unlock LinkedIn’s potential, your lead generation strategy must combine:
- Paid visibility through precisely targeted ads
- Organic reach via smart social selling and content creation
