On average, sales teams that incorporate LinkedIn automation software see a 25% higher acceptance rate and 30%+ surge in reply rates during the first month! Why is this so?
LinkedIn Automation – the only way to maintain sustainable lead flow-in
Well, let’s start with the numbers. An average sales specialist spends 3,44 hours per day on repetitive tasks — like opening people’s LinkedIn profiles, copying and pasting them to a CSV document, then typing a message and sending a connection request.
For a modern sales specialist it’s just non-acceptable at all. If all these tasks can be easily done by a tool for 50 bucks a month, is there any other reason to keep doing it yourself? A LinkedIn automation tool also takes over other important tasks – it sends messages on autopilot and tracks all the results for you. It also helps to keep your Inbox in order to help you remember who you talked to, when and how your conversation ended. All this is crucial for your efficiency. Think about the time released as a result of incorporating such a tool!
Is it really effective in 2023?
You may think that automation equals spam. Can those mass-blasted messages be effective? The answer is yes. It all depends on HOW YOU WRITE YOUR MESSAGES. THE TOOL WILL ONLY SEND YOUR MESSAGES ON AUTOPILOT – EITHER GOOD ONES OR BAD ONES. So, let’s sum up some of the benefits you get by employing LinkedIn automation software:
You save up to 6 hours per day (!) You incorporate useful analytics system that lets you see what works best for you and what will help you earn (which messages “hit hard”) You keep all the leads and conversations in order in your Inbox – save time on manual lead management by installing a modern LinkedIn CRM (which usually is the part of a good LinkedIn automation software) You speed up lead engagement and shorten sales cycle = more sales
What is some best LinkedIn automation software out there?
LinkedIn lead gen boils down to:
Optimising profile Building lists of leads Creating script Automation with software Booking meetings Closing deals
Nothing has changed! It’s still the perfect recipe for LinkedIn success. The quality of your automation tool can either make it or break it for your business. So, since we’ve concluded that LinkedIn automation today is detrimental to your ROI, let’s see what are the options available on the market. Choosing the best LinkedIn automation software available might take time and effort. We’ve compiled a list of the popular LinkedIn automation tools, descriptions of their top features, our honest opinions about any drawbacks, and connections to their respective websites.
#1 Closely – Perfect Automation + B2B Database
Closely is generally the top solution for any sales team. It’s not purely LinkedIn automation, it’s also a B2B contact database – the place where you can dig up anyone’s email for your sales purposes. And it’s really cheap!
Closely is our #1 tool and we use it for engaging leads from LinkedIn (automated campaigns, templates, personalization with placeholders, the ability to upload leads from LinkedIn events and groups, cool analytics) and for finding emails and phone numbers of leads. Closely is a top-notch solution, and you can actually get it for like 50 bucks lifetime from AppSumo. And we like that it’s cheap. The only con is that there is no integrations with third-party apps yet and no email campaigns. What is very useful to know is that it’s the only tool that’s almost bug-free. Their UI is PERFECT. Pros
Best price-quality ratio that exists now Safe tool because works in cloud Access your Linkedin inbox from the app and manage conversation as in CRM Messages to your network in one click Advanced lead list building Custom drip campaign building Autolike and skills endorsement of users B2B contact database with 150 million records of phone numbers and emails Super and fast support Incredible and flawless interface Lots of content useful for sales and founders (Closers Community in Facebook) Amazing team – we texted directly to the product manager on Facebook and got a reply 50 credits for free upon registration Only $50 per month and really worth it The LinkedIn Outreach Templates is a great addition
Cons
Doesn’t provide webhooks or integrations
Haven’t seen automaton for 1st-degree connections
Closely also has an extension – useful add-on to the main tool. It will scrape LinkedIn profiles and get you emails of people. It’s called Closely Surfer.
# 2 Octopus CRM – Best Price But Can Create Problems With Safety
Octopus CRM is a comprehensive solution that automates LinkedIn prospecting and provides CRM to manage your LinkedIn contacts. It’s one of the greatest LinkedIn lead finding tools out there, and it can help you identify and nurture prospects via LinkedIn using virtually entirely automated processes. Pros
Keeps updating your data and constantly assessing your progress Affordable price compare to other CRMs Mass message to 1st-level connections Auto endorse skills of your 1st-level contacts Poor customer support
Cons
It’s an extension — it means it may not be that safe (although we didn’t experience any issues) The tools itself is a bit clunky (may be hard to get the hang of it for inexperienced users or tech virgins) Support is terrible
In general, we wouldn’t recommend Octopus CRM because it’s an extension. To find your account banned on LinkedIn is the worst thing that can happen, especially if you’re using just one profile for prospecting. Opt for safe automation!
#3 Phantombuster – Perfect for Tech Guys, Cheap Data Scraper
Phantombuster provides lots of shortcuts for those who work with LinkedIn. If you’re a very technical guy — go ahead, that might be interesting for you. You can extract LinkedIn members from a search or a group, and you can send customised messages to your LinkedIn contacts. Phantombuster doesn’t come with that much intuitive interface. It’s usually quite challenging for the sales team to start using it. However, this platform is good if you need to cover multiple platforms for your outreach, and not just LinkedIn. This tool will also let you scrape emails from LinedIn groups and posts, auto-like content, and auto-endorse skills.
Pros
Gathers as much information as possible by scraping LinkedIn profiles Allows you to extract emails of LinkedIn group members Twitter Auto Follow/Instagram Auto Follow feature available Many more platforms covered, not just LinkedIn automation Allows to export LinkedIn searches in bulk Auto-endorsement and auto-likes feature
Cons
It lacks sufficient third-party integrations It’s an extension – which means potential safety issues for your LinkedIn account
Use it carefully, and start with small amounts of tasks for automation. But better avoid LinkedIn extensions at all.
#4 Expandi – Popular But Lacks Important Functionality
When it comes to LinkedIn automation tools, Expandi is among the most popular tools. Connection campaigns, customized LinkedIn messages, and sophisticated targeting helps in raising your profile’s visibility and shortening your funnel. Additionally, it provides several tried-and-true growth strategies on their blog that will help your company flourish quickly. However, there are some issues that didn’t let us pin it on the winners’ wall. Pros
It’s cloud-based It can mimic human behavior (warm-up an account) Custom drip campaign building You can send hyper-personalized messages using placeholders Zapier integration Continuous improvements and new features delivery Loved their content Reporting is accurate
Cons
Sometimes automation lacks logic (for example, how they spread connection limits across campaigns) Expensive Interface needs improvement (Didn’t like the UI, it’s really buggy)
#4 Zopto – Solid LinkedIn Automation But Lacks Personalization
You can automate your lead generation process and get access to new clients and markets with the help of Zopto, a cloud-based lead generation platform. It won’t take more than a few minutes to be set up, and since it’s a cloud-based solution, there’s nothing to download, and you can rest assured your account is not at risk.
Auto-scale-up, random delays, and intervals help simulate human behavior and decrease risk of ban Quick and simple LinkedIn message automation Auto likes Custom-built drip campaigns Email Enrichment Support is very good
Cons
Small number of variables (placeholders), so very poor personalization Overpriced, to our humble opinion (other tools provide more features for the same price) Issues with campaign scheduling may happen
#5 Dripify – Mid-tier automation option
It’s just a simple LinkedIn automation tool. With Dripify, you can build a high-converting sales funnel on LinkedIn in a matter of minutes. You may automate your prospect analysis using this cloud-based service. The tool allows you to import leads from CSV files and construct an effective prospecting sequence. The process of managing leads is simplified using this tool.
Pros
It’s easy to set up many outreach campaigns for multiple LinkedIn accounts under a single account You can manage all of your discussions in one convenient location Automatically send connection requests to a selected group of people who share your interests Ease of use
Cons
The current user interface may be improved since it is antiquated A mid-tier option in terms of price-quality ratio. Other tools deliver more features for the same price
#6 Dux-Soup – Automation With Very Bad UI
You can easily locate, attract, and interact with prospects on LinkedIn with the help of Dux-Soup, an automation solution for LinkedIn. It provides an algorithm that monitors your prospects’ LinkedIn pages, endorses skills, and communicates with them using customized messages. By expanding your LinkedIn network, you may reach more potential buyers and shorten your sales cycle. You may notify your prospects from the existing network directly when a new product or service is released. However, the tool is VERY CLUNKY. If you love complex user interfaces — go for it. Pros
Cheap extension
Cons
Steep learning curve Interface is very horrible You do everything via the DuxSoup extension, which is inconvenient, while other tools provide a separate interface where you can do your work
#7 Meet Alfred – Very Buggy Automation
MeetAlfred is meant to enable comprehensive social selling campaigns. As a result, you can better target the right users with the right messages through social selling. However, despite the nice UX, it really stood working at times, even when connecting to your LinkedIn. You can even have problems with disconnecting your account from LinkedIn. Pros
UX and seems to be very straightforward
Cons
Lack of reliable customer service Bugs all the time
Takeaway
LinkedIn automation is what can propel your business forward at a crazy pace. It’s what saves MUCH of your time and money, but it’s very important to choose a SAFE and reliable solution that provides bang for a buck. Although it may be against LinkedIn’s terms of service, LinkedIn automation is completely legal and successfully used everywhere. Content, invitations to connect, and communications may all be generated and sent with the help of automation technologies. We’ve listed the 7 most popular tools. Among them, you can clearly see which option is worth trying. We would go for Closely or Expandi and use PhantomBuster for various shortcuts on LinkedIn (only if you’re a fan of complex tools and love to explore). And if you need data scraping on Twitter and other social media, not just LinkedIn – then try PhantomBuster. Keep in mind that Phantombuster is an extension – use it VERY CAREFULLY. If you don’t know a squad about LinkedIn automation, don’t risk and use cloud-based solutions like Closely or Expandi. Closely is a clear winner for us since it’s not just the safest and most result-oriented solution, but also a solid B2B base of business contacts. Most of these tools offer a free trial – so don’t waste your time and try any of our winners right now!
