How I get a 37% reply rate on LinkedIn using “Warm Outreach” instead of cold outreach

If you’re in a B2B niche you’ve probably tried direct LinkedIn outreach to land some customers. For most, this means finding a list of people who fit basic ICP filters - Job Title, Industry, Headcount and either spam a bunch of generic DM’s or spend 10 minutes figuring out how to make your messaging relevant.

I used that same strategy for 2 years and even built a basic automation SaaS around it, and while I was booking 2-3 meetings a month, my reply rates were shit, like 5-10%.

The biggest difference between what I was doing then and now is what I call Warm Outreach.

Here’s how it's done.

Step 1

Find 5 competitors and 5-10 keywords that are relevant in your niche.

Step 2

Post 1x/day. Workflows, Lead magnets, Personal anecdotes, Hot takes. Whatever is relevant to your buyer and will get some engagement.

Step 3

Every day, extract the leads who are interacting with these sources.

Leads engaging with your posts

Leads engaging with your competitors posts

People posting content with keywords in your niche (just use a basic LinkedIn search)

Personal Profile Visitors

Step 4

Send 30 connection requests a day to the leads that actually match your ICP. Filter out irrelevant titles, industries, etc.

Step 5

Send a short, hyper personalized intro message referencing their specific activity.

ex) Saw you also follow Adam Robinson’s content, he’s been on a tear recently. Happy to connect :)

Step 6

Follow up with leads who DO NOT reply after your first message.

***This is where so many people fail, just because a prospect ignored your first message doesn’t mean the door is closed forever. I always send 3 messages before abandoning a lead.

It’s pretty straightforward and simple, but this strategy works wonders. Just yesterday I sent 19 DM’s and got 9 replies, two of which took a demo.

Hope this helps anyone else struggling with outreach.

-Matt