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Why Anyone Selling on LinkedIn Needs Sales Navigator (Even If It Feels Overpriced)
Let’s just address it upfront.
Sales Navigator is expensive.
When you stack it next to everything else you are already paying for — CRM, data tools, automation platforms, marketing software — it can feel like one more subscription draining the budget.
But if your buyers live on LinkedIn and you are serious about pipeline, not having Sales Navigator is far more expensive than paying for it.
Because without it, you are operating blind.
Regular LinkedIn looks powerful on the surface.
After all, there are nearly a billion users on the platform. It should be easy to find the exact people you want to talk to… right?
Not exactly.
Trying to build a targeted list inside the standard LinkedIn experience is surprisingly frustrating.
You type in a title like “VP of Sales,” click through a few menus, adjust some filters, and eventually land on a results page that still feels broad and unstructured.
Then you realize:
Instead of quickly identifying your buyers, you end up wrestling with the interface.
For a platform built around professional networking, it is oddly difficult to precisely find professionals.
The moment you open Sales Navigator, the difference is obvious.
Instead of forcing you to hunt for filters, it asks a simple question:
Are you searching for people or accounts?
That distinction alone changes how you prospect.
You can build lists based on:
One tactic I use often is searching by function instead of obsessing over exact titles.
For example, instead of hunting only for CROs or RevOps leaders, I might search “Revenue” and layer in seniority filters. That approach surfaces decision-makers I might otherwise miss.
It expands the top of funnel without sacrificing relevance.
There are two filters inside Sales Navigator that I believe every operator should be using.
And surprisingly, most are not.
This is one of the highest-converting signals in modern prospecting.
When someone steps into a new role, three things are usually true:
Reaching out during this window dramatically increases your odds of starting a conversation.
Timing matters more than messaging.
Want a fast way to avoid sending connection requests into a black hole?
Target people who are actually active.
If someone posted in the last month, you know they are logging in. You know they are engaging.
This single filter can quietly improve acceptance rates and response rates without changing anything about your outreach.
It is one of the simplest ways to generate quicker ROI from your prospecting effort.
Here is a hard truth many professionals ignore:
Just because you have thousands of connections does not mean you have thousands of relationships.
You might have 5,000… even 10,000 connections.
But your real tribe?
It is probably closer to 20 to 50 people.
The people you could actually call and say:
“Hey - could you introduce me?”
Sales Navigator lets you operationalize those relationships through one of its most underrated features:
Type in someone you trust — a customer, advisor, investor, or industry peer — and instantly see people they know that you do not.
Now your outreach becomes warmer.
Instead of sending another cold message, you can say:
“I noticed you are connected with Zan - would you be open to introducing us?”
That one shift can completely change the trajectory of a deal.
Warm paths outperform cold ones. Every time.
Here is something most teams overlook.
People follow your company because they are interested.
Yet on standard LinkedIn, it is surprisingly difficult to identify them and start a direct conversation.
Sales Navigator fixes that.
With the “Following Your Company” filter, you can quickly find professionals already signaling intent — including second and third-degree connections.
These are not random prospects.
They already raised their hand.
Why would you not talk to them?
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