--- title: "What Is Prospecting? Definition and Methods" description: "Prospecting explained: the definition, the main methods and a six-step process. Learn how you find new customers on LinkedIn and with Sales Navigator." url: "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting" lang: "en" lastModified: "2026-10-02T18:00:07.548Z" alternates: de: "https://compleadly.de/blog/was-ist-prospecting" en: "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting" fr: "https://compleadly.com/fr/blog/prospection-definition" es: "https://compleadly.com/es/blog/que-es-la-prospeccion" it: "https://compleadly.com/it/blog/cos-e-il-prospecting" pt: "https://compleadly.com/pt/blog/o-que-e-prospeccao" x-default: "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting" --- [Blog](https://compleadly.com/blog) [Lead Generation & Outreach](https://compleadly.com/blog/category/lead-generation-outreach) # What Is Prospecting? Definition, Methods and Prospecting on LinkedIn October 2, 202614 min read ![Sebastian Andes, Philipp Krapp & CompLeadly Team](https://media.compleadly.de/media/8b720e679e2f2b08cc017d1938d026c62e625a21790c6df1284c2d4075cb3582-2.webp)Sebastian Andes, Philipp Krapp & CompLeadly Team Last updated on October 2, 2026 ![A cyan magnifying glass over a field of many small contact dots on a navy background, with a few glowing dots flowing along a path into a funnel, symbolizing prospecting](https://media.compleadly.de/media/1bfaf041c1e65d0b3552edcba53ce35f77e8a7a51df4d7efd09074b87b262944.jpg) --- Table of contents [Prospecting definition: what the term means](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-definition-what-the-term-means)[Prospecting meaning: where the word comes from](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-meaning-where-the-word-comes-from)[Prospect vs. lead: a quick note](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospect-vs-lead-a-quick-note)[Prospecting methods compared](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-methods-compared)[Cold calling](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#cold-calling)[Cold email](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#cold-email)[Prospecting on LinkedIn](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-on-linkedin)[Social selling](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#social-selling)[The prospecting process in 6 steps](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#the-prospecting-process-in-6-steps)[1\. Define your ideal customer profile](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#1-define-your-ideal-customer-profile)[2\. Build your list](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#2-build-your-list)[3\. Research](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#3-research)[4\. Make first contact](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#4-make-first-contact)[5\. Follow up](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#5-follow-up)[6\. Qualify](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#6-qualify)[LinkedIn prospecting with Sales Navigator](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#linkedin-prospecting-with-sales-navigator)[Prospecting KPIs: what to measure](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-kpis-what-to-measure)[Prospecting in sales, recruiting and job search](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-in-sales-recruiting-and-job-search)[Sales](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#sales)[Recruiting: prospecting is called sourcing here](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#recruiting-prospecting-is-called-sourcing-here)[Job seekers: your target employer list](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#job-seekers-your-target-employer-list)[How CompLeadly helps with LinkedIn prospecting](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#how-compleadly-helps-with-linkedin-prospecting)[Frequently asked questions: prospecting](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#frequently-asked-questions-prospecting) // contents [Prospecting definition: what the term means](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-definition-what-the-term-means)[Prospecting meaning: where the word comes from](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-meaning-where-the-word-comes-from)[Prospect vs. lead: a quick note](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospect-vs-lead-a-quick-note)[Prospecting methods compared](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-methods-compared)[Cold calling](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#cold-calling)[Cold email](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#cold-email)[Prospecting on LinkedIn](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-on-linkedin)[Social selling](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#social-selling)[The prospecting process in 6 steps](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#the-prospecting-process-in-6-steps)[1\. Define your ideal customer profile](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#1-define-your-ideal-customer-profile)[2\. Build your list](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#2-build-your-list)[3\. Research](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#3-research)[4\. Make first contact](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#4-make-first-contact)[5\. Follow up](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#5-follow-up)[6\. Qualify](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#6-qualify)[LinkedIn prospecting with Sales Navigator](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#linkedin-prospecting-with-sales-navigator)[Prospecting KPIs: what to measure](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-kpis-what-to-measure)[Prospecting in sales, recruiting and job search](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#prospecting-in-sales-recruiting-and-job-search)[Sales](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#sales)[Recruiting: prospecting is called sourcing here](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#recruiting-prospecting-is-called-sourcing-here)[Job seekers: your target employer list](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#job-seekers-your-target-employer-list)[How CompLeadly helps with LinkedIn prospecting](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#how-compleadly-helps-with-linkedin-prospecting)[Frequently asked questions: prospecting](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#frequently-asked-questions-prospecting) Prospecting is the work of finding potential customers and making first contact with them before they come to you. You decide who fits your offer, find those people, research them and reach out until you know whether a sales conversation makes sense. That makes prospecting the first step of every outbound sales process. **Last updated: 2 October 2026.** ## Prospecting definition: what the term means LinkedIn defines the term in its sales glossary, an undated LinkedIn Sales Solutions resource rather than a help article: “Sales prospecting, the first step in the sales cycle, is a strategic process of identifying and connecting with potential buyers known as prospects.” LinkedIn names the goal as well: a database of qualified leads that enter the sales funnel and eventually turn into revenue-generating buyers. Source: [LinkedIn Sales Solutions: Prospecting](https://business.linkedin.com/sell/resources/sales-terms/prospecting) (a LinkedIn sales resource), retrieved 2 October 2026. Two points get lost in daily work. You are the active party: you pick the people instead of waiting. And prospecting does not stop at a list of names; it is done when you know whether someone has a need and will talk. ### Prospecting meaning: where the word comes from “To prospect” is a mining term. Prospectors searched for gold and ore before anyone built a mine. Sales keeps the picture: you look for the spots worth digging first. A prospect, in sales language, is a potential customer you have identified but not yet sold to. ## Prospect vs. lead: a quick note Sales teams do not agree on which word comes first. In LinkedIn's definition, prospects are the potential buyers who become qualified leads. Many teams draw the line the other way around: a lead fits your target market, a prospect has already confirmed a need and a willingness to talk. That is how we use the terms in [What Is a Lead? Definition, Lead vs. Prospect, Qualification](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-a-lead), which also separates both from contacts and customers. The label matters less than consistency: your whole team should use the same definition. ## Prospecting methods compared Which method you choose depends on where your buyers can be reached and how much your offer needs explaining. The table covers four common methods that combine well in B2B. | Method | What it is good for | Effort | | ----------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Cold calling | Fast answers in a live conversation, when you have the right person's number and the offer needs explaining | High: every call ties you up for its full length, even when nobody picks up | | Cold email | A first message with a link or meeting request to many recipients at once | Medium: finding and verifying addresses, writing copy for each segment | | LinkedIn (connect, message, InMail) | Finding decision makers by role, company and region and reaching out with context | Medium: building the search, checking profiles, planning around LinkedIn's invitation limits | | Social selling | Building trust before you reach out, through posts, comments and a well-kept profile | Ongoing: steady work whose effect builds slowly | ### Cold calling The phone is fast when it works and expensive when it does not: you need a direct line, and you have no context to build on. Why cold calling converts so poorly in B2B, and how to pair it with a warm first touch on LinkedIn, is the subject of [What Is Cold Calling?](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-cold-calling) ### Cold email Cold email scales as long as your addresses are valid, but the inbox shows a name nobody knows. It often works better as a second channel once you are connected on LinkedIn. ### Prospecting on LinkedIn LinkedIn gives you something phone and email cannot: before you write a word, you see who someone is, where they work and what they posted last. For people you do not know yet, LinkedIn's own help center names two routes: “Use InMail and Groups to network with LinkedIn members you don't know.” How shared groups get you in front of the right people is covered in [LinkedIn Groups for Lead Generation](https://compleadly.com/blog/linkedin-groups-lead-generation). Source: [LinkedIn Help: Types of restrictions for sending invitations](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a551012), retrieved 2 October 2026. ### Social selling Social selling is the groundwork that warms up your first message. For years LinkedIn offered the Social Selling Index as its yardstick. The page is now titled “From Social Selling Index (SSI) to AI”, and LinkedIn itself writes there that “the SSI score no longer accurately reflects the modern sales environment.” What the index measures and how to read it today is in [LinkedIn SSI: The Social Selling Index](https://compleadly.com/blog/linkedin-ssi-the-social-selling-index-and-how-to-use-it-for-greater-success). Source: [LinkedIn Sales Solutions: From SSI to AI](https://business.linkedin.com/sell/resources/SSI), retrieved 29 September 2026. ## The prospecting process in 6 steps The six steps work for any channel; the examples use LinkedIn. ### 1\. Define your ideal customer profile Write down which companies fit: industry, size, region. Then the people inside them: role, seniority, department. Add a trigger that makes a need likely, such as a job change, a new hire on the team or a post about your topic. ### 2\. Build your list Turn the profile into a search: the regular LinkedIn people search or, for finer filters, Sales Navigator. Save the search so new matches keep coming in. Fifty people who clearly fit beat 500 who might. ### 3\. Research Look at each profile before you write. What does the person do, since when, what do they post about, do you share a group or a connection? That gives you the one sentence that sets your message apart from a mass message. ### 4\. Make first contact On LinkedIn that is usually a connection request, with or without a note. According to LinkedIn Help, the note can be up to 200 characters. On a free account the current help page lets you personalize “up to three connection requests per month”; older help pages say five. Premium members can add a note to every request. Wording for every occasion is in [LinkedIn Connection Message Templates](https://compleadly.com/blog/linkedin-connection-message-templates). Source: [LinkedIn Help: Personalize invitations to connect](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a563153), retrieved 2 October 2026. ### 5\. Follow up No reply to your first message is not a no yet. Plan one or two follow-ups a few days apart and stop as soon as someone replies or says no. Each one should add a new thought. Ready-made copy with timing is in our [follow-up templates for email and LinkedIn](https://compleadly.com/blog/follow-up-email-templates). ### 6\. Qualify When someone replies, find out in the conversation whether there is a fit: is the need real, who else is involved in the decision, and when would a purchase be realistic? Only then does the contact become an opportunity for your sales team, usually with a booked meeting. ## LinkedIn prospecting with Sales Navigator You do not need a paid plan for LinkedIn prospecting, but without one you run into limits sooner. LinkedIn describes two rules openly. The first is the commercial use limit on searches and profile views. LinkedIn explicitly counts prospecting as commercial use: the notice appears when “your activity on LinkedIn indicates that you're likely using LinkedIn for commercial use, like hiring or prospecting.” LinkedIn does not publish a number, and the free allowance resets on the 1st of each month. As a way out, the help page lists upgrading to Premium Business, Recruiter Lite or Sales Navigator to increase “the number of profile searches and views.” Source: [LinkedIn Help: Commercial use limit on search](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a564226), retrieved 2 October 2026. The second concerns invitations. LinkedIn Help says invitation limits apply to all members, “including those with Basic and Premium accounts.” LinkedIn does not state a weekly number. Source: [LinkedIn Help: Invitation limit reached](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a550555), retrieved 2 October 2026. Sales Navigator is LinkedIn's own tool for this work. The help center puts it this way: “LinkedIn Sales Navigator helps businesses generate leads and find the right prospects.” ([LinkedIn Help: Send messages on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a554575), retrieved 2 October 2026). For prospecting, these features matter most: - **Filters:** The plan comparison promises “50+ advanced search filters.” The help center groups lead filters into company, role, personal, buyer intent, best path in, recent updates and workflow, for example “Changed jobs (in the last 90 days)” or “Posted on LinkedIn.” Some buyer intent filters are only available on Advanced and Advanced Plus. - **Saved searches:** “You can save a total of 50 lead searches and 50 account searches.” LinkedIn sends weekly emails and homepage alerts when new people or companies match. - **Boolean search:** AND, OR and NOT must be typed in uppercase. They work in the company, title and keyword fields, with a limit of about 15 operators per search. - **InMail:** Every Sales Navigator plan includes 50 InMail credits per month. Unused credits roll over up to 150 in total and must be used within 90 days. - **Account IQ and Lead IQ:** AI summaries of companies and people, available on all three plans (Core, Advanced, Advanced Plus) according to LinkedIn Help. Lead IQ currently requires your LinkedIn language to be set to English. The entry plan, Core, costs US$119.99 per month or US$1,079.88 per year according to LinkedIn's plan comparison. LinkedIn notes that listed prices are estimates and may exclude VAT. Sources: [LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Compare plans](https://business.linkedin.com/sell/sales-navigator/compare-plans), [LinkedIn Help: Sales Navigator search filters](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a1452817), [LinkedIn Help: Saved searches](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a102024), [LinkedIn Help: Boolean search](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a168061), [LinkedIn Help: InMail in Sales Navigator](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a101030), all retrieved 29 September 2026, plus [LinkedIn Help: Account IQ](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a1655021) and [LinkedIn Help: Lead IQ in Sales Navigator](https://www.linkedin.com/help/sales-navigator/answer/a6841315), both retrieved 2 October 2026. How to combine these pieces into a search that returns exactly your target buyers is shown in [How to Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator in 10 Steps](https://compleadly.com/blog/how-to-use-linkedin-sales-navigator). ## Prospecting KPIs: what to measure You can measure every stage of prospecting. LinkedIn publishes no benchmark for any of these rates, and averages from other industries tell you little. Compare against yourself instead: across audiences, message versions and months. | Metric | Formula | What it tells you | | ------------------ | -------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- | | Acceptance rate | Accepted connection requests ÷ requests sent | Whether audience and note fit together | | Reply rate | Contacts who replied ÷ contacts messaged | Whether your opener starts a conversation | | Meeting rate | Meetings booked ÷ contacts who replied | Whether you move from chat to a call | | Qualification rate | Qualified leads ÷ conversations held | Whether your list holds the right people | | Cost per lead | Channel cost ÷ leads generated | What one lead costs you in this channel | Read the rates together. High acceptance, low replies: the list is right, the opener is not. Many replies, few qualified conversations: your customer profile is too broad. How to calculate cost per lead properly and compare it with CAC is covered in [Cost per Lead](https://compleadly.com/blog/cost-per-lead). ## Prospecting in sales, recruiting and job search The six steps are not limited to sales. Other roles just use other names. ### Sales In sales, prospecting is how you reach new customers: define target accounts, find the decision makers, open the conversation, qualify. In CompLeadly, your LinkedIn or Sales Navigator search becomes the target audience for profile visits, connection requests, openers and follow-ups, as one connected workflow from Basic up. How sales teams run this is shown on [CompLeadly for sales teams](https://compleadly.com/use-cases/sales-teams). ### Recruiting: prospecting is called sourcing here Recruiters call the same work sourcing or active sourcing. Instead of buyers, you look for candidates who are not actively job hunting. The profile is the open role, the list comes from LinkedIn search or Recruiter Lite, and qualification happens in the first call. With your own Recruiter Lite license, your search or pipeline becomes a target audience in CompLeadly (full workflows from Basic up). The process is laid out in [Active Sourcing on LinkedIn](https://compleadly.com/blog/active-sourcing-linkedin), and the matching CompLeadly features are on the [page for recruiters](https://compleadly.com/use-cases/recruiters). ### Job seekers: your target employer list As a job seeker, you prospect for yourself. Your ideal customer profile is your list of target employers, and the people inside it are recruiters, hiring managers and future team leads. You connect with the people who hire and start a conversation before a role is posted. In CompLeadly, your people search for these contacts becomes a target audience. Profile visits, connection requests with a note, openers and follow-ups already run as single steps in the free version, within the daily limits listed in the next section. Which mistakes to avoid along the way is covered in [10 Common LinkedIn Mistakes When Job Hunting](https://compleadly.com/blog/10-common-linkedin-mistakes-when-job-hunting-and-how-to-avoid-them). ## How CompLeadly helps with LinkedIn prospecting CompLeadly takes over the repetitive parts of steps 2, 4 and 5 on LinkedIn: the list, first contact and follow-up. Your customer profile, the research and the qualifying conversation stay with you. In practice: - **Audience from your search:** A LinkedIn people search, a Sales Navigator search or saved search and, with your own license, a Recruiter Lite search or pipeline becomes your target audience. The free version stores two audiences, Basic and up an unlimited number. - **Profile visits:** 25 visits a day in the free version, unlimited from Basic. Visits run through your own account and show up for the contact as a profile view. - **Connect:** Requests with or without a personal note, notes up to 270 characters. Two requests a day in the free version; from Basic, CompLeadly sets no cap of its own. You set a daily value per step, and if LinkedIn reports the weekly limit, the feature pauses automatically. - **Opener:** The first message to new connections only goes out if the chat is still empty. One a day in the free version, unlimited from Basic. - **Follow-ups:** Multi-step with wait times, stopping when someone replies. One a day in the free version, unlimited from Basic. - **Full sequences:** Visits, connection requests, opener and follow-ups as one scheduled workflow are available from Basic. The free version runs single steps only. - **AI message per profile:** On Premium Plus, CompLeadly writes each message from your prompt and the person's profile data. You can try every feature for 10 days, no credit card required. After that, your account switches to the free version with the daily limits above. Plan prices are on the [pricing page](https://compleadly.com/pricing), and the full feature list is under [features](https://compleadly.com/features). ## Frequently asked questions: prospecting What is prospecting in simple terms? Prospecting means finding and contacting potential customers yourself instead of waiting for them to reach out. You decide who fits your offer, build a list, research the people on it and make first contact. It ends when you know whether someone has a need and wants to talk. What is the meaning of prospecting in sales? The word is borrowed from mining, where prospectors searched for gold and ore before a mine was built. In sales it means searching for potential customers and making the first approach. What is the difference between a prospect and a lead? The terms are not used consistently. LinkedIn calls potential buyers prospects who then become qualified leads, while many teams reserve the word prospect for a contact with a confirmed need. Pick one definition for your team and stick to it. Do I need Sales Navigator for LinkedIn prospecting? No, the regular people search is enough to start. LinkedIn does count prospecting as commercial use and caps searches and profile views on free accounts without naming a number. Sales Navigator raises that allowance and adds finer filters, saved searches and 50 InMail credits a month. Which prospecting KPIs should I track? Measure each stage: acceptance rate of connection requests, reply rate to your opener, meeting rate and the share of qualified conversations. Add cost per lead on top. Compare the numbers across your own audiences and message versions, because LinkedIn publishes no benchmarks for them. --- Was this post helpful? // newsletter ### Want more? Sign up and get new articles on LinkedIn outreach and automation straight to your inbox. You will receive a confirmation email (double opt-in). You can unsubscribe at any time via the link in every email. Details: [privacy policy](https://compleadly.com/privacy). ![Sebastian Andes](https://media.compleadly.de/media/8b720e679e2f2b08cc017d1938d026c62e625a21790c6df1284c2d4075cb3582-2.webp) [Sebastian Andes](https://compleadly.com/blog/author/sebastian-andes) Managing Director · CEO Marketing coach & business consultant. An experienced entrepreneur and marketing strategist, he has been co-building CompLeadly since 2019. [LinkedIn – Sebastian Andes](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-andes/) ![Philipp Krapp](https://media.compleadly.de/media/5f21a7708967b449194687bb2101d4f657472eae4f1382d605d6904a027aab22-2.webp) [Philipp Krapp](https://compleadly.com/blog/author/philipp-krapp) Managing Director · CTO Software engineer & app developer. An innovative software developer, he has been co-building CompLeadly since 2019. [LinkedIn – Philipp Krapp](https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipp-krapp/) ![CompLeadly Team](https://media.compleadly.de/media/9109d0d881666addb60c3164d0302e5f499991f811381c2c8d17b8fb37e2f9e9-2.svg) [CompLeadly Team](https://compleadly.com/blog/author/compleadly-team) We build CompLeadly so LinkedIn outreach stops being a matter of luck. Our content team writes up what actually works in real campaigns. // keep reading ## You might also like [![A cold, frosted glass telephone handset beside a glowing chain of connected cyan network nodes, symbolising the move from cold calling to a warm first contact on LinkedIn](https://media.compleadly.de/media/26ae3e27cbb3fb91ff16735dd3e13e73db41596df9d7a518562ce271cf02f1f4.jpg)Lead Generation & OutreachWhat Is Cold Calling? Definition and a Warmer LinkedIn Alternative11 min read](https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-cold-calling)[![Glass funnel rings with generic company and profile cards flowing through them into a glowing stack next to a calendar tile with a checkmark, illustrating lead generation for agencies](https://media.compleadly.de/media/c8d18afc870a3095ba691e9717fa5f51fc260ee5a27e248467d808fb0fa2235c.jpg)Lead Generation & OutreachLead Generation for Marketing Agencies: Channels, Process and Metrics8 min read](https://compleadly.com/blog/lead-generation-marketing-agencies)[![Glowing cyan route with ten waypoints across a navy map made of abstract profile cards, illustrating the ten steps of the Sales Navigator guide](https://media.compleadly.de/media/74fc6a355f15452edabedcb21ec3ef0cfc7516079a24b4c15d44631169f60f3b.jpg)Lead Generation & OutreachHow to Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator: A 10-Step Prospecting Guide15 min read](https://compleadly.com/blog/how-to-use-linkedin-sales-navigator) ## Ready for answers instead of cold lists? [Try free for 10 days](https://compleadly.com/download) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://compleadly.de/#organization", "name": "CompLeadly", "legalName": "CompLeadly OHG", "description": "LinkedIn automation software for B2B sales and lead generation — since 2019, with data hosted in the EU.", "foundingDate": "2019", "founder": [ { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://compleadly.de/ueber-uns#person-sebastian-andes", "name": "Sebastian Andes", "jobTitle": "Managing Director · CEO", "url": "https://compleadly.com/about", "image": "https://compleadly.com/images/founders/sebastian-andes-960w.webp", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-andes/" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://compleadly.de/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://compleadly.de/ueber-uns#person-philipp-krapp", "name": "Philipp Krapp", "jobTitle": "Managing Director · CTO", "url": "https://compleadly.com/about", "image": "https://compleadly.com/images/founders/philipp-krapp-960w.webp", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipp-krapp/" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://compleadly.de/#organization" } } ], "url": "https://compleadly.com/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://compleadly.com/brand/compleadly-logo-light.svg" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/company/compleadly/", "https://www.facebook.com/CompLeadlyLinkedInSoftware/", "https://www.instagram.com/compleadly/", "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNT_aB_ioPgfoAvFclwXvug" ], "contactPoint": [ { "@type": "ContactPoint", "telephone": "+49 2202 1860373", "email": "info@compleadly.de", "contactType": "customer support", "areaServed": "DE", "availableLanguage": [ "German", "English" ] } ], "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "Hauptstr. 26", "postalCode": "51465", "addressLocality": "Bergisch Gladbach", "addressCountry": "DE" } } ``` ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/#website", "name": "CompLeadly", "url": "https://compleadly.com/", "inLanguage": "en-US", "publisher": { "@id": "https://compleadly.de/#organization" }, "potentialAction": { "@type": "SearchAction", "target": { "@type": "EntryPoint", "urlTemplate": "https://compleadly.com/search?q={search_term_string}" }, "query-input": "required name=search_term_string" } } ``` ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://compleadly.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Blog", "item": "https://compleadly.com/blog" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "What Is Prospecting? Definition, Methods and Prospecting on LinkedIn", "item": "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting" } ] } ``` ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BlogPosting", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting#article", "headline": "What Is Prospecting? Definition, Methods and Prospecting on LinkedIn", "description": "Prospecting explained: the definition, the main methods and a six-step process. Learn how you find new customers on LinkedIn and with Sales Navigator.", "url": "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/blog/what-is-prospecting" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "image": "https://media.compleadly.de/media/1bfaf041c1e65d0b3552edcba53ce35f77e8a7a51df4d7efd09074b87b262944.jpg", "datePublished": "2026-10-02T09:00:00.000Z", "dateModified": "2026-10-02T18:00:07.548Z", "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/sebastian-andes#person", "name": "Sebastian Andes", "url": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/sebastian-andes", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-andes/" ] }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/philipp-krapp#person", "name": "Philipp Krapp", "url": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/philipp-krapp", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipp-krapp/" ] }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/compleadly-team#organization", "name": "CompLeadly Team", "url": "https://compleadly.com/blog/author/compleadly-team" } ], "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://compleadly.de/#organization", "name": "CompLeadly", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://compleadly.com/brand/compleadly-logo-light.svg" } } } ``` ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is prospecting in simple terms?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Prospecting means finding and contacting potential customers yourself instead of waiting for them to reach out. You decide who fits your offer, build a list, research the people on it and make first contact. It ends when you know whether someone has a need and wants to talk." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the meaning of prospecting in sales?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The word is borrowed from mining, where prospectors searched for gold and ore before a mine was built. In sales it means searching for potential customers and making the first approach." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the difference between a prospect and a lead?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The terms are not used consistently. LinkedIn calls potential buyers prospects who then become qualified leads, while many teams reserve the word prospect for a contact with a confirmed need. Pick one definition for your team and stick to it." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Do I need Sales Navigator for LinkedIn prospecting?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No, the regular people search is enough to start. LinkedIn does count prospecting as commercial use and caps searches and profile views on free accounts without naming a number. Sales Navigator raises that allowance and adds finer filters, saved searches and 50 InMail credits a month." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Which prospecting KPIs should I track?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Measure each stage: acceptance rate of connection requests, reply rate to your opener, meeting rate and the share of qualified conversations. Add cost per lead on top. Compare the numbers across your own audiences and message versions, because LinkedIn publishes no benchmarks for them." } } ] } ```