Linkedin Just Made Prospecting Smarter - Here's How to Use It

Linkedin just rolled out AI-powered people search to Premium subscribers in the US, and it's a bigger deal than most people realize.

Instead of forcing you to know exact job titles or company names, you can now search using plain language descriptions. Looking for "B2B SaaS founders in Chicago who've raised Series A"? Or "revenue operations leaders who've implemented account-based strategies"? Just type it in. Linkedin's AI figures out who matches.

This is the latest signal that Linkedin is betting big on making professional networking more intuitive and less robotic. And for sales teams, it changes how you should think about prospecting.

What This Really Means

Linkedin has been moving in one clear direction for the past two years: rewarding quality connections over cold outreach.

They've limited InMails for free users.

They've boosted engagement in the algorithm.

They've prioritized genuine interactions over broadcast messages.

And now they're making it dead simple to find exactly who you need to connect with.

The pattern is obvious. Linkedin wants you to spend less time searching and more time engaging. They're removing friction from discovery so you can focus on building real relationships.

Think about your old prospecting workflow. You'd spend hours building Boolean searches, filtering by company size, scrolling through pages of "Director of Marketing" hoping to find someone relevant. Half the time you'd give up and just blast messages to anyone with the right title.

That's over. Now you can describe the exact person you're looking for - including skills, experience, and context - and Linkedin surfaces the right matches. It's not just faster. It's more accurate.

How to Use This Right Now

If you have Linkedin Premium, this feature is already live. Here's how to make it work for your prospecting:

→ Start with specific descriptions. Don't just search for "sales leaders." Try "B2B sales leaders who've scaled teams from 5 to 50+ reps" or "enterprise sales directors with experience selling into healthcare." The more specific you are, the better the AI matches.

→ Search by outcomes, not just titles. This is the real unlock. You can now search for "professionals who've successfully implemented RevOps transformations" or "founders who've bootstrapped to $10M ARR." You're finding people based on what they've accomplished, not what they call themselves.

→ Build target lists faster. Instead of spending two hours on Sales Navigator filters, spend 20 minutes with AI search. Export your results, prioritize accounts, and move on to engagement.

→ Look for shared context. Use AI search to find prospects who've worked at similar companies, solved similar problems, or have experience with your competitors. Shared context makes your outreach 10x more relevant.

The key insight here is that better search means better targeting, which means better conversations. You're not casting a wider net. You're finding exactly the right people before you engage.

The Bigger Picture

Here's what most people will miss: this feature doesn't exist in isolation.

Linkedin is building an ecosystem where:

• AI helps you find the right people (this update)

• Engagement shows you who's interested (their algorithm)

• Signals tell you when to reach out (post interactions, profile views)

• Conversations happen warm, not cold (connection-based messaging)

If you're still thinking about Linkedin as a place to blast cold messages, you're fighting the platform. If you're thinking about it as a place to identify, engage, and convert warm prospects, you're aligned with where Linkedin is going.

The sales teams winning on Linkedin in 2025 aren't the ones contacting the most people. They're the ones contacting the right people at the right time. This AI search feature makes the first part easier. But you still need a system for the second part.

What to Do This Week

→ If you have Premium: Log in today and test three AI searches for your ideal customer profiles. See who comes up. Compare it to your old Boolean searches. Adjust your prospecting lists.

→ If you don't have Premium: This is probably worth the $80/month now. The AI search alone will save you hours every week.

→ For your team: Update your ICP documentation to include the kind of specific, outcome-based descriptions that work well with AI search. Train your reps to think in terms of experience and skills, not just titles.

→ Track what works: Keep notes on which search descriptions surface the best prospects. Refine your language over time. The AI gets better with specific inputs.

Linkedin is making it easier than ever to find exactly who you need. The question is whether you have a system to engage them effectively once you do. That's where most sales teams drop the ball - they find great prospects, then send generic messages and wonder why nobody responds.

Better search is step one. Better engagement is step two. Both matter.

The feature is rolling out now. Your competitors are reading this same announcement. Use it before they do.