LinkedIn outreach for IT services and software houses
Software houses and IT services firms compete on trust. LinkedIn lets you reach CTOs and product leaders directly, show relevant work, and start conversations before a project goes out to tender.
7 days free. No card needed.
Who to reach
| Role | Why they matter |
|---|---|
| CTO or VP Engineering | Decides on outsourcing and partners |
| Head of Product | Owns the roadmap that needs building |
| Founder (startups and scale-ups) | Hires a dev partner directly |
| IT Director (non-tech companies) | Owns systems and vendors |
The Sales Navigator search
- Current job title
- CTO, VP Engineering, Head of Product
- Company headcount
- 11-200 (startups and scale-ups)
- Headcount growth
- Growing engineering teams (account search)
- Job opportunities
- Hiring engineers: a sign of more work than people
- Geography
- Markets you serve and time-zone overlap
More in every Sales Navigator filter explained. Over 2,500 results? Use the query splitter.
Boolean title string
(CTO OR "chief technology officer" OR "VP engineering" OR "head of engineering" OR "head of product")Connection note
Hi {{first_name}}, we build [type of product] for [industry] teams. Noticed [company] is hiring engineers. Would be glad to connect.
First follow-up
Thanks for connecting, {{first_name}}. When hiring is slow, some teams bring us in for a defined piece (e.g. [example]). Is that ever useful for you?
Check your note with the connection note checker.
Mistakes to avoid
- Leading with your tech stack instead of the problem you solve.
- Offering 'any development' instead of a specialty.
- Ignoring hiring signals that show a team is stretched.
Run it in GrabProspect
- Step 1Scrape the search
Sales Navigator scraper
- Step 2Invite with your note
Connection invites
- Step 3Follow up until they reply
Message sequences
- Step 4Answer from one inbox
Unified inbox
Questions people ask
How do software houses get clients on LinkedIn?
Target CTOs, engineering and product leaders at growing companies, use hiring and headcount signals for timing, and lead with a specialty and relevant work.
Should IT firms use InMail?
For a short list of high-value accounts, yes; for most outreach, connection requests with a specific note work better.
Guides
- Sales NavigatorAccount-Based Prospecting With Sales Navigator: From Target Companies to Buying CommitteesHow to build a target account list in Sales Navigator, find the right people at each company, and run coordinated LinkedIn outreach to the buying committee.3 min read
- Sales NavigatorSales Navigator Boolean Search: Operators, Rules and 20 Ready-to-Use StringsHow Boolean search works in LinkedIn Sales Navigator, which fields accept it, the rules that silently break searches, and 20 strings you can copy.5 min read
- OutreachLinkedIn Cold Outreach: The Complete Playbook for 2026A step-by-step LinkedIn outreach process, from defining who to reach and building the list to invites, follow-ups, handling replies and measuring results.4 min read
See it run on your own search
Start a 7-day free trial with your own LinkedIn account, or book a call with Mehran, our co-founder, and see a Sales Navigator search split, invited and followed up, live.
7 days free. No card needed.