Whenever I give speak or give training on using social media for sales this is invariably one of the  first things I get from the audience is, “How Do You Find C-Level Executives on Linkedin?”

Truthfully, I think it’s more as an unconscious excuse than a real question.

Sales people need to be masters of social networks and behavior. We need to be students of how people are interact, not where they keep their phone numbers and email addresses.

The point is, sure you may not find many C-Level executives with profiles in Linkedin. Instead of using that as an excuse let’s think, “Why?” Let’s think, “How do I overcome that challenge?”

Why are There No C-Level Executive in Linkedin?

The first answer is, that’s not entirely true. There are lots of younger, technology-focused, start-up CEOs in Linkedin. However, if you are looking to engage Fortune 500 CEOs, COOs, CFOs, and CMOs you might find them more scarce. And even if you do find their profiles they’re likely to be hollow shells–profiles set-up by PR, not by them personally.

The fact is that these individuals tend to be 55+ and if you do your research (say on Google’s DoubleClick Ad Planner) you will see that this explains your problem. There’s less adoption of Linkedin by the 55+ demographic (although it is much higher than other social networks i.e., Facebook.com).

This group of individuals also aren’t constantly in the pursuit of new and higher challenges (outside of their current company). Typically, if they can’t make a go of it here, for their shareholders, they aren’t going to find their next gig on Linkedin.

Finally, most C-Level executives aren’t looking to quickly grow their professional network. They don’t need online referrals and endorsements to make connections. They may even be interested in significantly filtering engagement. Their network has been built by years of experiences, successes, and failures. Linkedin is not where they keep their database of professional relationships.

Okay, we’ve established that C-Level executives don’t hang out on Linkedin. Are you going to give up?

C-Level Introductions Need Just that, an Introduction

Cold calling a C-Level executive is rarely a successful strategy. Not withstanding the fact that they’re typically surrounded by a bastion of assistants, PR handlers, voicemail, and email filters; they, out of necessity, have a higher threshold of trust resistance. They have more at risk with every conversation. A single yes, no, or maybe could move millions in shareholder value.

How then do you get that introduction or personal encounter?

In my experience, the three most effective paths to a C-Level executive are trusted employees or assistants, fellow corporate board members, or their philanthropic passions. The circle of trust is tight with C-Level executives, but connecting into any of these pathways can fast-track your connection with one or more closely networked executives.

Yes, you heard that right. One C-Level executive often gets you multiple C-Level introductions.

Now for the secret…mapping pathways.

Trusted Employees

This is often the best and quickest path–trusted employees. These are the people executives trust implicitly and can be a bullet train to closing a deal with one of these Whales.

They aren’t going to jump out at you, but if you’re observant you can find them.

Here are a few characteristics I’ve noticed over the years, which might help you spot them:

• The personal assistant is typical one of them, but not guaranteed
• They rarely are in the executive suite. They tend you be in various (maybe even insignificant) positions
• Typically the executive brings them in tow, from company to company
• Often there are other affiliations outside of work–family, charity, religious, political

Take the time to comb old press releases, news articles, Linkedin, Flickr, and other online profiles to identify people that always seem to be connected to this executive. You may spot the inner circle.

Board of Director Buddies

Like the trusted employee, board of directors often become circles of trust as well. Although they are “independent” bodies they tend to weave a tight relational fabric. If the board isn’t selected based on a short list of long-time trusted advisers chances are they will elevate to this type of relationship.

These board networks of trust are gold mines and often easily harvested. If you are in the Fortune 500 space there is a good chance you are working with a C-Level executive sitting on other boards. These individuals often discuss their own companies and interests–drawing on other board members for recommendations and advise.

Leverage this. Revealing the trust network is the first step.

You could peel through SEC filings, but I like using Muckety.com to map these relationships. There are a couple more (i.e., NNDB.com), but I like the thoroughness and visualizations on Muckety.com.

The number of sources Muckety.com compiles is amazing, from news to online databases. They even have a good crossover into another path for connecting with C-Level executives–money.

Follow the Money to Their Heart

Executives, by nature, are passionate people. This characteristic often leads them to put their considerable resources to causes personally important to them. These supported organizations can be excellent entry points into the executive’s sphere of influence.

Caution: you must use a bit of good judgment and integrity here. Coat tailing on philanthropic endeavors can come off very poorly. However, if the cause and/or politics align with yours it could be a very natural introduction.

Spotting these opportunities can be as easy as Googling the executive’s name and going deep into the results. Maybe throw in a “sponsor,” “donor,” or “contributors” next to the executive’s name. Another trick I like to use it to search for the executive’s name, but only in PDFs (filetype:pdf).

In all of these cases you are looking for the proud organizations posting their donor lists and event programs. Bingo! You have a list of charitable affiliations.

Muckety.com does a fair job of finding these affiliations as well.

Finally, if you’re comfortable wading into the murky waters of politics OpenSecrets.org is one of my favorites.

One thing to keep in mind as you review any of these results. At this level, many of these executives are trying to get things done and interests protected. The point being, contributions may not always directly follow their own political philosophy–so be careful going in too strong on the assumption a political donation reveals their true politics.

That was pretty long, but Whale hunting is a complex endeavor. It takes creativity and thinking. The key to getting a meeting with a C-Level executive is getting an introduction, getting into their current workflow, and/or finding yourself in their field of vision.

What say you? Have you used any of these methods? Do you have better suggestions?