How to Write a LinkedIn Invitation Message

A good LinkedIn connection message is what gets a busy decision-maker to accept your request while other people's requests sit pending. LinkedIn is the top professional social network, with over 63 million decision-makers on it, and those people get a lot of messages every day. Yours has to stand out and catch their attention.

And the connections themselves pay off: sales reps with more than 5,000 connections typically exceed their sales targets by 98%.

How to write the invitation

Be original. Don't send the same template again and again, and don't copy messages from the internet. Write your own, then shape it with the A.I.D.A method.

The A.I.D.A method

• Attention: open with a line written for this one person, in the words people in their role use.
• Interest: say what your offer is worth to them, the need it meets or the goal it moves forward.
• Desire: make that value concrete. How much time or money does it save, and what sets it apart from the alternatives?
• Action: end on one easy question, like "Want to discuss this further?", so they can answer without feeling pushed. And leave links out of a first message.

Is it always a good idea to personalize your LinkedIn messages?

Yes and no. Personalization matters in prospecting, because people notice a generic message: it reads as automated and not genuine. But writing every message by hand takes too long to pay for itself. What works in between:

• Automation tools are everywhere online, and people know it. So segment your audience carefully, then automate the message for each segment.
• Keep each campaign to between 100 and 500 leads, well segmented.
• A/B test your messages: run two versions and keep the one your audience responds to. That's how you find what works for your prospecting.

What makes a LinkedIn invitation message work

Keep it short. An invitation is a teaser, and short and sweet does the job. Don't sell yet: no pitch, nothing promotional. Take the time to build a connection with the prospect, and show interest in them as a potential client.

How can I generate new leads through LinkedIn?

There's more than one way. LinkedIn is a natural fit for B2B prospecting: it has hundreds of thousands of qualified profiles, and those people are there to grow their network, read content and discover new tools. Three steps turn that into leads:

• Optimize your LinkedIn profile to the max.
• Build a content strategy on your personal brand.
• Use automation and database enrichment tools to reconnect with your leads through multiple channels.

How can I contact a LinkedIn user through email?

Find their work address with an email finder, then follow your LinkedIn message with an email.

That takes you beyond sending LinkedIn messages alone. A cross-channel, or multichannel, approach gives you more contact points with your target audience, and an email to your prospects is a powerful one.

Why should you consider sending an email campaign?

Because email converts. It's one of the most effective ways to turn leads into clients, even more effective than your LinkedIn strategy, and an email campaign sent to the right audience can send your conversion rate way up.

There are two main types of email sending: newsletters and cold email. The rest of this section is about cold email, meaning email sent to someone who never subscribed to it.

Cold email reaches your audience through a second channel and greatly improves your chances of getting a response. It takes technique, though. Get these right:

• Know the best time to send your email.
• Write an email body that holds attention.
• Write a subject line that converts.
• Make the message easy for your audience to read.

What to send once a LinkedIn invite is accepted

They accepted, and you want to start a conversation with your new connection. Focus on two things: stay in touch, and show the potential customer your value quickly. Keep it friendly and engaging, and the conversation tends to follow.

More examples are in this article with plenty of templates.

Use your 30,000 connections wisely

LinkedIn caps your network at 30,000 connections. Spend your invitations on relevant LinkedIn members, and get to them before your competitors do.