LinkedIn is a great platform for expanding your professional network and keeping in touch with connections. One easy way to grow your LinkedIn network is to import contacts from Facebook. Importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn allows you to connect with friends, family members, and acquaintances who may be useful professional connections.
Why Import Facebook Contacts into LinkedIn?
There are several benefits to importing your Facebook contacts into LinkedIn:
- Grow your network quickly – Importing contacts is faster than sending connect requests one by one
- Connect with more relevant contacts – You likely have overlapping contacts on Facebook and LinkedIn
- Keep your network up to date – Easily add new Facebook friends to LinkedIn
- Enhance your professional brand – A larger network looks impressive to potential employers
- Find new opportunities – Your contacts may be able to introduce you to job openings or business deals
In summary, importing Facebook contacts to LinkedIn can help you expand your professional network faster, keep it up to date, and potentially lead to new career or business opportunities. The larger your network, the more powerful LinkedIn becomes.
How to Import Facebook Contacts into LinkedIn
Importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn only takes a few simple steps:
- Log into your LinkedIn account on desktop
- Click “My Network” at the top of your LinkedIn homepage
- Select “Manage synced and imported contacts”
- Click the “Import contacts” button
- Enter your Facebook login credentials when prompted
- Select which Facebook friends you want to import to LinkedIn
- Click the “Add connections” button to send connect requests
And that’s all there is to it! It just takes a minute to import hundreds of Facebook friends over to LinkedIn.
Step 1: Log into LinkedIn on Desktop
First, log into your LinkedIn account on a desktop or laptop computer. The import contacts feature is not available on LinkedIn’s mobile app at this time. So pull up LinkedIn on your desktop to get started.
Step 2: Go to “My Network”
Once logged in, click on the “My Network” link at the top of the LinkedIn homepage. This will take you to your network dashboard.
Step 3: Click “Manage synced and imported contacts”
On your “My Network” page, find and click the “Manage synced and imported contacts” link. This is where you can connect your Facebook contacts.
Step 4: Click the “Import contacts” Button
This will open an “Import contacts” window. Click the blue “Import contacts” button to begin importing your Facebook friends.
Step 5: Enter Facebook Login Info
LinkedIn will now ask you to enter your Facebook login credentials. Enter your Facebook email and password, then click “Continue” to sign in.
Step 6: Select Contacts to Import
Once logged into Facebook, LinkedIn will display all of your Facebook friends. Check the box next to each connection you want to import to LinkedIn. You can use the search bar to find specific friends quickly.
Step 7: Click “Add Connections”
After selecting all the Facebook contacts you want to add, click the “Add connections” button. This will send a connection invitation to each selected friend.
And that’s it! LinkedIn will begin importing your Facebook contacts. Any friend that accepts your invitation will be added to your LinkedIn network.
How Long Does It Take to Import Contacts?
Importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn is a quick process. The initial import usually finishes within 1-2 minutes. However, it can then take up to 24 hours for all the connection invitations to be sent out.
Here is an overview of how long the contact import takes:
- Selecting contacts to import – 1-2 minutes
- Initial import into LinkedIn – 1-2 minutes
- Sending connection invitations – Up to 24 hours
- Accepting invitations – Varies by user
So while the initial import is very quick, it can take up to a full day before all the invitations are delivered. Give your contacts time to receive and accept the invites.
How to Check Import Status
As LinkedIn sends out invitations, you can monitor the import status from your account settings:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile
- Click on the “Settings and Privacy” icon in the top right
- Select “Settings” from the dropdown menu
- Go to the “Connections” section
- See “Imported contacts” for status updates
This section shows you how many invites are pending, accepted, and rejected. Check back periodically to see your updated connection counts.
Can I Import Contacts Again?
Yes, you can import Facebook contacts into LinkedIn as often as you want. However, there are a couple limitations to be aware of:
- You can only send one invite per contact
- Contacts who previously rejected an invite cannot be re-invited
- You can only import contacts who have a LinkedIn profile
So you won’t be able to re-invite any connections who have already accepted or rejected you. But feel free to import any new Facebook friends who are not already in your LinkedIn network.
Best Practices for Importing Contacts
Follow these tips and best practices when importing Facebook contacts:
- Customize your invite message – Don’t use LinkedIn’s generic text
- Only invite contacts you know and trust
- Personalize requests to important connections
- Focus on inviting professional contacts
- Wait to accept requests until after sending invites
- Follow up with an InMail if they don’t respond
Taking the time to personalize invites and target professional contacts will get you better results from the import. And waiting to accept requests prevents spam connections from entering your network.
Important Things to Know About Importing Contacts
Here are some other key things to understand about importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn:
- You must use the desktop site, not mobile
- Only Facebook friends with LinkedIn accounts will appear
- Imported contacts will appear under “Connections” in your LinkedIn network
- Accepting a connection gives them access to your LinkedIn profile and network
- You can withdraw invitation requests if needed
So keep in mind you are only able to import contacts who also have LinkedIn profiles. And any accepted requests will allow that person access to your own connections and profile activity.
Is Importing Contacts Safe?
Importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn is generally very safe. When you import contacts:
- You login through LinkedIn – credentials stay secure
- Only public Facebook profile info is imported
- Your Facebook friends do not get access to your accounts
- You control which invites to send and accept
However, like any social login, it does grant that company some access to your Facebook profile. But overall, the import process is designed to protect your account security and privacy.
Can I Export LinkedIn Contacts?
Just as you can import contacts into LinkedIn, you can also export your LinkedIn connections:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile and click “My Network”
- Select “Manage synced and imported contacts”
- Click the “Export LinkedIn connections” button
- Choose either CSV or vCard format for the export file
- LinkedIn will email you the exported contact file
Exporting LinkedIn contacts allows you to back up your network or import it into another tool. But keep in mind the exported contacts will only contain limited profile information like name, company, and email address.
Pros and Cons of Importing Facebook Contacts
As with most things, there are both advantages and disadvantages to importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn:
Pros:
- Rapidly grow your network
- Connect with friends and associates
- Discover new professional contacts
- Keep networks up to date across platforms
- Find new job opportunities
Cons:
- LinkedIn invitations can be annoying if unwanted
- Imports contacts who are not professional connections
- Distributes your profile and network information
- Some contacts don’t use LinkedIn actively
- Allows Facebook access to your LinkedIn data
The pros of faster networking and new opportunities often outweigh the cons for most LinkedIn users. But it’s a personal decision based on how you want to grow your LinkedIn presence.
Should I Link or Import Contacts?
In addition to importing contacts, LinkedIn also gives you the option to “link” other social networks like Twitter. Here’s the difference between linking and importing:
- Importing brings selected contacts into LinkedIn connections.
- Linking shares your LinkedIn posts and profile with that network.
So if you want your Facebook friends to follow your LinkedIn activity, link the accounts. And if your goal is to expand your LinkedIn network, import Facebook contacts.
LinkedIn-Facebook Contact Import Tips
To recap, here are some top tips for smoothly importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn:
- Personalize your connection invitation
- Focus on professional connections
- Follow up on unanswered requests
- Check import status under LinkedIn settings
- Limit access to your network and profile
- Don’t go overboard importing hundreds of contacts
Following best practices for inviting and vetting imported contacts will improve your LinkedIn networking results. But avoid spamming all your Facebook friends with invites if you want to maintain good relationships.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some commonly asked questions about importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn:
Does importing contacts notify Facebook?
No, importing contacts does not post or notify your Facebook connections in any way. It simply gives LinkedIn access to your Facebook friend list.
Can I undo imported contacts?
Yes, you can remove any imported contacts by going to your LinkedIn connections, selecting the contact, and removing the connection.
Will all Facebook friends appear in the import list?
No, only Facebook friends who also have LinkedIn accounts will appear for importing. Friends without LinkedIn will not show up.
Does Facebook importing work on mobile?
Currently, no. The import contacts feature is only available on the desktop version of LinkedIn. Mobile support may be added eventually.
Do my contacts get any notification about the import?
They will only receive the LinkedIn connection invitation from you. Facebook does not notify them that you imported or synced contacts.
Conclusion
Importing Facebook contacts into LinkedIn is an easy and effective way to give your professional network a boost. It allows you to connect with friends, family members, and associates who may be valuable career and business connections.
Just be sure to personalize connection invitations, focus on importing professional contacts, and practice good LinkedIn networking etiquette. With a few clicks, you can supercharge your LinkedIn network and open up new opportunities.