LinkedIn allows you to send messages to connect with other professionals. However, if you are new to LinkedIn or don’t use it often, you may find your messaging capabilities are limited until you reach certain milestones on the platform.
Here are the main ways to unlock messaging on LinkedIn so you can start connecting with more people:
Get Your Profile to All-Star
LinkedIn limits messaging for new accounts and profiles with low activity. One way to unlock messaging is to improve your profile until you reach “All-Star” status.
To get your profile to All-Star:
- Fill out your profile completely – include a professional photo, headline, summary section, work experience, education, skills, accomplishments, etc.
- Get endorsements and recommendations from connections to demonstrate your skills and build your credibility
- Join relevant LinkedIn groups and be an active participant by posting and commenting
The more complete your profile is, and the more engagement you have on the platform, the more likely you are to reach All-Star status. This generally unlocks messaging capabilities.
Connect with More People
Another way LinkedIn limits messaging is by limiting who less active accounts can message. You may only be able to message your 1st degree connections.
To unlock messaging to 2nd and 3rd degree connections, focus on growing your network on LinkedIn. Here are some tips:
- Import contacts from your email and connect with people you already know.
- Search for professionals in your industry or roles you want to connect with and send connect requests.
- Join industry related groups and connect with group members.
- Follow companies you want to work for and connect with their employees.
- Attend LinkedIn events and connect with other attendees.
The more connections you have, the more messaging capabilities you will unlock on LinkedIn. Aim to connect with at least 500+ professionals to open up messaging.
Increase Your LinkedIn Activity
LinkedIn also evaluates your activity level when determining messaging capabilities. The more active you are, the more messaging unlocks.
Ways to be more active on LinkedIn include:
- Commenting and posting in LinkedIn groups.
- Liking and commenting on posts from your connections.
- Sharing relevant articles and content.
- Posting your own status updates.
- Engaging with company pages.
Aim to actively participate on LinkedIn’s platform every day. This shows you are an engaged user and will help unlock messaging capabilities.
Upgrade to a Premium Account
One of the quickest ways to unlock messaging on LinkedIn is to purchase a premium account subscription. LinkedIn Premium accounts get increased messaging limits and abilities.
With a premium account you can:
- Message anyone on LinkedIn, even if they are not a connection.
- See more profile information before messaging someone.
- See when your messages are read.
- Send unlimited InMail messages.
Premium accounts start around $30/month. While not free, this unlocks the most messaging capabilities.
Wait for LinkedIn to Increase Limits
If you are new to LinkedIn, the platform may also increase your messaging capabilities over time organically. As your tenure on the platform increases, LinkedIn will likely lift messaging restrictions.
Be patient and focus on building out your profile, network, and activity on LinkedIn in your first few months. Over time, your messaging limits will likely increase on their own.
Expect it to take at least 6 months before LinkedIn gives your account full messaging capabilities if you are relying on organic growth.
Request Increased Limits
You can also try directly requesting LinkedIn support to increase your messaging limits if needed. If there is an urgent professional reason you need increased capabilities, you can reach out to LinkedIn support to explain your rationale.
LinkedIn may ask for details like:
- Why you need increased messaging limits.
- Who you need to message and why.
- What level of monthly activity you expect.
While not guaranteed, if you have a legitimate professional need, LinkedIn support may be able to manually increase your limits. Though this generally works best once you have already built up your profile and network.
Use an Alternate Service for Cold Messages
If you need to send unsolicited “cold” messages to people you have no connection with, LinkedIn’s messaging limits may still block you. In these cases, an alternative messaging platform may be needed.
Some options include:
- Using email outreach instead.
- Outreach tools like Woodpecker or Mailshake.
- Freelancer platforms like Upwork that have built-in messaging.
Cold outreach is best suited for other tools. Use LinkedIn messaging primarily to connect with those already in your network.
Summary
LinkedIn limits messaging capabilities to protect the quality of conversations. As you build your profile, network, and activity on the platform – your messaging limits will increase.
Focus on reaching All-Star profile status, connecting with more professionals, and participating actively on a daily basis. Over time, this will unlock your ability to message more people.
If you need increased limits urgently, request help from LinkedIn support or consider upgrading to a premium account. With patience and consistent effort, you can unlock the full messaging capabilities LinkedIn offers.