When you ask for a recommendation on LinkedIn, you want to make sure you provide enough context and details for your connection to write a thoughtful recommendation that highlights your skills, accomplishments, and value as an employee or colleague. Here are some tips on what to include in a recommendation request:
Refresh Their Memory
If it’s been awhile since you worked together, remind the person of when and where you worked together, your role and responsibilities, key projects you collaborated on, and any major contributions you made. Provide enough details to jog their memory so they can speak directly to your work.
Give Examples
Don’t just say you’re a hard worker – give a specific example that demonstrates your work ethic like “I consistently delivered reports ahead of tight deadlines” or “I successfully led the project deployment on time despite aggressive timelines.” Quantify your accomplishments with data when possible.
Focus on Soft Skills
While it’s important to highlight hard skills like programming languages or technical abilities, recommendations also provide an opportunity to showcase soft skills like communication, leadership, teamwork, and critical thinking. Share a story that puts those skills on display.
Ask for Areas of Improvement
To show self-awareness and your desire to continually improve, you could include a line asking them to speak to areas you can still develop. This adds balance to an otherwise glowing recommendation.
What to Include in the Message
Here are some specific things to include in your recommendation request message:
A Personalized Greeting
Open with a warm greeting like “Hi Jane” to make it feel more personal than a generic title like “Hello Mr. Smith.”
Note How You Know Them
Jog their memory by mentioning how you know each other – “We worked together at XYZ Company in 2018” or “We were on the same project team last year.”
State You’re Seeking a Recommendation
Be clear upfront what you want – “I hope you’re willing to write me a LinkedIn recommendation” or “Would you be able to provide a recommendation for my LinkedIn profile?”
Specify Which Position
If you want them to recommend you for a certain job, mention the specific position in your request.
Share Why You’re Asking Them
Explain briefly why you think they’re the right person to recommend you. For example, “Since you were my manager, I thought you’d be able to provide the best insight into my performance.”
Include Any Reminders
Politely remind them of key accomplishments or projects you worked on together that they could include examples of.
Express Appreciation
Let them know you appreciate them taking the time to do this favor for you.
What to Avoid in a Recommendation Request
There are also some things you’ll want to avoid including in your recommendation request:
Typos or Grammatical Errors
Proofread your message before sending to avoid obvious mistakes that could undermine your professionalism.
Generic Requests
Avoid mass messages by personalizing each request to the specific person. Generic outreach is easier to ignore.
Going Overboard on Flattery
While expressing appreciation is fine, avoid laying it on too thick with excessive flattery or praise that may come off as insincere.
Pressuring Language
Give them an easy out by saying “No problem if you can’t” instead of language that pressures them like “It would mean so much if you could do this for me.”
Exaggerations About Your Work
Stick to honest descriptions of your contributions. Don’t exaggerate accomplishments or overstate your role.
Confidential Information
Avoid sharing any sensitive, private or confidential information about previous employers.
Negative Comments
Never say anything critical or disparaging about a previous boss, company or role. Stay positive.
Recommendation Request Email Template
Here is an email template you can use when asking for a recommendation:
| Subject: | LinkedIn Recommendation Request – [Your Name] |
| Dear [Name], | |
| I hope this email finds you well! I wanted to reach out because I am updating my LinkedIn profile and would greatly appreciate if you would consider writing me a recommendation based on our time working together at [Company]. | |
| As you know, I served as [Your Role] on your team from [Dates]. I really valued working with you and learning from your leadership over that time. If you feel comfortable providing a recommendation, I’d be grateful if you could speak to my strengths like [Skill 1], [Skill 2] and [Skill 3] that I leveraged in my role. Please also feel free to mention any areas you think I can still improve as I continue progressing in my career. | |
| If you have availability to write a brief recommendation, please let me know! I have enclosed some highlights from our time working together below to help jog your memory. If you are unable to do so, no worries at all. | |
| Thank you again for your consideration. I hope we can stay in touch, and please do not hesitate to reach out if I can ever return the favor by providing a recommendation for you. |
Highlight Relevant Skills and Achievements
To make their job easier, provide 3-5 bullet points highlighting key skills, achievements, or qualities you hope they’ll mention like:
– Led cross-functional project team that delivered major system upgrade on time
– Streamlined supply chain processes, reducing costs by 15% annually
– Consistently met demanding sales targets and excelled in client engagements
– Spearheaded employee engagement initiatives that improved satisfaction scores
– Lauded for communication abilities, relationship building, and leadership potential
Next Steps After Sending the Request
Once you’ve sent your recommendation request, here are a few follow-up steps:
Check LinkedIn Settings
Confirm your settings allow recommendations. You can also choose to have them be public, visible only to connections, or private.
Follow Up if No Response
If they haven’t responded after a week or so, send a polite follow up checking in. But don’t pester them.
Be Patient
Understand recommendations are a favor and the person may be busy. Unless you need urgent for a job, allow several weeks for a response.
Thank Them Afterward
Once they’ve written your recommendation, send a thank you email expressing your sincere appreciation.
Conclusion
By crafting a thoughtful, personalized request that jogs their memory of your top skills and contributions, provides relevant examples, expresses appreciation, and avoids common pitfalls, you can maximize your chances of getting a strong recommendation. This can give your LinkedIn profile a boost, strengthen your professional relationships, and support future career opportunities.