[08.26.10]

95 great comments!

(I Am Tired Of) Generic LinkedIn Invitations

Only time for a short rant today. And I don’t want to over-do this. But I am really now tired of getting generic invitations on LinkedIn.

Really.

Because it takes just a few seconds to personalize the invite. To make me feel like you have at least tried. And the image above is what I see every time the generic request comes in.

It’s like walking up to someone at a networking event. Holding up a sign indicating what group we share. Taking my business card. And then walking away.

And while I hate turning away a potential new friend, I am not going to accept a hit and run connection request.

Because it is lazy business. And lazy does not deliver new friendships. And I know that it is often not laziness. Some just don’t know how this whole networking thing works. Thus my rant.

To be honest, with over 500 connections I’m not sure I need any more. In fact, I once had this idea that I would never go over 500. Once I got there, I would only invite someone or accept a new connection if I deleted a current, but lifeless, connection.

That way, being in my 500 would matter.

But that sounded wrong because there might be some people who could get value from having access to people in my network.

Tempting though.

If you are one of the six people who sent me a generic request today. It’s nothing personal. You may not know this about me. Now you do.

But maybe my short little rant will help as you look to connect with others. Especially those who are super picky about to whom they attach themselves.

And if it was you, don’t worry. No one will know.

What is your view of this issue? Who will step up and defend the generic request?

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Roger Nelson

Yes it does help. Thanks you very much. Sometimes it seems I need to know more about getting to the right person than to do the job.

When dealing with jobs posted and specifically the poster, I assume there is no taboo on taking that track as an intorduction, is there?

Thanks again for your insights and help…Old Dogs find there are a lot of new tricks to learn.

http://www.timsstrategy.com Tim Tyrell-Smith

Roger – as long as you are asking an honest question, you can never be hurt by it. Some will choose to ignore your request, of course. But, as my mom once said: “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.”

Roger Nelson

Yes it does help. Thanks you very much. Sometimes it seems I need to know more about getting to the right person than to do the job.

When dealing with jobs posted and specifically the poster, I assume there is no taboo on taking that track as an intorduction, is there?

Thanks again for your insights and help…Old Dogs find there are a lot of new tricks to learn.

http://www.timsstrategy.com Tim Tyrell-Smith

Roger – as long as you are asking an honest question, you can never be hurt by it. Some will choose to ignore your request, of course. But, as my mom once said: “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.”

Roger Nelson

Sounds like your mam knew my mama! Thanks Tim. I’m working on it.
Roger Nelson

Sounds like your mam knew my mama! Thanks Tim. I’m working on it.
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http://optioneerjm.blogspot.com/ OptioneerJM

Great viewpoint. I typically ask unsolicited invites what group we belonged to and what I may have said in a discussion that fueled their interest to add to network.

I find that question allows me to personalize/internalize the person after their response. It tends to segue to introductions that help my memory, and also who stands out.

http://timsstrategy.com/ TimsStrategy

Good idea, Optioneer. Gets your point across and starts a potentially fruitful discussion. I like that method . . .

Miki Berman

I ALWAYS make my invite requests personal to that particular person I want in my network. I even look at their work+website to get a better idea of who they are. Then I do tell them a tiny bit about me as well!

http://timsstrategy.com/ TimsStrategy

Great Miki – I like that process. Makes me so much more interested in connecting with you . . . the hard work you do upfront suggests the type of interaction I can expect down the road.

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(I Am Tired Of) Generic LinkedIn Invitations

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