Strategies for Expanding Your LinkedIn Network

When we started HireSweet, I had zero LinkedIn presence. 8 years later and after a lot of testing and iterating, LinkedIn drives ~30-50% of our leads & revenue. Lately, I've been getting a ton of questions about our learnings. So, here it is - the founder-led LinkedIn playbook I've been giving to anyone who asks 👇 1. Start with the lowest hanging fruit: invitations to connect. They work (30-50% conversion rate) and they allow you to control the direction in which your network grows. Start with 2nd degree connections in your target audience, based in your area. Surprisingly no personalized notes will yield +80% more connections! Free users can send ~50 per week. Paid users ~150 per week. Hit that quota every single week, or lose it forever. 2. Optimize your profile. Clear headline, nice picture (I would avoid AI-generated), and a detailed company description. Use the "featured" section, include a nice call to action and illustrations. 3. Enjoy the process, listen to your audience, build relationships. Play the long game. Build a real sense of community. Don't be pushy, nurture people over time with posts, so they come to you when they're ready. 4. When reaching out to cold prospects, add value. Send a guide, white paper, or video that helps your prospects succeed in their job. Personalize. 5. Post 3-5 times per week, high-quality posts. Turn on Creator Mode, get a paid LinkedIn account, and add a "Visit my website" button to your profile. 6. Best times to post: mornings on Monday to Friday, as people are getting to work (8-9AM) or heading to lunch (12PM). 7. Create a process to help you generate posts. Examples: What have you learned recently? What unique industry beliefs do you hold? What do you often find yourself explaining to clients or new hires? 8. Don't come up with 5 new ideas per week. Find 1-2 good ideas and repurpose them as text, images, videos, and polls. 9. Posts perform better in that order: - Polls (+100% vs text) - do one per week - Text + relevant picture (ideally a selfie - I don't really do this myself but it works) (+50% vs text) - Text with no picture - Videos (about the same as text but more time-consuming) - External links --> Avoid them 10. For text posts, open with a strong hook, focus on readability, keep it simple (one key idea per post), and end with a question to make it simple to engage. 11. LinkedIn Live is the most underrated LinkedIn feature. Each attendee can invite up to 1,000 people per week (!!) - as long as they're 1st degree connections. Do more LinkedIn Lives! 12. It's rather easy to get a "Top Industry Voice" badge. Go to the Collaborative Article page, pick a relevant topic, and leave 3 valuable comments per day. This is how I got my badge within a week. Now it's your turn - do you agree/disagree with this recipe? What are your top LinkedIn tips for founders? 👇 (If you made it this far, feel free to bookmark this post to revisit it later!)

𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗗𝗠 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿. 𝗜 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗻𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸. That it was only for extroverts, salespeople, or those who knew the “right” people. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The truth? LinkedIn changed my career more than any job board ever could. From landing internships to publishing research and breaking into power & energy, the biggest opportunities in my career didn’t come from job boards—they came from building the right connections. Yet, so many professionals hesitate to network strategically because they: * Feel awkward reaching out to strangers * Don’t know what to say in a cold DM * Fear getting ignored or rejected I get it—I used to be the same way. But once I started using LinkedIn the right way, I landed mentors, internships, and research opportunities that shaped my entire career. Here’s How You Can Do It Today: ✅ 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 * Look for professionals in your target field (engineers, hiring managers, senior leaders). * Use LinkedIn’s “People Also Viewed” section to find similar profiles. * Join industry groups to see who’s actively sharing insights. ✅ 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲 Forget “Hi, can I pick your brain?” That doesn’t work. Instead, try this: 💡 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗗𝗠 𝗧𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲: “Hi [Name], I came across your profile while learning about [topic]. I admire your work on [specific project]. I’d love to hear your thoughts on [question]. Would you be open to a quick chat?” ✅ 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗗𝗠 * Like and comment on their posts genuinely * Share their work and add your insights * Make your name familiar before sending a message ✅ 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽 People respond better when you bring something to the table: * Share an article or resource relevant to their work * Offer a fresh perspective on one of their posts * Ask a specific, thoughtful question instead of just “Can you help me?” The Outcome: I’ve used this exact strategy to build meaningful relationships that led to: ✔ Internship opportunities before I even applied ✔ Research collaborations that boosted my career ✔ Insights from industry leaders that I couldn’t find anywhere else If you’re not leveraging LinkedIn for strategic networking, you’re leaving opportunities on the table. 💡 Try this today: Pick ONE person you admire, craft a thoughtful DM, and hit send

The Complete LinkedIn Growth Blueprint (That Actually Works in 2025) After helping dozens of professionals transform their LinkedIn presence, I've distilled my approach into this comprehensive playbook that drives real results. The secret? It's not about random posting—it's about systematic implementation across these six critical areas: 𝟭. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Your profile isn't just a digital resume—it's your 24/7 business card. Beyond the basics, your Featured section should showcase your best work, and your Experience section should tell stories, not just list responsibilities. 𝟮. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 The algorithm rewards diversity. My clients see 3X engagement when they balance text-only posts with carousels, documents, and video. But timing matters too—I've found Tuesday and Thursday mornings consistently outperform other posting windows. 𝟯. 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗧𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 My 5-3-1 daily system works wonders: 5 comments on target audience posts, 3 reactions with thoughtful insights, and 1 direct message to deepen a specific relationship. Small consistent actions compound dramatically. 𝟰. 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 Connections without strategy create noise, not opportunity. I help clients develop audience segments and personalized connection request formulas that convert at 70%+ rather than the typical 20% acceptance rate. 𝟱. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 LinkedIn becomes your most valuable lead source when content drives inbound connections, and your outbound messaging sequence moves relationships forward naturally. Sales Navigator becomes truly powerful when used within this framework. 𝟲. 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 & 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 What gets measured gets improved. I focus clients on tracking 5 key metrics that actually matter rather than vanity metrics that distract. Our testing framework lets you improve each element methodically. I've mapped out this entire system in my LinkedIn Growth Playbook (see image). What part of your LinkedIn strategy needs the most attention right now? Comment below and I'll share some personalized insights. Need Guidance or more help? Reach me here: https://fh.bio/gkotte #LinkedInStrategy #ProfessionalGrowth #NetworkingTips #ContentCreation #LeadGeneration

The right network doesn’t just open doors. It changes your life. Here’s how to grow a powerful LinkedIn network that creates real opportunities. Most people struggle to grow on LinkedIn because they connect randomly. Or worse, they don’t connect at all. Yikes, right? I used to think posting alone would bring opportunities. But the real unlock? Strategic networking. Here’s the exact process that helped me build a network that works for me: 1. Most people connect randomly and get ignored. Instead, find the right people who can accelerate your success: ➜ Those who already attract the audience you want to reach ➜ Consistent LinkedIn creators who show up daily ➜ People 1-2 steps ahead in your niche 2. If you connect with inactive people, nothing happens. Instead, engage with those who are already active. ➜ Find People 1-2 steps ahead in your niche ➜ Look at their comment section. if they engage with similar content, they’re likely to engage with yours too. 3. A big network means nothing if no one cares. ➜ Build relationships with people who can actually unlock new doors. ➜ Send targeted connection requests to second-degree connections (mutuals help). ➜ Who have 500-15K followers. Not too small, but not too big to get lost in their inbox. 4. Most connection requests lead nowhere. ➜ When you start genuine conversations, real opportunities follow. ➜ Don’t just send a request: Comment on their posts and follow up with a DM. 5. If you only show up once in a while, you’ll be forgotten, but if you stay consistent, you become impossible to ignore. ➜ The best networkers don’t stop once they hit “connect.” ➜ They show up, contribute, and build influence over time. ➜ Stay consistent with your daily connection habits and your daily interaction habits. This is how I turned connections into real opportunities. And with a few tweaks, I’m starting to grow other platforms too. PS: What’s your go-to strategy for building a strong network?