How to structure connection request emails in sales

𝗠𝘆 𝟱-𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗙𝗹𝗼𝘄 (𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀) Most salespeople treat LinkedIn outreach like a cold email mass blast or a generic pitch and pray for replies. No wonder most messages get ignored. Over the past 20 years in sales (and after helping hundreds of sellers), I’ve built a simple 5-step outreach flow that actually starts conversations instead of killing them: 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭 – 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁. Don’t just hit “connect.” Personalize your request with relevance. Show you know who they are and why connecting makes sense. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮 – 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁. Instead of pitching, share a short, valuable observation about their role/industry. Position yourself as someone who brings perspective—not pressure. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯 – 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Ask something that sparks dialogue (not a yes/no dead end). The goal is to open the door, not close the deal. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟰 – 𝗔𝘀𝗸, 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲. When the timing feels right, ask permission to share how you help—don’t force it. Respect earns replies. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟱 – 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗮 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆. Stories beat stats. Share a quick example of how you’ve helped someone like them solve a similar problem. Relatability builds trust. 👉 Put all 5 together, and you’ve got a natural, non-pushy flow that feels more like a conversation than a pitch. I'm curious, which of these 5 steps do you feel 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 most in your outreach right now? Drop it in the comments and I’ll share some message templates with anyone who chimes in.

I get 400+ connection requests every week. 99% make the same mistakes. Only 1% get it right. Here’s how you can be that 1%. Before I preach: I’ve also made all these mistakes. I’m no exception. But, by now I’ve learned from it. I hope this post helps you avoid them. ❌ SENDING REQUESTS WITHOUT A NOTE. 99% of connection requests I get have no note. By adding no note, you’re asking the other person to spend at least 30 seconds looking at your profile title, understanding what you do, & decoding whether that’s relevant. Sure, they can do it for 10 people. But not 100+. You’re wasting an opportunity EVERY time you send a request without a note. ✅ SEND A NOTE, EVEN IF IT'S 2 SENTENCES. Forget writing detailed & specific notes. Just write 2 sentences. “Hi Pooja! I enjoyed reading your recent post on how to send connection requests. Now, I’d love to follow along your journey and hopefully contribute in a meaningful way.” That’s it. BOOM. You just 5x-ed your acceptance rate. ❌ ASKING FOR A "20-MIN CALL" No, most people don’t have time for a “20-min call.” I don’t have time for a “20-min call.” Because you haven’t convinced me what’s in it for me. Instead, here’s an idea: ✅ ASK, "HOW CAN I HELP?" That’s it. So simple. “Hi Pooja! I enjoyed reading your recent post on how to send connection requests. I also see you publish regularly. I’d love to follow along your journey. Also, if I can help in anyway, just let me know.” I will 1000% accept a request with such a note. Most people would. Build a relationship before asking for more. ❌ SENDING AN ESSAY FOR A REQUEST By sending long essay messages, you’ve made 3 mistakes: - You wasted your time - The other person probably didn’t read it - Your request got lost in the abyss ✅ SENDING A SHORT, SPECIFIC REQUEST WITH A COMPELLING WHY Make it easy for the other person to help you. Keep your message short, specific, and give them a REASON to help you. “Hi Pooja! I’ve read most of your posts on LinkedIn. There’s so much value in them. Thank you. I aspire to publish my book next year. Can you point me to any resources/tools that was helpful for you? If you already have it written down somewhere, let me know. P.S. I can help you compile a post on this if you’d like!” Now, you’ve given me 3 reasons to help you: - You’ve done your homework in reading my posts - You have a clear goal in mind - You already offered value in your “P.S.” I get it. All this is extra work. It takes time. But, these few minutes will make or break your chance to find your co-founder, next job, or even a best friend. If this helped you, please re-share the post and help your network! 👉 And, follow me if you'd like more of this. I publish a resource every day. P.S. Wanna send me a connection request? Now you know how to do it 😉 #writing #freeresources #unshackled #advice #linkedin

Personalized Connection Request Notes vs Blank Connection Requests. Settling this debate now. Outreach's famous LinkedIn study misled an entire industry. Let me show you what they missed. I get this question constantly: "Zayd, should I send blank connection requests or personalized ones?” Everyone insists blank requests have higher acceptance rates. "I've never seen connection requests with notes perform better." This is a misconception. Back in 2018, Outreach ran a study comparing blank vs. personalized connection requests. They found blank requests performed 2-3x better. This became "best practice" overnight. But there's a critical flaw: what they considered "personalized" was simply what they were able to power in 2018… ie "Hi {first_name}, I saw you work at {company_name}..." That's not personalization. That's templated spam. Of course that performed worse than blank requests. Today's reality is different: 1. True personalization feels 1-to-1, not 1-to-many 2. It shows you've invested time in the prospect (and they naturally want to reciprocate) 3. It's genuinely relevant - so relevant that it would make no sense to 99.9% of other LinkedIn users At Valley, we're seeing 60% acceptance rates with highly personalized connection requests. And 20% InMail reply rates THAT ARE PITCHING OUR SERVICE. Think about that. When you send blank requests, sure, more people might accept. But they have no idea why you're connecting. You're filling your inbox with people who may never buy from you, wasting your limited connection requests on prospects who aren't interested. Our tests show properly personalized requests match blank request acceptance rates (~60%) with one massive difference: Everyone who accepts knows exactly why I'm connecting. My intentions to sell are clear. This naturally leads to higher conversions, better response rates, more meetings, and ultimately more revenue. Stop looking for loopholes to get into someone's inbox. Be upfront with a thoughtful, personalized note that speaks directly to them. What's been your experience with connection requests?