How Many Characters In A Linkedin Connection Request? [A Character Count Guide]

LinkedIn does have character limits when it comes to messaging.

These messaging limits are there for a reason, and they can have a big effect on how you will come across personally and professionally!

The messages that you send on this site can make or break essential connections, so the length of these messages is very important! 

Read on for details about using LinkedIn and the number of characters that you are able to put in a connection request! 

Character Limits On LinkedIn

LinkedIn allows you to message in two different ways. Connection requests are the most popular way of messaging on LinkedIn.

These messages have a limit of 300 characters. These messages are sent to you from people who are possibly connected to you, when they want to join your network. 

These characters include letters, numbers, emojis, symbols, and spaces. 

This might seem like a very small amount of characters, however, it is plenty if you use it effectively. 

Other LinkedIn Messaging Options 

The other way to send messages on LinkedIn is through InMail.

This is basically an email option for your LinkedIn account. It is slightly different from email in certain ways, though.

Firstly, you can only send InMails to certain people. If you’ve connected with them before, then you can send them InMails. 

If you have a free LinkedIn account, then you can email 3 people each month. This was created so that there was an upgrade option on LinkedIn.

If you want to send more InMails, you can buy InMail through the different upgrade plans available. 

For instance, if you purchase the premium career upgrade, you will have 5 InMail credits available.

If you choose the premium business account, you will have access to 15. A sales navigator account entitles you to 20 InMail credits. Recruiter Lite is worth 30. 

In InMail messages, you are able to send much longer messages than the connection messages.

You can have up to 2000 characters in the main part of your message, and up to 200 in the subject line.

What Should You Include When You Send A LinkedIn Message? 

It can be quite difficult to decide what to include in your LinkedIn message.

It is a great way to engage with your audience and you want to make these messages as useful as possible. 

Think about including the following things in your message in order to make it most effective: 

URLs 

URLs are a great thing to include when you are sending messages on LinkedIn.

You want to make sure that you are sending a worthwhile, engaging and interesting message that makes them feel interested in you.

This is a great way to share content without being too limited by the character limit, too.

Emojis 

It is a good idea to use emojis in your LinkedIn connection messages.

They are a good way to make the interaction friendly and lighthearted without being unprofessional.

Make sure to use appropriate emoji’s, though and ensure that you are not overusing them. 

GIFs

You can use GIFs on LinkedIn and this can be a good way of lightening your LinkedIn connection messages, too.

You should use these sparingly, too. Too many GIFs could come across as unprofessional. 

Attach Files 

You can add files to your LinkedIn messages. This is a great way to send over any documents, images or portfolios.

These can be shared in the InMail messages by attaching them to the documents. 

How To Use Your Characters Wisely

It is very important to be able to create coherent and effective LinkedIn messages as this can really move your career forward.

It is really difficult to know what to say when you are sending connection requests and reaching out to someone new. 

Let’s have a look at a few things that you can do to write an effective message.

Once you have a template of a message to send out, you’ll find it much easier to connect, and you’ll find it much easier to reach out for opportunities and interact in a beneficial and professional way. 

Write An Effective Subject Line 

The subject line is the first thing that the reader will see, and it can be a make or break point for these LinkedIn connections.

If your reader is not taken by the subject line, then they may just skim over your message and not read the main body of the message. For this reason, these subject lines need to stand out. 

You want your subject line to be interesting, solid and valuable. It is also a good idea to make your subject line:

• Personal. You want people to know that it will be worth your time looking at your message. 
• Valid. You want to make sure that you are sending the message to the right person and that it is the best place to send it. 
• You don’t want your subject line to be too long. If it is too long, it is much less likely to be properly read.

Make Sure You’re Relevant 

It is a good idea to reference a common connection or interest.

For instance, a professional contact could be mentioned. This will ensure that the reader feels a connection to you and wants to read your message. 

You must think about what is in it for the person reading the message. People don’t have much spare time, so you need to make sure that the message is relevant. 

Make Sure You’re Specific 

You don’t have much room to fill so make sure you’re not wasting the space!

You need to identify what you’re discussing and make sure there’s a clear reason as to why this is worth engaging in.

Use specific facts and figures and don’t mess around when you’re making your point.

Be Authentic 

It is obvious when someone is authentic in a message and you want to make sure that you portray this in your message.

Tell them the truth about what you have to offer and make sure that it doesn’t feel like you’re asking for a lot in return.

Common Mistakes With LinkedIn Connection Requests 

There are a few common mistakes that are made when it comes to LinkedIn connection requests. These include the following: 

1. Sending connection requests that are copied and pasted and haven’t been personalized at all. When you do this, you are not setting yourself aside from anyone else. You are very unlikely to get a response in this way because the person receiving the request doesn’t know anything about you. 
2. Not highlighting a reason for people to respond to you. You should make sure that you are talking yourself up because you want people to feel like you have something to offer them.
3. Confusing networking with selling. It is important to make sure that you aren’t confusing networking for selling because this can come in the way of your success. You shouldn’t be pitching sales, instead you should be making sure that you are just making connections.

Final Thoughts

There is a limit of 300 characters in a LinkedIn connection request. Make sure that you use these characters wisely as they are the difference between success and failure to get responses!