If your law firm serves a business clientele, or if you want to increase your personal branding in the business environment, LinkedIn is the perfect solution. This article provides several pointers for “How to Prospect on LinkedIn.” Readers will learn the difference between following people, inviting connections, and using LinkedIn InMail for targeted messaging.

How to Follow People on LinkedIn

You can easily “follow” most people on LinkedIn. This does not require your prospect’s permission, and you don’t have to wait for them to accept a follow request. When you start to follow a LinkedIn member, you will be able to view their posts and job updates.

There is no limit to the number of people you can follow. An easy way to get started is to follow influencers and thought leaders in your industry.

For your first degree connections, the “follow” button is often readily available. For a third degree connection, you may need to click on the “More” button to find the option to follow.

The disadvantage of simply following a person on LinkedIn is that they do not see YOUR posts or job news.

You could also take a two-step process. First, you can follow them. It’s not unusual for that person to then follow you back, or to invite a connection. At a future point, like one week, you can also send them a connection request if the prospect did not initiate any action.

Invitations to Connect on LinkedIn

Building your network of connections on LinkedIn offers numerous benefits for personal and professional growth. Leading advantages include building your personal brand, increasing your likelihood of getting speaking or publishing opportunities, retaining clients, and attracting the attention of qualified prospects.

Building your network is as simple as sending out a few connection requests to people you just met, or people you know from the past. If you can try to connect with just 5-10 people every week, at the end of a year you will have 250-500 new connections!

LinkedIn does have a weekly limit on connection requests. While the social media platform doesn’t publicly state the exact limit, marketing experts understand that the weekly cap is approximately 100 connections requests for most users, or 20 per day. Subscribers to the Sales Navigator service may be able to send up to 200 invitations per week.

Always include a personalized message when sending a connection request to maximize your response rate. You get up to 300 characters for your message, so use this wisely.

LinkedIn InMail Messages for Business Development

LinkedIn offers their proprietary “InMail” message platform. If prospecting is important to building your book of business, chances are that you’ve already tested sending “cold” emails. Response rates on unsolicited email are quite low (often zero), and you run the risk of flagging your URL as a spammer (for high volume emailers).

LinkedIn InMail is primarily a feature for paid subscribers, such as those with LinkedIn Premium, Sales Navigator, or Recruiter accounts. These users can send InMail messages to people outside their network (2nd or 3rd-degree connections). The number of InMail messages you get monthly varies with your subscription level, so check you personal account for details.

There is one way for free account holders to send InMail messages, and that is if the recipient has set their profile to “Open Profile” status. In this case, free users can send InMail messages without needing a paid subscription. You might want to consider setting your own profile to “Open,” depending on your circumstances.

One benefit of sending an InMail message is that you can write longer messages. You get up to 200 characters for a subject line and 1,900 characters for the body of the message. The job of the subject line is to get your message opened, so try to personalize your subject line (like with the prospect’s name) and be specific about the reason you are writing.

The body of your InMail message should get to the point quickly. You can also include links to external sites and a more detailed signature block for yourself.

Start with a Targeted Prospect List

A strategic approach to prospecting starts with a good list. List sources might include the membership list for your local bar association, the attendee list for a conference you attended, or a local Chamber of Commerce list identifying corporate presidents in your geographic area.

If you’d like help with business development for your law firm, the author invites your interest.

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Legal Expert Connections, Inc. is a national legal marketing agency founded in 2003. We have helped more than 250 law firms in 43+ states with business development campaigns across a range of practice areas, including insurance defense, employment defense, and immigration law.

We build an engaging, educational, and highly visible online presence for law firms to help them attract and retain clients.

Legal Expert Connections, Inc. offers three key benefits to law firms nationwide:

1. We are a leading U.S. legal marketing agency focused on business development. We accelerate your business development process by helping you focus on introducing your law firm to new prospective clients.
2. You get a structured business development process. We guide your law firm through a proven campaign process that brings discipline, focus, and productivity to your marketing efforts.
3. Increase revenue with professional, Bar-compliant legal marketing campaigns. We want to serve as your in-house marketing department, so you can focus your time on the practice of law.

Contact president Margaret Grisdela at 561-266-1030 or via email. Connect with Margaret Grisdela on LinkedIn.