How to write a LinkedIn message to reconnect

Last updated 2 November 2026

When you need to send a LinkedIn message to reconnect with an old connection, HeyLead can help you reach out to the right people.

What a reconnecting message is

You are already connected to this person, but the last conversation was long ago. A plain, honest note works better than pretending you never lost touch. When you reach out, you want to rebuild the relationship.

HeyLead is an AI agent for LinkedIn outreach: it finds the right people, writes to them in the voice of your own LinkedIn posts, follows up, and handles replies. It runs from Claude Code, Cursor, any MCP client or a web dashboard.

The shape of your note

Keep the message to short lines. The structure is simple and respects the reader's time. You want to make it easy for them to read and respond.

Admit the gap in a few words.
The specific reason you are writing now.
An easy way to reply.

Examples by situation

Here are fictional examples for different reasons to write. You can adapt these to your own situation when you want to reconnect.

Something they posted or a change in their role: Hi John, I saw your new role at Acme Corp. It has been a while, but I wanted to say congratulations. Are you enjoying the new team?
A memory of working together: Hi Sarah, I was just thinking about our time at Globex. It has been a long time. How are things with you?
A reason the timing makes sense now: Hi Mike, it has been a while since we spoke. I am looking for partners in the logistics space and thought of you. Would you be open to a chat?

What to leave out

Avoid these mistakes when you write to an old connection. These errors can damage the relationship.

Pretending you kept in touch.
A favour asked in the first message.
A copied note sent to many old connections at once.

How to use HeyLead to find partners

You can use HeyLead to find partners or investors. Reach the people who can sign a partnership or an investment. You type a brief in Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT or the HeyLead dashboard. HeyLead drafts the campaign. You review it and press Launch. Nothing is sent before.

HeyLead watches 40+ signal types, scored, matched to your ICP and expiring. A strong signal starts outreach and the opener says why now. Before an invitation, HeyLead warms up: a profile view, a follow, a comment on a recent post. An invitation with a note, an opening message, up to 2 follow-ups on Free and 5 on Pro, InMail and email fallback.

It reads your own LinkedIn posts to learn your voice and never posts unless you ask for a post. It works in Claude Code, Cursor, Claude Desktop and claude.ai, any MCP client and a web dashboard. It also works in ChatGPT as a custom MCP app.

create_campaign goal='partner'

Limits and pricing

Free costs $0 for a connected account with 2 follow-ups. Pro costs $29 a month per connected account. Opening messages, follow-ups and answers to replies wait for your approval until you switch to autopilot. Invitations, not-now check-ins and meeting nudges are not held.

The client's source is on GitHub under MIT. The hosted backend is not. It runs from the cloud with your laptop closed. Campaign goals include: sell a product or service, find a job, hire people, find partners or investors, find a vendor, research interviews. Hire people, find partners or investors and research interviews work with a custom brief.

Questions people ask

Does HeyLead sync with my CRM?

HubSpot is the CRM it syncs with.

How does HeyLead handle replies?

Replies are read, classified and answered from the campaign's facts. Anything ambiguous is held for you, and not now gets a check-in in 30 days.

Does HeyLead book meetings?

Google Calendar is the calendar it books into.

HeyLead sends from your own LinkedIn account at a human pace: at most 20 invitations a day and 100 a week on a free LinkedIn account (more on Premium or Sales Navigator: a newly connected paid account starts at 20 a day and doubles each week up to its limit), Monday to Friday 08:00 to 22:00 in your time zone, minutes apart. It backs off when LinkedIn pushes back and resumes on its own. You can pause any campaign at any time.

HeyLead is not affiliated with LinkedIn. It reaches LinkedIn through Unipile, which is also not affiliated. LinkedIn's own rules are in the Terms.

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Set up HeyLead using https://heylead.dev/llms.txt