LinkedIn connection request message template: 12 examples by situation

Last updated 15 October 2026

The note on a LinkedIn connection request, which LinkedIn calls an invitation message, is short, and the reader decides from the first line. Name the reason you are writing, once, and stop. Below: the shape, 12 examples by situation and what to leave out, then how a HeyLead campaign writes the note from the person's profile and your own posts.

The shape

1. The reason, in the first line. A post they wrote, a job they just took, a problem you both work on. Something that could only be about them.
2. Who you are, in half a line. What you build or do, not your title.
3. No ask beyond the request. The request is the ask. Add one small one only when it is the reason you write, such as a role you want. The conversation starts after they accept.

12 examples, by situation

After a post they wrote · After a job change · After a talk or an event · Through a mutual connection · Someone you have never met · A potential client · A hiring manager, for a job you want · A recruiter · A candidate you would like to hire · A partner or investor · Someone you would like to buy from · Someone for a research interview

A reason that is about them

After a post they wrote

Hi Maria, your post on why settlement retries fail silently is the clearest thing I have read on it. I build tooling for exactly that at a small fintech. Would be good to be connected.

Why it works: The first line could only be about her. The rest is half a line on you.

After a job change

Hi Tom, congratulations on the move to Northwind. I run payments engineering at a company your size and follow what your team ships. Glad to be connected.

Why it works: A new job is a reason to write that week, not a month later.

After a talk or an event

Hi Dan, I was in the room for your talk on onboarding emails at the Berlin product meetup. The point about the second email stuck with me. Happy to connect.

Why it works: It names the talk and one point from it, so it cannot be a note sent to everyone.

Through a mutual connection

Hi Priya, Sam Ortiz said you are the person to know about warehouse robotics in Leeds. I build route planning for small fleets. Would be good to be connected.

Why it works: A name they trust does the introducing. Ask that person first.

Someone you have never met

Hi Chris, I keep finding your answers on Postgres locking when I search for my own bugs. I build a small database tool for indie teams. Would like to follow your work.

Why it works: With a stranger, their public work is the reason. Name one piece of it.

What you want from the connection

A potential client

Hi Mark, I saw Brightline is opening a second clinic in Bristol. I work with small clinics on patient booking and like how you run yours. Good to be connected.

Why it works: It notices their business and leaves the offer out. The pitch waits until they accept, if it comes at all.

A hiring manager, for a job you want

Hi Sofia, I saw the backend opening on your payments team. I have spent four years on card settlement at a bank your size. I would like to be on your radar.

Why it works: The role, one line of proof, and a small ask that is the reason you write. How to reach a hiring manager.

A recruiter

Hi James, I see you hire data engineers for fintechs in London. I am looking for my next data platform role from March, mostly Python and dbt. Glad to be connected.

Why it works: It tells them in one line which searches you belong in. The message to a recruiter.

A candidate you would like to hire

Hi Lucas, your talk on testing Kafka consumers was the best I have seen on it. We are building a small platform team in Lisbon. Would be good to be connected.

Why it works: Their work first. Half a line on the team lets them guess the rest.

A partner or investor

Hi Owen, your agency builds Shopify stores for food brands, and most of them ask for the subscription app I build. Seems worth being connected.

Why it works: It names the overlap. The partnership is clear without asking for it.

Someone you would like to buy from

Hi Lena, we are choosing a payroll provider for Poland and Portugal this quarter and your name came up twice. I am the buyer here. Would be good to be connected.

Why it works: Saying you are the buyer gets attention without an ask.

Someone for a research interview

Hi Grace, you run support for a team of about 20, which is who I am learning from. I am researching how small teams handle refunds. Nothing to sell. Glad to connect.

Why it works: It says why them and rules out a pitch. The request for a call comes after they accept.

Leave out

• A pitch. A note that sells gets declined; a note that names a reason gets accepted.
• "I would love to add you to my professional network." It says nothing about them.
• A link. Nobody opens a link from a stranger's request.
• Flattery about the company. One specific line about their work does more.

How a HeyLead campaign writes it

A HeyLead campaign writes the invitation note from the person's profile, the reason the agents chose them (a signal such as a post or a job change), and the voice of your own LinkedIn posts. A selling campaign opens with curiosity and no product name; a job-search campaign may name the company and the role; a buying campaign says you are the buyer. Hire people, find partners or investors and research interviews work with a custom brief. Warm-up comes first: a profile view, a follow, a comment on a recent post, so the note lands on a name they have seen.

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.

Questions people ask

What should a LinkedIn connection request message say?

One reason you are writing that could only be about them (a post, a job change, a shared problem), half a line on what you do, and no ask. Under 200 characters; LinkedIn cuts the note short.

How long should a LinkedIn connection request note be?

Under 200 characters, and every example on this page fits. LinkedIn cuts a longer note short, and the reader decides from the first line anyway.

Is an invitation message the same as a connection request message?

Yes. LinkedIn calls the note you add to a connection request an invitation message. Same box, same rule: one reason, then stop.

How do I write an invitation message to a client?

Name one thing you noticed about their business, say in half a line what you do, and leave the offer out. The potential-client example above is one.

Should I send a connection request without a note?

A request without a note is accepted often, but the acceptance carries nothing: the next message still has to explain who you are. A note that names the reason does that work up front.

How does HeyLead write the note?

From the person's profile, the signal that started the outreach and the voice of your own LinkedIn posts. Invitations follow the seat's ceiling: at most 20 a day and 100 a week on a free LinkedIn account.

Related: All templates · How the campaign runs · How to reach a hiring manager