Using LinkedIn like you would for cold calling or cold email is a recipe for disaster.
Outreach on LinkedIn is a different animal, and honestly, we discovered this more by accident than anything.
On LinkedIn, you can beat around the bush.
Try that on a cold call. If you don’t get to your point fast, you’re getting a dial tone. The most rapport you can hope for is “Hi, how are you?” “Good.” Keep beating around the bush after that and you’re getting either “what is this about?” or click.
Cold email? You’ve got about this much space to grab somebody’s attention.
But LinkedIn is still a networking site at its core. You can say hello. Introduce yourself. Give the other person an opportunity to do the same. You can have a little more fun with the whole thing.
It’s not just BOOM. Are you interested? No? Get out of here so I can get on with the rest of my day.
You’re building a network. Maybe somebody isn’t interested in what you have to offer today. On a cold call, that’s it. They’re gone. You’re never going to see them again.
On LinkedIn, they’re part of your network.
Right before I hopped on to record this, somebody accepted a message I sent back in 2023. It’s 2026. Some of these messages have a long, long shelf life.
A couple months ago, someone I’d worked with years ago came back and said, “I saw you’re doing events again. I remembered you. We closed some deals from that. I’d like to revisit the service.”
LinkedIn isn’t just about the outreach. It’s the network. It’s the people.
So when somebody isn’t interested right now, don’t block them and move on. Keep them around.
That’s the value of a LinkedIn network versus a cold email or cold calling list, where it’s yes or no? No? Great. Next.
Outreach on LinkedIn is a different animal, and honestly, we discovered this more by accident than anything.
On LinkedIn, you can beat around the bush.
Try that on a cold call. If you don’t get to your point fast, you’re getting a dial tone. The most rapport you can hope for is “Hi, how are you?” “Good.” Keep beating around the bush after that and you’re getting either “what is this about?” or click.
Cold email? You’ve got about this much space to grab somebody’s attention.
But LinkedIn is still a networking site at its core. You can say hello. Introduce yourself. Give the other person an opportunity to do the same. You can have a little more fun with the whole thing.
It’s not just BOOM. Are you interested? No? Get out of here so I can get on with the rest of my day.
You’re building a network. Maybe somebody isn’t interested in what you have to offer today. On a cold call, that’s it. They’re gone. You’re never going to see them again.
On LinkedIn, they’re part of your network.
Right before I hopped on to record this, somebody accepted a message I sent back in 2023. It’s 2026. Some of these messages have a long, long shelf life.
A couple months ago, someone I’d worked with years ago came back and said, “I saw you’re doing events again. I remembered you. We closed some deals from that. I’d like to revisit the service.”
LinkedIn isn’t just about the outreach. It’s the network. It’s the people.
So when somebody isn’t interested right now, don’t block them and move on. Keep them around.
That’s the value of a LinkedIn network versus a cold email or cold calling list, where it’s yes or no? No? Great. Next.
And they’re gone forever.