It can occasionally be difficult to navigate LinkedIn’s networking features, particularly when choosing who to follow or connect with This thorough guide explains the key distinctions between LinkedIn’s follow and connect features, assisting you in making well-informed decisions that support your career networking objectives. You can improve your networking strategy on the biggest professional platform in the world, interact with the appropriate audience, and create a more powerful LinkedIn presence by being aware of these differences.
What Distinguishes LinkedIn Connect from Follow?
There are two fundamentally different ways to interact with other professionals on LinkedIn: connecting and following. A mutual relationship is formed when you connect with someone on LinkedIn; both people must accept the connection request, forming what LinkedIn refers to as a “1st degree connection.” You can view each other’s posts, updates, and usually more thorough profile information because of this reciprocal relationship.
By following someone on LinkedIn, on the other hand, you can view their posts and public content without asking their consent or establishing a relationship. Although LinkedIn’s follow feature was first created mainly for its thought leaders and influencers, anyone can follow or be followed without the same restrictions as connections. Because it influences how you engage with people, what appears in your LinkedIn feed, and how you develop your professional network on the site, this distinction is very important.
How Do You Choose Which LinkedIn Connections to Make or Follow?
Your relationship with the individual and your networking goals will play a major role in your decision to follow or connect. Sending a connection request is usually appropriate if you want to connect with someone on LinkedIn that you know personally or professionally, such as a client, colleague, or peer in the industry. When you want to establish a true two-way professional relationship where direct communication could be advantageous to both sides, this strategy works well.
The follow button, however, might be more suitable if you’re intrigued by someone’s ideas and content but don’t necessarily require or require a personal connection. Many LinkedIn users decide to follow influential people, business leaders, or content producers they respect without establishing a connection. This enables you to follow their posts without assuming that you will interact with them directly. Knowing this difference enables you to respect professional boundaries and use LinkedIn more skillfully.
What Takes Place When You Make a LinkedIn Connection?
Making connections with individuals on LinkedIn creates a reciprocal relationship that has many benefits. You become what LinkedIn refers to as “1st degree connections” once someone accepts your connection request, meaning you can message each other directly without being restricted by premium features. Connections have access to each other’s complete profiles, including contact details that non-connections might not be able to see.
LinkedIn connections also increase the visibility of your network. You get some visibility into the connections of your connections, and their posts, comments, and job changes are displayed in your feed (2nd degree). Because LinkedIn enables you to use these connections for opportunities, recommendations, and introductions, this network effect is extremely potent. Many professionals discover that meaningful professional opportunities, collaboration, and knowledge exchange result from having high-quality connections.
What Distinguishes LinkedIn Connecting from the Follow Feature?
LinkedIn’s follow feature is an example of a one-way relationship that doesn’t need consent from both parties. If you follow someone on LinkedIn, their public posts and articles will appear in your feed, but unless they follow you back, they won’t see yours automatically. Following is especially helpful for consuming content from industry leaders without anticipating reciprocal engagement because of this asymmetrical relationship.
You can keep up with someone’s professional insights by following them on LinkedIn, which does not imply the same degree of relationship as a connection. Your follow action is instantaneous and doesn’t require the person you wish to follow’s consent. Thought leadership content, trends, and industry insights are frequently shared by LinkedIn users with sizable followings. You can create a LinkedIn feed full of pertinent content that keeps you up to date on your industry by following carefully chosen professionals.
How Do Your LinkedIn Profile’s Connections and Followers Look Different?
The connections and followers metrics are shown in slightly different ways on your LinkedIn profile. On your profile, connections are represented by a number (for example, “500+ connections”) that represents the reciprocal relationships you have built. Although you can view your precise connection count privately, this number is limited to “500+” in the public domain. Your direct professional network, which you have developed over time, is represented by your connections.
Your follower count, on the other hand, displays the total number of individuals who have followed your content, including both non-connected followers and connections who follow you automatically. The quantity of followers becomes a crucial indicator of influence and reach for many professionals who concentrate on thought leadership. Significant follower counts on LinkedIn frequently result in higher content visibility and engagement rates. You can assess various facets of your professional presence on the platform by being aware of both metrics.
When Is It Better to Follow Someone on LinkedIn Rather Than Connect?
When you appreciate someone’s content but don’t have a personal or professional relationship that would justify a connection, following is frequently the recommended course of action. The follow button is the ideal way to follow influential people, thought leaders, or industry experts whose opinions you respect but with whom you don’t anticipate speaking directly. You can use LinkedIn’s content without bothering their network.
When connecting might seem rash or presumptuous, it’s also appropriate to follow. For example, following respects boundaries while enabling you to interact with someone’s content if you’re interested in their posts but haven’t yet developed a professional relationship. If they see your considerate interaction, many LinkedIn users will reward followers who like and comment on their posts. This can eventually result in more direct professional relationships.
How Can You Determine Whether Someone on LinkedIn Is Worth Following or Connecting With?
It’s important to pay attention to subtle clues on someone’s LinkedIn profile in order to determine their preferences for connections over followers. The statements “I connect with people I’ve worked with directly” or “Open to connections in the marketing industry” are examples of professionals who clearly outline their connection policy in their profile summary. Before submitting a connection request, others might advise following them.
Another hint is provided by the button on their profile. The primary action button on LinkedIn profiles can be set to either “Connect” or “Follow.” This person probably favors followers over new contacts if “Follow” is displayed prominently. Additionally, look at how they interact with other users on the platform—do they reply to comments made by people you don’t know? Is their follower-to-connection ratio high? You can use these indicators to decide whether to follow or connect with someone on LinkedIn without running the risk of having your request denied.
What Are the Advantages of Increasing Your LinkedIn Following and Connections?
The best professional presence on LinkedIn is produced by cultivating a balanced approach to connections and followers. Your core professional network is made up of the people you can get in touch with directly, ask for introductions to, and possibly work with. Strong LinkedIn connections frequently result in real-world business opportunities, recommendations, and collaborations. Your immediate professional community is represented by these connections.
In the meantime, increasing your following broadens the audience and impact of your content. Your followers see your content when you post insights on LinkedIn, and they might interact with it and spread the word. The way LinkedIn’s algorithm handles your content depends on how many followers you have; accounts with more active followers typically see better distribution of their content. A strategic approach, according to many professionals, entails both building strong relationships and producing content that draws followers who are interested in your area of expertise.
How Has LinkedIn’s Follow vs. Connect Strategy Changed Over Time?
Since LinkedIn’s launch, the relationship between connecting and following has changed dramatically. Connecting was the main method of keeping track of someone’s activities in the previous LinkedIn environment. Initially, only “Influencers”—a carefully curated group selected by LinkedIn—were able to use the follow feature. The follow feature on LinkedIn has been made accessible to all users over time.
LinkedIn now gives users a lot more options for how they can follow and connect. Everyone can now gain followers on the platform without having to connect, and users can change their profile settings to make “Follow” the main button rather than “Connect.” LinkedIn’s understanding that there are various kinds of professional relationships and that sharing content doesn’t always require a reciprocal relationship is reflected in this evolution. Knowing this background makes it easier to understand why, depending on when they joined the site, some LinkedIn users might approach connecting differently than following.
Which Techniques Are Best for Growing Your LinkedIn Following or Connections?
Effectively expanding your LinkedIn network necessitates using distinct strategies for connections and followers. Prioritize quality over quantity if you want to grow your LinkedIn network. Always include a customized note outlining your reasons for wishing to connect with potential contacts when sending a connection request. Acceptance rates are frequently raised by interacting with people’s content before making connection requests. You can meet new professionals worth connecting with by taking part in industry-related LinkedIn groups.
Creating regular, worthwhile content is essential for growing your following. You establish yourself as a thought leader worth following by sharing your knowledge, analysis, and experiences in your field. When your posts receive interaction on LinkedIn, you can reach people outside of your immediate network. Leaving intelligent comments on posts that go viral can also help you get noticed by new followers. Keep in mind that LinkedIn’s algorithm encourages interaction, so producing content that provokes discussion will help you gain more followers naturally.
What Common Errors Do People Make When Selecting LinkedIn Connect vs. Follow?
Instead of carefully utilizing both the connection and follow options, many LinkedIn users make the error of sending connection requests carelessly. Without any context or personalization, sending a LinkedIn connection request to a stranger frequently results in rejection or being flagged as “I don’t know this person,” which may eventually limit your ability to send similar requests in the future. Rather, you can become familiar with their content by following them first and then attempting to connect.
Another typical mistake is making connections with everyone but never really interacting with them, which results in a sizable but uninterested network. The quality and engagement of your network are just as important to LinkedIn as its size. Additionally, some professionals miss opportunities to broaden the reach of their content by concentrating solely on connections while neglecting the growth of their following. You can steer clear of these pitfalls and create a more strategic professional presence on LinkedIn by being aware of the distinctions between follow and connect.
In Summary: Developing Your Own Custom LinkedIn Strategy to Gain Followers and Connections
Knowing the subtle differences between follow and connect features is essential to successfully navigating LinkedIn’s networking options. You can create a more potent and meaningful presence on the platform by strategically utilizing both features in accordance with your career objectives.
