How to Strategically Connect with Someone on LinkedIn: A Data-Driven Approach

As networks grow exponentially, forging meaningful connections on LinkedIn is an increasingly vital skill.

With 722+ million members as of 2022 and membership growing over 10% year-over-year, timing your outreach optimally gives you the best shot at a response.

Let’s analyze current data and trends around effective connection building on the platform. Follow along for research-backed tips to expand your network intelligently.

LinkedIn Network Growth and Usage Statistics

LinkedIn dominates the professional social media space. But levels of activity vary greatly across demographics. Understanding these distinctions helps you optimize your targeting.

New User Growth

The US continues fueling LinkedIn expansion, with over 33 million new signups in 2022. India and Brazil follow closely behind, adding 31 million and 12 million respectively.

But much existing membership remains inactive. Nearly 60% of signed up users spend less than 30 minutes actively engaging on the platform per month based on LinkedIn’s self-reported data.

Monthly Active Users on LinkedIn:

Usage Frequency

How active various groups are on LinkedIn guides where your connection efforts may find most traction.

The following surveys reveal usage frequency varies greatly by profession and age demographic:

• Finance professionals leverage LinkedIn most extensively, with 61% indicating daily logins and 93% accessing at least weekly (Source).

• Recruiters and Human Resource personnel form the next most active segments with between 41-50% reporting daily visits (Source).

• Only 13% of users between ages 18-29 check LinkedIn daily. But over 50% log in at least weekly (Source) indicating moderate appetite among newer career entrants.

Clearly professionals along the talent management value chain from financing to recruiting comprise the most avid users. So targeting messaging there likely intersects with more frequent activity and better visibility.

Connecting for Career Opportunities

Beyond networking generally, many members use LinkedIn explicitly to uncover lucrative job possibilities.

Some key statistics indicating the site‘s pivot towards active career matchmaking:

• 70% of LinkedIn members are open to new job opportunities (Source)

• Over 706,000 open roles were listed on LinkedIn as of February 2022 across front and back office functions in all industries (Source)

• 80% of professionals consider LinkedIn their top platform for advancing their careers (Source)

Connecting with key players like internal recruiters and hiring managers gives you insider visibility into openings before they’re formally announced elsewhere.

How Different Generations Connect Differently

Approach and intensity of networking on LinkedIn varies between generations. Below we analyze behaviors segmented by age groups:

Baby Boomers (Born 1946–1965)

While boomers don’t dominate LinkedIn membership volume, those active focus intensely on cementing their professional legacies and connections earned over long careers.

Observed networking behaviors include:

• Selectively connecting only with well-established, prominent contacts from past roles
• Joining niche industry groups and alumni associations to deepen networks
• Following influencers and thought leaders aligned to their domain expertise
• Continuously improving public profile visibility through writing, media appearances

In summary, boomer interactions focus on enriching deep roots over widening breadth.

Generation X (Born 1966–1980)

The majority of older Gen X fall into leadership roles in the peak of their careers. Networking priorities shift to career advancement over discovery.

Typical networking behaviors include:

• Boosting connectivity with executives in target companies to gain insider intel on openings
• Joining aspirational industry leadership organizations and committees
• Following successors rising up for future internal mobility opportunities
• Supporting mentees from younger generations

In summary, Gen X networking targets accessing decision-maker circles for near-term mobility.

Millennials (Born 1981–1996)

Comfortably the largest segment on LinkedIn, Millennial behaviors demonstrate more urgency around accelerating opportunities.

Common networking approaches involve:

• Connecting broadly to increase visibility then narrowing outreach
• Joining large niche communities aligned to growth goals
• Following recognized authorities and publications to stay on pulse of best practices
• Supporting peers through content likes, shares and recommendations

In summary, Millennial networking favors volume that narrows over time.

Gen Z (Born 1997–2012)

As relative LinkedIn newcomers, early Gen Z professionals use site capabilities quite differently than predecessors.

Just gaining initial career traction, popular networking tactics include:

• Connecting to managers and senior colleagues for internal influence
• Joining company and industry-focused groups to build presence
• Curating feeds with career-building media publications
• Broadcasting achievements through posts to stand out

In summary, junior Gen Z participants focus internally while elevating modest successes.

Recognizing these generational differences allows more contextually relevant, higher converting outreach. Segment networking messaging accordingly.

Personalized vs. Generic Invitations

While all thoughtfulness has some impact, data shows personalized connect invites convert substantially better than bulk generic requests.

In one study, 200 personalized invitations saw a 70% acceptance rate versus just 15% for generic notes (Source).

Personalized invites also deliver 3-4x more profile views by recipients. So personalized messaging enhances not just acceptances but overall engagement too.

Elements that quantifiably lift response rates for invites include:

1. Explicit common connections called out
2. Alumni status mentioned
3. Participation in similar industry organizations referenced

Work these differentiating details into your custom invites wherever authentic to your situation.

Network Multipliers: 1st Connections vs. 2nd Connections

Your directly connected 1st level network starts smaller…but accessing 2nd level connections exponentially expands access.

So while sending personalized invites to new 1st connections takes effort, it unlocks significant network multipliers down the road by accessing their wider networks.

Based on average profile totals:

• Each new 1st connection gives you access to just 100-200 of their connections.
• But a single 2nd connection opens up their entire network of 500+ contacts.

So a handful of thoughtfully cultivated 1st connections grants you exposure to 1000s of professionals extensions away.

Over time:

• Just 25 engaged 1st connections could put you two links away from 12,500+ relevant profiles.
• And 100 ideal 1st connections would link you to over 50,000 2nd level contacts.

The math highlights why seeking smaller numbers of genuinely mutually engaged relationships outweighs passively amassing contacts.

Quality over quantity here creates network effects over time.

Measuring Connection Request Effectiveness

How can you consistently improve your outreach and response rates on LinkedIn? Start tracking key metrics.

Monitoring measurable outcomes provides data-driven visibility into what works and what doesn’t.

Helpful totals to quantify:

• Connection Acceptance Rate: Accepted Invites / Total Invites Sent
• Follower Growth: Current Followers / Past Followers
• Page Views: Who’s Viewed Your Profile post-invite
• Engagements: Likes, comments, shares of your posts
• Relationship Depth: % of connections actively engaging

Chart these metrics over time to pinpoint most and least effective strategies. Refine your approach based on the data to allocate effort toward what converts best.

Best Practices for Genuine Relationship Building

Executing a goal-driven, metrics-informed approach to thoughtful networking sets you apart from passive participants hoping for general career magic.

Here are some best practices that help streamline the heavy lifting:

Maintain a CRM-Style Database

A CRM organizes all outreach details in one place. Tracking factors like:

• Send dates, response status
• Common ground details
• Follow up tasks
• Ongoing engagement highs/lows

This saves constantly revisiting profiles to recall context. You can also filter records by factors like company, role, date met to inform targeted messaging campaigns when relevant.

Schedule Regular Connection Days

Block time consistently just for networking outreach. Setting cadence expectations avoids indefinite delay.

Aim try sending 2-4 personalized invites during these periods. Quick sessions prevent procrastination while ensuring regular progress.

Send Alerts for Key Events

Create calendar reminders tied to profiles to notify you around birthdays, work anniversaries, promotions etc. Reaching out during meaningful moments demonstrates authentic thoughtfulness.

Building network intelligence infrastructure through tooling, measurements and automation sets you up for efficiency and higher achievement as your network multiplies exponentially.

Connecting on LinkedIn with finesse and purpose

In an increasingly noisy environment, promoting career growth through quality connections vs. quantity contacts separates the networking pros from the amateurs.

Moneyball for your network if you will – leveraging data, sweat equity and long term vision to make statistics work massively in your favor over time.

In this guide we covered activization trends, demographic differences, messaging optimization techniques, outreach tracking and relationship management best practices.

Following the lead of finance and recruiting power users by adopting smart intentional behaviors positions you to unlock LinkedIn’s immense potential.

The hundreds of millions of members are just a few thoughtful personalized invites away from welcoming you into an exciting new echelon of possibilities and growth.