How to Send a LinkedIn Connection Request

By Joel Elad from LinkedIn For Dummies, 2nd Edition

When you’re on a LinkedIn page and spot the name of a member whom you want to invite to your network, you can follow these steps to send that person a LinkedIn Connection Request to add him to your network:

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Click the person’s name to go to his profile page.

You might want to try finding connections while browsing LinkedIn Answers or the advanced people search.

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Click the Add Person’s Name to your Network link (where Person’s Name is, of course, the real name of the person you’re adding).

The Invitation page appears.

From the list of connection reasons, choose the option that best describes your relationship to this person.

You might have to input the person’s e-mail address to help prove that you actually know the person. If you select the I Don’t Know Person’s Name option, LinkedIn will deny the request, so keep that in mind.

If you pick a category such as Colleague or Classmate, LinkedIn displays a drop-down list of options based on your profile. For example, if you pick Colleague, LinkedIn displays a drop-down list of your positions. You need to pick the position you held when you knew this person.

Enter your Invitation text in the Include a Personal Note field.

For the best results, take the time to compose a custom Invitation rather than use the standard text. That gives you the chance to remind the person how you recently met, acknowledge one of his achievements, and ask him to connect.