How Do I Connect With People at Remote Companies on LinkedIn?

You’ve found the remote companies. Now you’re staring at a search bar in LinkedIn with no idea who to message or what to say.  Click into the company’s LinkedIn page and go to the people tab. Filter by position or department. Look for discipline managers, hiring managers, recruiters, and people working in the role you’re interested in.  

Check For A Mutual Connection First

Before you message anyone, check for a mutual connection. LinkedIn shows this on most profiles. One shared contact is worth more than a dozen strangers.

If a mutual connection exists, ask them for an introduction instead of messaging the person yourself. Their name does the asking lands differently than yours would on its own.

No Mutual Connection? Show Up Before You Reach Out

If there’s no shared contact, don’t send a request yet. There are four things worth doing first, and they take almost no time. I would “like” a couple of their recent posts because it puts your name in front of them before you’ve asked for anything. 

Leave a thought-provoking comment.  Not “great post,” not a thumbs up. 

I’ve regularly reviewed this with many clients: people read a detailed comment and scroll past a generic response without a second thought. If they posted about a project launch, say what caught your attention about it. Ask a question because it tends to get a reply in a way a comment doesn’t always, since it invites a response.

Do the same on the company’s own page, separate from the individual. Follow the company, like a hiring announcement or a team update, and comment on something specific there, too. This strategy builds familiarity with the company, not just with one person, and it works even before you’ve picked exactly who to message.

Space all of this out over a week or two. Spend 10 minutes every day commenting on posts across personal profiles and company pages. You will be surprised how quickly you stand out in the comments when you’re regularly engaging with brands and people. 

What If They Rarely Post?

Plenty of people on LinkedIn, especially outside marketing or recruiting, barely post. If someone’s feed is quiet, stop waiting for something to react to. Look at the company page instead. Engage there. Then, when you send a connection request, mention something about the company, not the person. 

Say Less In The First Message

When you connect, keep the note to two sentences. 

Mention the company or the post you commented on. Don’t ask for a referral or a job straightaway. I’ve watched dozens of clients ask for too much too soon, and you rarely will get a positive response. 

Build a relationship over time. 

A short note that opens the door gets accepted more often.

The tone shifts a little depending on who you’re messaging. Someone two or three levels senior, a director or a VP, warrants something more deferential and specific about their work. Someone at your own level can be more casual, closer to how you’d message a peer you haven’t met yet.

Don’t Send Too Many Requests Too Fast

LinkedIn caps how many connection requests you can send in a given period, and that cap shrinks the more requests go unanswered. If you’re reaching out across several companies, two or three people at each, don’t send them all in one sitting.

Spread them out over a few days instead. Otherwise, you can hit the limit without any warning, and requests stop going through without any explanation.

Once They Accept, Don’t Go Straight to the Ask

When someone accepts, send a short reply within a day or two while it’s still fresh in their mind. Thank them for connecting, and reference the same thing you mentioned in your first note. Keep it light. This isn’t the moment to ask about openings or a referral.

Reply to something they post. Ask a question about their work. After two or three small exchanges like that, asking about their experience at the company, or whether they’d be open to a quick call, feels like a natural next step, not the first thing you’ve ever said to them.