Preventing LinkedIn Lockout: LinkedIn Best Practices for Recruiters

Since its launch in 2003, LinkedIn has become the go-to social media platform for professional networking and most people’s first port of call when it comes to starting their job hunt. Because of this, LinkedIn can be an effective channel for recruiters, teeming with opportunities to connect with top talent, engage with potential clients, and build a robust professional brand. And, because it’s so important to your business it’s crucial that you don’t get locked out of all LinkedIn has to offer. That’s where this guide comes in. Below you’ll find everything you need to know to help you navigate LinkedIn’s usage policies and LinkedIn best practices that will help you maximise your social media presence for client and talent sourcing.

Our mission is simple: to equip recruiters with the knowledge and strategies they need to harness the full potential of LinkedIn while avoiding the dreaded pitfalls that can lead to account restrictions or, worse, removal from the platform.

Understanding LinkedIn’s Usage Policies and Terms of Service

LinkedIn’s policies and terms of service for recruiters are designed to ensure a professional and respectful environment for all users. Recruiters are expected to abide by these guidelines, which include refraining from sending excessive connection requests, spamming users with unsolicited messages, or engaging in any form of behaviour that could be deemed as harassment or abuse.

If you’re using LinkedIn to support your recruitment, then it’s crucial that you understand and adhere to these terms to maintain your credibility and trustworthiness on the platform. Violating LinkedIn’s policies can have serious consequences, ranging from temporary account restrictions to permanent removal from the platform.

The top reasons recruiters experience LinkedIn restrictions are:

1. Excessive connection requests

   If you send over 100 connection requests per week, you will be temporarily blocked from sending further requests. This limit exists for all accounts including Premium and Recruiter members. There is also a limit on how many individual connections you can have. Currently LinkedIn caps you at 30,000 1st degree connections.

2. Sending generic connection requests without personalised messages

   It is strongly recommended that you connect with people who you know and trust. But any connection requests you make should be accompanied with a tailored, genuine message. This is especially important as LinkedIn has recently begun restricting recruiter accounts that have a response rate of less than 13% to InMail messages. Recruiters who receive fewer than 13 responses for every 100 messages sent will be placed on a two-week improvement period. If your response rate remains low after the grace period, your bulk message service will be disabled.

3. Sending spam messages

   There are currently no limits to the number of messages you can send out per day however, you want to think carefully about the frequency and content of your InMail messages. Too many complaints or triggering LinkedIn’s spam detection tools could result in your account being restricted. The best, most engaging messages are personalised, and not too frequent. LinkedIn best practices recommend sending no more than 100 messages per day on a basic account, and 150 for premium members.

4. Overuse of automation tools

   Authentic engagement is essential on LinkedIn, and overuse of automation tools can detract from building meaningful connections. Relying excessively on automation tools or AI content generation can lead to indiscriminate outreach, resulting in spammy behaviour.

5. Sharing inappropriate content

   Sharing content that is inappropriate, offensive, or irrelevant not only violates LinkedIn community standards but can reflect badly on your reputation. It’s crucial that you think carefully before sharing, commenting on, or liking unprofessional content.

Making these mistakes and not sticking to LinkedIn best practices can have a significant negative impact on both your ability to source new talent and engage with potential clients. A poor LinkedIn presence, sending spam messages or sharing generic and uninspiring content risks alienating your audience. Meaning you miss out on opportunities to make meaningful connections.

Worse impersonal behaviour risks damaging your reputation and credibility, eroding trust, and limiting your ability to build relationships and develop a strong talent network on the platform. Which could mean you rely more heavily on expensive paid advertising and job boards.

LinkedIn Best Practices for Safe Account Usage

To ensure a successful and sustainable presence on LinkedIn you should be aiming to encourage genuine connections and engagement. Here are some key LinkedIn best practices to help you:

• Personalising connection requests and messages

  Take the time to personalize each message with specific reasons for wanting to connect. Reference shared interests, mutual connections, or recent achievements.

• Setting realistic connection limits

  Establish daily or weekly connection limits to maintain a healthy balance between outreach and engagement. Focus on quality over quantity by prioritising connections who align with your recruitment goals and industry focus.

• Using LinkedIn’s features responsibly

  Be familiar with LinkedIn’s policies regarding messaging, connection requests, and content sharing and avoid excessive automation and mass messaging.

• Building a reputable profile

  Make sure your profile is complete and includes a professional photo and concise summary with relevant keywords to improve visibility. Showcase your expertise, experience, and achievements through endorsements, recommendations, and multimedia content.

• Engaging with content strategically

  Like, comment on, and share posts from connections and industry influencers regularly. You should also be posting valuable insights, industry news, and thought leadership content to establish yourself as a knowledgeable and trustworthy recruiter within your niche.

Long-term Strategies for LinkedIn Success

In the longer term, there are some other strategies and LinkedIn best practices you might like to incorporate into your wider recruitment marketing, especially for social media.

• Be consistent

  Establish a regular posting schedule and consistent presence on the platforms you use.

• Be genuine

  Your intentions and tone of voice are important. If candidates and clients think you aren’t being genuine they’ll look elsewhere.

• Stay informed

  Keep up to date about policy changes, algorithm updates and accepted social media best practice.

• Create and share relevant, engaging, and informative content

  Your content should reflect the concerns and pain points of your industry, be professional and set you up as a thought leader.

• Continuously update and improve your approach

  Monitor your posts, check what works (and what doesn’t) and tweak your content accordingly however you should avoid relying too much on vanity metrics!

Tools for Managing Your LinkedIn

There are many tools available to help you manage your LinkedIn and other social media platforms including content generation tools, automation tools for scheduling posts and messages and analytics tools for tracking engagement and performance.

We have lots of resources available to help you choose the right tools and learn how to manage those tools while staying within LinkedIn best practices.

Embracing LinkedIn’s best practices isn’t just about compliance—it’s about elevating your social media to the next level. By prioritising personalised engagement, responsible usage of features, and strategic content, you can forge genuine connections and cultivate a reputable presence on the platform. Thrive can help you unlock the full potential of your social media for successful and effective recruitment marketing.