It’s Pretty Easy to Tell if a LinkedIn Message is Automated

You know when you accept a connection and then immediately receive an irrelevant and lengthy message? Annoying, right? There has been a growing trend of automating LinkedIn Lead Generation, with the promise of saving time and effort. But is this approach truly effective?

In this blog post, we will reveal the drawbacks of automating LinkedIn outreach and why it may not be the best strategy for building genuine connections. Clue: It’s not the reason you’re thinking of.

Understanding the Essence of LinkedIn

The essence of LinkedIn lies in its ability to build personal relationships. That comes down to the specific angle that you take: Who you are speaking to, what you are saying and the reason that you get in touch. The core here is about how you think about it.

Consider this: Using a bot literally changes how you think about approaching prospects:

• Setting up a LinkedIn bot: You’re thinking of prospects in terms of how they fit into a list and how you can make the message that would get a good response from that group of people.
• Manually Sending a message: You’ll likely think more about specifically who you’re messaging, why and what to say.

By creating the space to put thought into your LinkedIn Lead Generation, your results will skyrocket. By recognising the true value of LinkedIn, individuals can make the most of this powerful platform and build a network that brings them closer to achieving their career aspirations.

Misconceptions about Efficiency and Time-Saving

Many LinkedIn users are attracted to the idea of automating outreach on the platform due to the perceived efficiency and time-saving benefits. After all, why spend hours manually sending connection requests and messages when you can have a bot do it for you? However, this approach comes with its fair share of misconceptions.

Firstly, automating outreach may seem efficient on the surface, but in reality, it often leads to missed opportunities. By trying to automate LinkedIn Lead Generation, you’ll notice the quantity and quality of chats go down.

Bots Can Only See The List You’ve Created

Bots can’t assess the unique qualities and interests of each individual they’re reaching out to. What this often means is that you end up messaging prospects for whom this is not relevant.

Here’s an example, say that you have some cool HR software and you’re looking to target HR Managers. If you type HR Manager into Sales Navigator, what will also come up are Payroll Managers and Recruitment Managers. Now you & I both know that there’s a difference between HR, Payroll and Recruitment. A bot doesn’t though, and it will connect and message those contacts about your fancy HR software.

As a result, the messages sent may come across as generic and impersonal, lacking the personal touch that is crucial for building genuine connections.

Stating Industry, Job Title and Company Name Isn’t Actually Personalisation

Additionally, automating outreach can create the false illusion of productivity. To create a good angle, we often change and tweak the core message as we work. Making a bot asks you to make one message which will fit for a whole list.

Personalisation only works if it helps ‘speak’ to that person more meaningfully. Simply putting someone’s industry or their job isn’t going to get someone’s ears to prick up.

Bots can make mistakes when it comes to personalisation. They may accidentally include incorrect information, such as the wrong name or company, in their automated messages. For example, our company name on LinkedIn is “parkrow.marketing | LinkedIn Marketing“. This will appear in a message such as “Hi Owen, I came across parkrow.marketing | LinkedIn Marketing and I’d love to chat further.”

This not only undermines the effectiveness of your outreach but also demonstrates a lack of attention to detail, which can be off-putting to potential connections. This type of LinkedIn Lead Generation isn’t going to work long term, because people aren’t engaging with you or your company.

While it may save time initially, it often results in a low response rate and limited engagement. In the long run, this can hinder your ability to establish meaningful relationships and expand your professional network.

I Can Get My Message Out To More People Though

Another misconception is that automation allows for more outreach. While it may increase the quantity of connection requests and messages sent, it doesn’t necessarily translate into quality connections. Building genuine relationships requires time, effort, and personalised communication – things that automation cannot replicate.

In summary, while automating outreach on LinkedIn may appear efficient and time-saving, it often leads to missed opportunities, impersonal messages, and limited engagement. To truly build genuine connections on LinkedIn, it is crucial to invest time and effort into personalised outreach and engagement.

The Risk of Coming Across as Spammy

When it comes to automating outreach on LinkedIn, one of the biggest risks is coming across as spammy.

Imagine receiving a generic message from someone you’ve never heard of, promoting their services or asking for a favour. How likely are you to respond or engage with that message? Most likely, not very.

The same goes for your potential clients and partners. When they receive automated messages that lack personalisation and seem mass-produced, they are likely to view them as spam and simply ignore them.

Misinterpretation and Inaccuracies

There is also a significant risk of misinterpretation and inaccuracies. Bots lack the ability to understand context, tone, and nuances, which can result in messages that are misinterpreted or come across as insincere.

For example, a bot may send a congratulatory message to someone for a promotion without realising that the individual has actually changed companies. If you were messaging yourself, you’d have noticed this and stopped yourself. Clunky things like this can lead to confusion and embarrassment, damaging your credibility and professionalism.

To avoid these pitfalls, it is crucial to take a hands-on approach and personally craft messages that are tailored to each individual.

Where AI Fits Into This

I think people often mistake the way you use AI as the same way you’d use automation. Whilst AI can be used as a helpful tool to notice patterns or suggest ideas, the main contact in LinkedIn outreach should still come from a human.

AI can assist in gathering data and insights, but it cannot replicate the personal touch and genuine connection that comes from human interaction. So, whilst AI has its place in enhancing our LinkedIn strategies, it is important to remember that the true value lies in keeping the actual outreach human.

The Importance of Keeping It Human

While automation may seem like an appealing option for saving time and effort on LinkedIn outreach, it is important to remember the value of keeping it human. In a world where personal connections and authenticity are highly valued, relying on automation can hinder your ability to build genuine relationships.

By taking a hands-on approach to LinkedIn Lead Generation and personally crafting your outreach messages, you demonstrate a genuine interest.

This human touch can make a significant difference in how your message is received. People appreciate the effort and time you put into tailoring your communication to their specific needs and interests.

Not Got Enough Time For LinkedIn Lead Generation? We Can Help.

Our Packages offer the best of both worlds. Analytics and Insight, coupled with the human touch of trained experts working on your account instead of a bot:

• Transparent With Our Performance: We share openly our track record with you.
• Helping You See The Value: Sales Training & ROI Tracker helps you to quantify ROI secured.
• Price Match To Automated Systems: We price match to the #1 Done-For-You Automated LinkedIn Package. Discounts for upfront payments, multi-user subscriptions and add-on services.

You can find out more about our LinkedIn Lead Generation Packages here.