How to make most out of LinkedIn and avoid getting restricted
- Uniqo Makata
- Sep 29, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 2, 2021
LinkedIn is a social media networking site used by professionals to connect and interact with prospective clients, customers, applicants, and other relevant individuals in their field.
It is the most trusted social media site for working professionals according to the 2020 US Digital Trust Survey. The survey evaluated consumer perception and trust level towards the major Social media platforms, including the big four: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
As of 2021, LinkedIn has an overall global user base of 720+ million with a monthly active user number of almost 300 million.
Though this number doesn’t match up with the Top 10 social media networking sites with the most number of users, LinkedIn makes it up with the quality of professional connections only the site can offer.
Average employees and even the C-Level executives use the professional social media platform and in fact, a significant number of Fortune 500 executives use LinkedIn to build and maintain their professional networks and as well as to promote their corporate brand.
What drives users to the platform is not only its’ highly-professional charm and User-Experience design but also the level of privacy and convenience it provides.
With LinkedIn being available as well on mobile platforms such as smartphones and tablets, It has never been easier to keep in touch with existing clients and connect with prospective ones.
LinkedIn as a Marketing Tool
Due to its strong user base among working professionals and corporate executives, LinkedIn has been widely used as an effective Leads Generation, Candidate Sourcing, and Brand Marketing tool.
Marketing Professionals make use of the Social media platform to engage clients with their brand, Recruiters source candidates through LinkedIn’s Recruitment Solutions Tool, and Company executives make sure that their brand image is projected well in the popular social media platform.
Whatever industry you might be in, LI does wonders for a company’s Brand Marketing and Client Engagement efforts.
As a result, people often take advantage of and use the site’s services in a way that goes beyond its guidelines and policies.
LinkedIn Policies: Great Benefits comes Appropriate Limitations
LinkedIn has the right to restrict or suspend accounts that are found to have violated their Account, Invitation, and Messaging policies.
This includes various violations, including but is not limited to the following:
1. Sending too many connection requests, especially to users outside ones’ 1st and 2nd-degree connections.
2. A significant number of users have reported the account for violating LinkedIn’s guidelines and policies. This leads to LinkedIn making an investigation about the matter and finding the reports to be valid.
3. To protect the users’ accounts from suspected hacking or Identity theft.
4. Using Web Scraping Tools that collect other people’s data without their consent.
Above is a sample photo of a Restricted LinkedIn account notice.
Actual Case of LinkedIn Account being suspended or restricted
According to the above user confession from Ms. Anonymous, her LinkedIn account got restricted because of adding too many connections daily.
She also said that she only wanted to increase the number of her applicants and wasn’t aware of such limitations.
At the end of her statement, she mentioned the importance of having a Premium LinkedIn subscription to truly maximize the websites’ features without violating its policies and guidelines.
Tips on How to avoid getting one’s LinkedIn account restricted
Upon spending hours of research and as well as listening to user testimonies with regards to LI’s account restrictions, Here are five (5) tips on how to avoid getting your LinkedIn account suspended or restricted.
1. Put a Daily Limit in Adding Connections
One of the biggest mistakes LinkedIn users make is adding too many connections daily.
Recruiters, Brand Marketing Professionals, and Leads Generation Specialists tend to add several connections just in a few hours or less.
They do this to gain clients/leads and meet their quota, little do they know that they are putting themselves at risk of being in the LinkedIn Jail simply because there is a limit to the number of connections you can add within 24 hours.
2. Don’t Spam! Personalize your Messages
Avoid sending bulk, generic invite mails as this type of unsolicited message has a high chance of being ignored and be seen as spam.
Spamming is one of the grounds for account suspension and restriction. You would not want to be in the LinkedIn Jail and be known as a notorious spammer.
3. Complete your LinkedIn Profile info
A strong and credible LinkedIn profile is one with complete and detailed information.
Making sure that one’s LI account has strong credibility is a must if you want to establish a good number of quality connections.
4. Use LinkedIn As a Social Media Platform too
Professionals in the fields of Recruitment, Marketing, and Leads Generation tend to overuse LinkedIn as a Client and Candidate Engagement tool.
Do not just send invites and messages to your prospects. React and make comments on different posts as well so that your account activities would look natural and unsuspicious.
5. SECRET TIP
It is important to note that one factor that would help you to connect to more candidates/clients is the size of your company or university.
The logical explanation is that a bigger organization provides you with a larger amount of friend suggestions and an increased amount of trust (since you belong together to the same company/university).
Comments