One of the questions I get asked all the time is whether it’s better to follow someone on LinkedIn or send them a connection request.
The answer is that they serve different purposes, and if you’re trying to build your visibility, expand your network and create more opportunities for yourself, you should be taking advantage of both.
Many professionals think of LinkedIn connections as the ultimate goal. They focus on growing their connection count and pay very little attention to followers. Others are hesitant to connect with people they don’t know personally and limit themselves to colleagues, former coworkers and existing contacts.Both approaches leave opportunities on the table.
The reality is that LinkedIn works best when you understand how following and connecting complement one another and how each contributes to your professional visibility. Let’s explore the difference between the two further.
Following and Connecting Aren’t the Same Thing
Following someone on LinkedIn creates a one-way relationship. When you follow someone, you’ll see their content in your feed, but they don’t automatically become part of your network and they won’t necessarily see your content.
Think of it as subscribing to someone’s updates because you find their content interesting, relevant or useful. You may follow an industry leader, a recruiter, a consultant, an executive or someone who consistently shares insights you want to learn from.
Connecting works differently. A connection creates a two-way relationship. Once someone accepts your invitation, you become first-degree connections. You’re able to message each other directly, you’re more likely to see each other’s content and you become part of each other’s professional networks. Both options are valuable. The mistake is assuming you have to choose one or the other.
Why I Encourage People to Cast a Wider Net
One of the biggest misconceptions about LinkedIn is that you should only connect with people you know extremely well. While there are certainly situations where it makes sense to be selective, I’ve never believed LinkedIn should be limited to people you’ve worked with, gone to school with or met in person.
LinkedIn is a networking platform. The entire purpose is to help professionals build relationships and expand their networks. Some of the best relationships I’ve developed over the years started with a connection request from someone I had never met. In many cases, those connections led to conversations, and those conversations often led to introductions, referrals, speaking opportunities, business opportunities and friendships.
If I had limited my network to people I already knew, many of those opportunities never would have happened.
That’s why I encourage professionals to think bigger when it comes to networking on LinkedIn. A connection request doesn’t have to be reserved for your closest contacts. It can be the beginning of a relationship.
Why Followers Matter More Than Most People Realize
At the same time, not everyone is going to want to connect with you, and that’s perfectly fine.
Some people may discover your content through a comment, a post, a newsletter or a shared connection. They may enjoy what you’re posting and want to continue following your updates without sending a connection request.
Others may not know you well enough yet. Some people prefer to follow someone’s content for a while before deciding whether they want a more direct relationship. And some LinkedIn users have reached the platform’s connection limit and can only follow additional people.
This is where followers become incredibly important.
Every follower is another person who may see your content, engage with your posts, share your ideas with others or think of you when an opportunity arises. If you’re creating content consistently, followers expand your reach beyond your immediate network and help introduce your ideas to new audiences.
I often see people obsess over their connection count while completely ignoring their follower count. In reality, both numbers matter for different reasons.
Connections help you build relationships. Followers help you expand your audience. Together, they help increase your visibility and create opportunities that may not have existed otherwise.
Make It Easy for People to Follow You
One of the simplest LinkedIn settings to check is whether people can actually follow you.
If you’re investing time in creating content, writing articles or building a personal brand, you want to make it as easy as possible for people to stay connected to what you’re sharing.
To check your settings, go to Settings & Privacy, click Visibility, then Followers and make sure “Everyone on LinkedIn” is selected under who can follow you.
You may also want to consider making Follow your primary profile action. When someone visits your profile, they’ll see a Follow button instead of a Connect button. People can still send you a connection request if they’d like, but the follow option becomes more prominent.
For professionals who publish content regularly, this small adjustment can make a meaningful difference over time.
The Real Goal Is Visibility and Relationships
Too many people look at LinkedIn as a numbers game. They focus on how many connections they have, how many followers they’ve gained or whether they should connect versus follow. The bigger question is whether people can find you, learn from you and stay connected to what you’re sharing.
Some opportunities come from direct relationships. Others come from people who have been quietly following your content for months or even years. I’ve had people reach out about speaking engagements, consulting projects, media opportunities and referrals after following my content for a long time without ever interacting publicly.
That’s why I don’t think of following and connecting as competing strategies. They’re both ways for people to stay connected to you and your ideas.
The professionals who create the most opportunities for themselves on LinkedIn are often the ones who make it easy for others to do both. They continue building relationships, growing their networks, sharing valuable content and staying visible.
Whether someone chooses to connect with you or follow you, the important thing is that they have a way to stay connected. That’s where many opportunities start.
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