Maximize Tag

LinkedIn has published a new analysis of the best approaches to InMail and maximizing in-app DM opens, based on ‘tens of millions of InMails sent between May 2021 and April 2022 in the app.

Which is primarily focused on recruiters – although in reality a wide range of people use InMail to connect with people on LinkedIn, for different purposes, and many of the results will apply in a more general sense.

But LinkedIn rates the option as a key recruiting tool.

According to LinkedIn:

“More responses mean recruiters get more bang for their buck with their InMail allowance. Recruiters earn InMail credit if their message receives a response within 90 days (even if it’s a negative response). Thus, response rates not only reflect candidate engagement, but also recruiter effectiveness. But what kind of InMails actually drive higher response rates, and how can recruiters improve their own InMail response rate? »

It’s worth checking out the full report if you’re looking to use LinkedIn Mail in your digital marketing approach, but in summary, LinkedIn the main conclusions are as follows:

• Shorter InMails perform significantly better than longer ones
• Avoid sending InMails on Saturdays (and probably Fridays too)
• Personalized InMails perform about 15% better than bulk InMails
• Candidates who are “recommended matches” or “open to work” are about 35% more likely to respond than others

Which is much the same as what LinkedIn recommended in response to the same report last year, which highlights the value of these ratings as benchmarks for your InMail approach.

Here’s a more detailed look at LinkedIn’s findings:

First, on message length – LinkedIn says InMails under 400 characters perform best.

As you can see here, there is essentially a sliding scale of engagement with InMails, based on length.

“The response rate for the shortest InMails is 22% higher than the average response rate for all InMails. By the same metric, the response rate for the longest InMails is 11% lower than the average.

Of course, it all depends on your message and whether people engage with what you’re trying to communicate. As such, there are no definitive rules, but the results provide some pointers on how you can look to improve the response to your in-app messages.

LinkedIn also provides an example of a great InMail under 400 characters.

Although LinkedIn also notes that its data may also be slightly skewed due to the paucity of shorter InMails in its data set.

As you can see here, only 10% of messages sent on LinkedIn are less than 400 characters. Therefore, while they perform better, it could also be because they stand out more, as most messages demand more attention from the user.

Which would still suggest that it’s an effective approach, but that might be another thing to consider.

LinkedIn also notes that sending InMails on a Friday or Saturday typically results in a lower response.

Every other day is about even on the response rate, although LinkedIn says Mondays are the best days to send your messages.

That said, many InMails are sent on Fridays.

As LinkedIn notes:

“If you’re about to send this InMail on a Friday afternoon, consider schedule it for Monday morning instead.

LinkedIn also provides more specific statistics on InMail performance, noting that messages sent individually see approximately 15% higher response rates than InMails sent in bulk.

Which makes sense – no one wants to receive a generic “Hi ***, I noticed you’re interested in ***” email template, because they usually feel untargeted and spammy. Even the smallest personal touch can add a lot to email engagement and increase interest.

LinkedIn also notes that the InMail response rate for candidates who indicate they are “open to work” is 37% higher than the rate for others, while candidates found in recommended matches are up to 35% higher. likely to accept the InMails that the candidates found. in the search for a recruiter alone.

Which are obviously, again, more recruiter-specific data points, but worth noting in the sense that you can glean from a user profile whether they are looking to be contacted or not. It could also relate to freelance service listings, their career summary, profile title, etc.

Again, there’s a lot of good data here, and while it’s based on analysis of recruiters’ InMails, it’s worth noting the various trends to consider in your LinkedIn messaging approaches.

You can read LinkedIn’s full InMail response report here.