How To Tell if Someone Read your Message on LinkedIn

Can you tell if someone read your message on LinkedIn? Is there a way of knowing if someone has blocked you? Or is there a way to guarantee they will open your message?

While LinkedIn isn’t like other social media sites, it does have a messaging function. It can be argued that LinkedIn’s messaging feature is critical because of the nature of the site. Failure to respond to a message in a timely manner can have financial recourse or cost the recipient an incredible opportunity.

This article will teach you how to turn your read receipts on or off, and show you how to tell whether another person has read your messages.

Turning On/Off Read Receipts

Knowing whether someone has read your message on LinkedIn depends on your privacy settings. There is a specific setting for Read receipts, but you have to turn it on before you send the message for it to work. This will tell you when the recipient has opened the message and likely read it.

To turn on Read receipts in LinkedIn, do this:

1. Open the app and tap your profile icon in the upper left-hand corner
   

   

2. Select Settings.
   

   

3. Select the Communications tab to the far right
   

   

4. Select Read receipts and typing indicators and toggle it to On.

Any messages you send from now on will generate a read receipt which will let you know when the recipient has read it. Of course, you can toggle the option off if you prefer anonymity.

How to Tell if Someone Has Read Your Message

We always like to explain the privacy settings before going into the Read receipts because it explains why you may not see them. If you can’t see whether someone has read your message, it’s likely they’ve turned this feature off.

Assuming your recipient has their receipts turned on, you will see a very small version of their profile picture in the lower left-hand corner of your message.

If you don’t see the profile icon, the user either has their receipts turned off, or they haven’t opened your message just yet. Only time will tell which one of these factors is true. Assuming someone doesn’t respond immediately, it may be that they’re too busy so give it time. The culture of LinkedIn is focused on professionalism, so don’t take hard feelings if someone doesn’t respond immediately.

Is there a way of knowing if someone has blocked you?

Blocking isn’t quite as prevalent or as necessary on LinkedIn as it is elsewhere, but it does happen. Usually, it’s overenthusiastic marketers or newbies to the platform who don’t know how to use it effectively or appreciate that the audience is completely different than Facebook.

There are ways to tell if you have been blocked on LinkedIn, but you are not notified directly if it happens.

If you are blocked:

• You will no longer see their profile.
• You will no longer be able to message them.
• You will no longer see their posts or updates.
• You will no longer be connected.
• You will no longer see them under ‘Who has viewed your profile’.
• You will no longer see them in suggestions for ‘People You May Know’ or ‘People Also Viewed’.

Getting Responses

You cannot guarantee the actions of others, but you can do all you can to influence them. If you use LinkedIn for marketing, you can do a few things to increase the chances of someone opening your message and wanting to do business with you.

Complete your LinkedIn Profile

Your LinkedIn profile is your online resume whether you are looking for work or not. You need to spend a lot of time fully completing your profile and keeping it up to date. It should reflect all changes in your professional life, include all of your qualifications, skills, and anything else you have that makes you stand out.

Add a good quality image too. Look professional, look smart but remember to smile and look approachable. This isn’t Tinder, but you still want people to engage with you.

Interact with others and be active on LinkedIn

People are much more likely to read something from an active member they have seen before. If you have a presence on LinkedIn and interact or post often, you stand a much higher chance of being read than someone the recipient has never seen or heard of.

Plus, it’s the whole point of LinkedIn. To interact with fellow professionals, help each other, and learn a thing or two.

Contribute without expectation

LinkedIn requires a different approach than other social networks and part of that is in the content you publish. The audience is different, their likes and dislikes are different, and their time is much more limited than on other networks. Any content you publish should be of a high standard and bear the audience type in mind. It should also be published without expectation. If the content is good, they will come.

Keep your messages brief and to the point

Everyone is busy, and everyone has multiple demands on their time. That is especially true for LinkedIn. Most people will access it from work for work and won’t have that much time to spend on it. When composing a message, keep it brief and to the point.

If you’re marketing, a short message with a link to a landing page or web page with more information allows the reader to read more at their leisure. This no-pressure tactic will resonate much better than multiple calls to action and requests for immediate feedback or interaction.

Connecting on LinkedIn

The platform is mainly used to grow your professional network. There are a few things you can do to increase your odds of responses.

• Add Connections – If you’ve targeted a potential employer or client try connecting to one of their connections first. Perhaps you went to the same college or work in the same industry, you’re more likely to appear trustworthy if you have a mutual connection.
• Comment – Follow hashtags of your interest and post comments on others’ posts. Even better, comment intelligent or helpful information on your target’s posts.

LinkedIn will open a lot of new opportunities for those who’d like to promote their businesses or themselves. Just keep in mind – professionalism wins with this social media service.