LinkedIn InMail templates that earn their credit back

This page is for sellers, recruiters, founders and job seekers who send LinkedIn InMail: the paid message that reaches someone you aren't connected to. It covers the limits and credit rules from LinkedIn's own help pages, what a good InMail looks like, nine templates by situation and a worked example with the credit arithmetic. If you're writing a connection request instead, the LinkedIn connection message examples cover the 200-character note.

InMail, connection note or email?

Pick the channel before you write. Each one has different limits and a different job.

InMail reaches someone without a connection, but it costs a credit, so spend it where you have a specific reason to write.

The limits and credit rules, from LinkedIn's help pages

LinkedIn's help pages don't all agree, so plan around the stricter number.

The credit-back rule matters most. A message that gets a reply, an acceptance or (on Premium and Recruiter) a decline costs you nothing, so the templates below end with a question that's easy to answer either way.

What makes an InMail get answered

Every template on this page has the same five parts:

1. A subject that names their situation. "Power for the new Reno site" beats "Quick question" or "Partnership opportunity". It tells them the message is about them before they open it.
2. Why you're writing to them now. One specific, checked fact from their profile or their company: a new role, a new site, a post, a hire. This is the line that separates an InMail from a mass message.
3. Who you are, in one line. Your company and what it does for people like them. No title, no history, no client list.
4. One useful idea or offer. A resource, an estimate, an observation. Something they'd value even if they never buy.
5. A question they can answer in a sentence. Including "no". Give them an easy way out, because a decline still returns your credit and tells you something.

LinkedIn's Recruiter help page on effective InMail says "simpler and more direct" messages get more responses, and tells recruiters not to paste a job description or job post link. The same logic applies to sales: don't paste your brochure.

LinkedIn InMail templates by situation

Fill in the brackets and cut anything that doesn't serve the five parts. Each body stays under 500 characters filled in.

Subject: [the event, e.g. The new Reno site]

Hi [first name],

I saw [company] [the event, e.g. broke ground on a site in Reno] in [month]. When [type of company] does that, [role]s usually end up dealing with [the problem it creates].

I'm with [your company]. We help [type of company] with [outcome].

[Offer, e.g. I can send a one-page estimate for the new site.] Is [area] on your list right now, or already settled?

[Your name]

Subject: Your first months at [company]

Hi [first name], congratulations on the move to [company].

New [role]s often spend their first quarter deciding what to keep and what to change in [area]. If [problem] is on that list, I may have something useful: [resource or idea].

I'm at [your company], where we [what you do for people in their role].

Would it help if I sent it over, or is [area] not a priority yet?

Subject: [number] [role] openings at [company]

Hi [first name],

I noticed [company] is hiring [number] [role]s. Teams usually do that when [what it suggests, e.g. order volume has outgrown the current process].

At [your company], we help [type of company] [handle that growth / get new hires productive faster].

How are you planning to [the challenge] while the new team ramps up?

Subject: Your post on [topic]

Hi [first name],

Your post on [topic] made a point I don't see often: [the specific point, in a few words].

I work on the same problem from the [your side] side at [your company]. One thing we've seen is [a short, relevant observation].

Is that matching what you see at [company], or is it different for [their type of business]?

Subject: [Mutual contact] suggested I write

Hi [first name],

[Mutual contact] suggested I get in touch. We were talking about [topic], and [she/he/they] said you look after [area] at [company].

I'm with [your company]; we help [type of company] with [outcome]. [Mutual contact] thought [specific reason] might be relevant.

Would a short call next week be useful, or is there someone better placed?

Subject: A question about [area] at [company]

Hi [first name],

A question I've been asking [role]s at [type of company]: [specific question, e.g. how do you compare print costs across your 40 branches?]

Most tell me [common answer], which usually means [consequence]. I'm with [your company], and we [what you do].

Is that true for [company] too? If not, a one-word "no" is fine and I won't follow up.

Subject: Re: [original subject]

Hi [first name],

One more note, then I'll leave it. Since my last message, [something new: a relevant result, news at their company, a resource].

If [area] isn't a priority, no reply needed. If it is, [small, specific offer].

Subject: Your [specific work] at [current company]

Hi [first name],

Your [specific project or experience, e.g. rollout of the warehouse system across six sites] is the kind of work our [team] is doing next.

I'm recruiting a [role] at [company] in [location or remote]. The short version: [one line on scope and why it's interesting].

Would you be open to a 15-minute call to hear more? If now isn't the time, I'd value knowing what would make a move worth it for you.

Subject: [Role] opening and my [relevant experience]

Hi [first name],

I applied for the [role] on your team and wanted to add one thing the application doesn't show: [specific result, e.g. I cut monthly reporting time from three days to one at my last company].

I'd value 15 minutes to learn what matters most in the role. Would that be possible in the next couple of weeks?

Worked example: one InMail and the credit arithmetic

Illustrative example. The companies, people and figures are fictional, to show the method.

The seller: Sam, a business development rep at Brightfield Solar Builders (brightfield.example), a solar EPC firm that designs and builds rooftop solar for commercial buildings. Sam has Sales Navigator: 50 credits a month.

The account: Kessler Cold Storage (kesslercold.example), which broke ground on a refrigerated warehouse in Reno in September. The person: Dana, the Director of Facilities, who isn't connected to anyone on Sam's team.

The first draft (130 words, 864 characters), opening and close:

Hi Dana, I hope this message finds you well! My name is Sam and I'm a Senior Business Development Representative at Brightfield Solar Builders, a leading full-service commercial solar EPC with over 15 years of experience... [three sentences of services and client types] ...I would love to set up a 30-minute call next week to walk you through our capabilities.

The rewrite (82 words, 481 characters), subject "Power for the new Reno site":

Hi Dana,

I saw Kessler Cold Storage broke ground on its Reno site in September. Cold storage runs compressors around the clock, so I'd guess power is one of the bigger costs you're planning for.

I'm with Brightfield Solar Builders. We design and build rooftop solar for warehouses and cold storage.

I can send a one-page estimate of what the new roof could produce. Is energy on your list for Reno, or already settled? Either answer helps.

Sam Ortiz, Brightfield Solar Builders

The credit arithmetic. Because a response returns the credit, the share of InMails that get answered decides how many you can really send. With 50 credits a month and every response landing within the 90-day window:

At a 30% response rate, the same seat sends about 16 more InMails a month than at 10%. On Premium Business, where a decline also returns the credit, a print management company's account manager with 15 credits and 40% of recipients accepting or declining could fund 25 InMails a month (15 ÷ 0.6).

The research behind the second line is the slow part when the list runs to 50 accounts. Bebop researches each account and writes a playbook with who to talk to, what's happening at the company and the angle to open with, so each InMail starts from a real reason. Check the facts it gives you before you send.

Measuring your InMail

Track two numbers per template over at least 30 sends before you judge it: the response rate (replies, acceptances and declines divided by InMails sent), which sets your credit cost, and the positive reply rate (replies that agree to talk or ask for more), which sets your pipeline. A low response rate points at the subject and first line; a low positive rate with a healthy response rate points at the offer. On Recruiter, LinkedIn's 13% warning level over 14 days is a floor, not a target. For wider LinkedIn figures traced to their sources, see the LinkedIn statistics.

Mistakes to avoid

• Writing to the limit. 1,900 characters is the ceiling, not the goal. A wall of text on a phone screen gets archived.
• Leading with yourself. Your name and title are already next to the message. The first line should be about them.
• A big ask. A 30-minute call is a lot to ask a stranger. Ask a question, or offer something small.
• Claiming a referral you don't have. Name a mutual connection only if they agreed to it.
• Automation. LinkedIn's User Agreement bans "bots or other unauthorized automated methods" for sending messages. Write and send InMail yourself.
• Following up too soon. Sales Navigator already reminds the recipient within three days. Wait a week, send one follow-up with something new, and stop.

Checklist before you send

• The subject line names their situation, not your product.
• The first sentence gives a specific, checked reason you're writing to them now.
• Your company gets one sentence.
• The body is under 500 characters, about 100 words.
• There's one offer or idea they'd value even if they never buy.
• It ends with a question they can answer in a sentence, including "no".
• Any mutual connection you name has agreed to it.
• You've checked whether they have an Open Profile, which you can message without a credit.

Next step: InMail is one channel in a LinkedIn plan. The LinkedIn lead generation guide shows how to combine profile, connection requests, InMail and follow-up into a weekly routine.