Where to see the level of relationship with a profile?
You will be able to see the level of relationship you have with someone next to their profile picture on Linkedin.
How To Understand Linkedin in 5 Minutes ā¬ļø
What are the relationship levels on Linkedin?
1st-degree connection: you are directly connected to this person on LinkedIn. To do so, you have accepted or sent an invitation that has been accepted. You belong to each otherās network. By this connection, you can communicate through LinkedIn messaging and see their news in your feed.
2nd-degree connection: these people do not belong directly to your professional network. They are āfriends of friendsā. Your 1st-degree connections are directly connected to them. You can send them an InMail if you subscribed to Premium, but canāt send them messages otherwise. However, you still can connect to them so they become 1st-degree connections!
3rd-degree connection or 3rd and +: these people are 2nd-degree contactās connections. That means that you have fewer chances to get to know them directly. You still can send then InMails, though.
In spite of this social distance, is it still possible to connect with them? Do you even need to? Does it sound relevant to try to connect regardless of the level on LinkedIn connections?
Is it a good idea to reach out to your 3rd level contacts ?
Amongst the 3rd level members, there are several cases:
These are relationships that are not in your 2nd level relationship circles. In this case, LinkedIn considers that they are "too far away" from you, you will see them as "LinkedIn member": no name will be displayed and you will not be able to contact them;
They are contacts in your 2nd circle of relationships. If you can see their full last name, you can send them an invitation. If you can only see the first letter of their name, then they can only be reached by InMail.
Generally speaking, evolving implies leaving your comfort zone, looking for something "new". Adopting this logic would therefore encourage you to give priority to prospecting 3rd level members in order to expand your professional network more quickly.
Be careful before you rush into anything! If a 3rd level member seems particularly relevant to you and you can invite them, do so. However, we recommend that you develop the relationship you have with your 1st and 2nd level contacts before going any further.