LinkedIn Cold Message Template Library
Pick what you want out of the message, add their name and the detail you are opening on, and copy a script that reads like a person wrote it. No AI key, no signup.
- First messageThe one that quotes them
Thanks for connecting, ‹first name›. You mentioned ‹the detail›, which we spent most of last year getting wrong. How are you handling it at the moment?
Fill both fields to make this sendable - First messageThe honest opener
‹first name›, I connected because of ‹the detail›, not because I have anything to sell you today. If you are open to it, what is the hardest part of that right now?
Fill both fields to make this sendable - First messageThe second opinion
Hi ‹first name›, we work with a few teams on ‹the detail›. Most tried the obvious fix first and it cost them a quarter. Happy to tell you what they moved to instead.
Fill both fields to make this sendable - Follow-upThe one-line nudge
‹first name›, bringing this back up in case it arrived on a bad day. Still curious how you handle ‹the detail›.
Fill both fields to make this sendable - Follow-upThe clean close
No worries if this is not a priority, ‹first name›. I will leave it here. If ‹the detail› does become the problem of the month, my inbox is open.
Fill both fields to make this sendable
The shape of a cold message that gets answered
A template is a structure, not a script to send untouched. The structure below is what the good ones share, and it is why they keep working after you edit them.
The first line belongs to the reader. Not your company, not your role, and not a compliment about their profile. Something they said or did that you can point at, which is the only proof available that a person rather than a queue is writing.
The middle is one sentence of why that brought you here. This is where most messages collapse into a paragraph about the product, and the reader stops. If your reason takes more than a sentence, the reason is probably that they fit a filter, which is not a reason they care about.
The end asks for a reply, not a meeting. A question they can answer in one line has a much lower cost than a calendar link, and once they have answered anything at all the second message is no longer cold. Ask for the call after they have spoken.
Keep the whole thing under 600 characters. On a phone that is about 4 short lines, and the difference between 4 lines and 10 is most of the difference in reply rate. Check any draft with the character counter.
Why a good template still gets ignored
Templates fail for one of two reasons, and neither of them is the wording.
The first reason is the list. A perfect message to somebody who does not have the problem is still a no, and no amount of editing fixes it. Write the profile down before you write the message, which the ideal customer profile template does in about 5 minutes.
The second is the slot you left unfilled. A message that says the thing they mentioned instead of naming it reads worse than no message, because it advertises the template. If you cannot fill the detail slot with something real, that person is not ready for this message yet.
Everything upstream matters too. The invitation has to be accepted before any of this is read, and the connection request message generator handles that half, while the limit calculator keeps the volume somewhere LinkedIn tolerates. When you want to know what all of this is costing you, the cost per lead calculator counts the hours as well as the invoices. Or see what LinkedGrow costs to run it for you.
What should a LinkedIn cold message say?
Open on something true about them, say why that brought you to their inbox, and ask a question they can answer in one line. Keep it under 600 characters and send exactly one follow-up. This free LinkedGrow library fills that structure in with your own details.
Questions about cold messages on LinkedIn
Everything the tool does not say on its own.
Write one line about what you sell and we will answer honestly.
Email us directlyOne that opens on something true about the reader and asks for a reply rather than a meeting. A template carries the structure and the timing. The specific detail is yours to add, and it is the only part that decides whether the message reads as written for them.
Under 600 characters for the first message, which is roughly 4 short lines on a phone. Anything longer gets skimmed and answered later, and later usually means never. The templates here stay inside that on purpose.
One, and then stop. A single follow-up about a week later recovers a real share of replies because the first message arrived on a busy day. A third and fourth mostly teach people to ignore your name, and they get you reported.
No. The page merges your details into templates written by hand, entirely in your browser, with no account and no key. Nothing you type is sent anywhere, so you can draft a whole sequence on a train with the tab open.
Only with InMail, which Premium and Sales Navigator include in limited monthly amounts, or inside a group you share. Otherwise the invitation comes first, which is why these templates assume the person has already accepted you.
A template still needs someone to fill it in.
LinkedGrow finds the people who match your profile, reads what they actually posted, and writes the message from that rather than from a placeholder. The sequence stops on its own when they reply.
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