In today's digital business landscape, LinkedIn networking strategy has become a crucial element for entrepreneurs looking to expand their professional connections and business opportunities. A recent discussion among prominent e-commerce founders and digital marketing experts in "The eCom Mafia" group revealed valuable insights about managing LinkedIn connection requests and optimizing your network for maximum impact.

The Connection Request Dilemma

The conversation began when Shan Salam posed an interesting question about handling a backlog of 1,000+ LinkedIn connection requests. He specifically wanted to know whether accepting all these requests would positively or negatively impact his LinkedIn algorithm reach.

This sparked a thoughtful discussion about LinkedIn growth strategy and the balance between network expansion and engagement quality.

Quality Over Quantity: The Expert Consensus

Ramshina Mahamood, Founder of Reformedia, emphasized the importance of being selective with connections:

"Better accept those in your niche or target audience and reject those who don't necessarily add any value. They will still be in your followers list. Having connections who are not engaging will bring down your profile reach."

This focus on LinkedIn engagement optimization highlights a key aspect of modern social media algorithms - they reward quality interactions over mere connection numbers.

The Strategic Approach: The 70:20:10 Rule

Shiju Roy, Founder and Personal Branding Expert at Growth Catalyzt, offered a structured approach with his 70:20:10 rule for LinkedIn connection management:

• 70% your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

• 20% your industry peers

• 10% connections outside your niche

He explained that LinkedIn pushes your content to only about 10% of your first-degree connections, making it crucial to be strategic about who makes up that network. He summed it up with his "3C" philosophy: "Connections, Content, and Conversations that can help you."

The Human Touch Perspective

Arshad Khader, Founder of Linked-ഇൻ, brought a more humanistic approach to the discussion. While acknowledging that experts recommend adding only necessary connections, he shared that he tends to accept requests from people who genuinely appreciate his content (excluding fake profiles), believing these connections might prove valuable in unexpected ways.

Reji Modiyil, Founder of AutoChat, similarly emphasized the value of an inclusive network:

"I appreciate everyone who has taken the effort to connect with me... I believe in growing through genuine connections, learning, and conversations."

The Community-Building Approach

Prasad Karthik, Founder of Organic Growth Mastery, offered a nuanced perspective on LinkedIn community building, suggesting that Shan's situation was unique due to his public profile. He categorized the typical connection requests Shan might receive:

• Regular viewers of The eCom Show

• Entrepreneurs seeking business networking opportunities

• E-commerce enthusiasts

• Students

• Professionals

Prasad emphasized that connections should be viewed as a community-building exercise rather than simply a network to be harvested later. He explained how community members could become immediate buyers, vision supporters, or future customers.

Latest LinkedIn Algorithm Insights

Shiju Roy also shared valuable information about recent LinkedIn updates, noting that comments now reach wider audiences beyond the original content creator's network. This presents additional opportunities for visibility:

"Comments build your conversations and just imagine when 12,000 people have viewed it how much 10 comments would have a view... More eyeballs, more your stories are heard."

He backed this up with impressive statistics about LinkedIn's reach:

• 147 million users across India

• 1 billion users globally

• 62 million registered businesses

• Presence of key decision-makers

The Path Forward: Simplicity and Alignment

Shad Muhammed, Founder of BlowLin, summarized his approach to LinkedIn connection request management simply:

"I just follow a simple rule: accept invites from people who fit my audience (ideal followers, industry peers, prospects). Personally, I try to keep things as simple as possible when managing all this."

Conclusion: Balance is Key

The consensus among these successful e-commerce entrepreneurs seems to be that while algorithm considerations are important for LinkedIn profile optimization, the most successful approach combines strategic thinking with authentic relationship building.

Whether you choose to be highly selective with your connections or more inclusive, what matters most is alignment with your business goals and maintaining meaningful engagement with your network.

What's your approach to managing LinkedIn connection requests? Let us know in the comments below!

About the Contributors:

• Shad Muhammed - Founder of BlowLin.com

• Shiju Roy - Founder | Personal Branding Expert at Growth Catalyzt

• Shan Salam - Co-Founder, The eCom Show

• Prasad Karthik - Founder, Organic Growth Mastery (Kerala's First Advanced Content Led SEO Course)

• Ramshina Mahamood - Founder, Reformedia

• Reji Modiyil - Founder, AutoChat.com

• Arshad Khader - Founder, Linked-ഇൻ