Example: the owner of a small packaging manufacturer in Joinville, in southern Brazil, leaves an online business round after a promising conversation with the buyer at a cosmetics chain. Both mark interest and contact details are exchanged. That evening, the buyer looks her up on LinkedIn to remember who she was and finds a profile with no photo, an old job title and not a single line about packaging. The conversation had gone well, but the profile confirmed nothing she had said. Using LinkedIn for networking starts before the round and carries on after it. For the after part, the Follow-up Generator builds your follow-up message for LinkedIn, WhatsApp or email from what you talked about.
This guide covers what to adjust on your profile, what to read on screen when a conversation opens, when to research and connect without rushing anyone and what to write in the first message. It does not cover reach tricks or paid features: those change often. It covers what keeps working, which is using LinkedIn as one more piece of business networking, not as a replacement for the conversation itself.
A profile that confirms your pitch
In the business round, you have a few minutes to say what your company does and who it serves. Afterwards, anyone who wants to remember you opens your profile. If the profile says something different, or says nothing at all, doubt shows up exactly when the person is deciding whether to reply. Your profile does not need to be beautiful. It needs to repeat, in writing, what you said in the conversation.
The headline
The line under your name is what people read first, in search results and on invitations. Replace "Managing Partner" with a sentence that says what you solve and for whom. Example: "Custom packaging for cosmetics and food brands". Anyone reading it understands within seconds whether it makes sense to keep talking.
The summary (the "About" section)
Write a few short sentences: the problem your customer has, what your company does about it, a type of customer you serve well and how to reach you. It is basically your pitch in writing. If you do not have one yet, the article on the 60-second sales pitch gives you the structure and examples by industry, and the Pitch Generator builds a version from your answers. Use the same opening line on your profile and in the conversation: repetition helps the other person link one to the other.
The company page and your photo
A current photo that shows your face, plus the right job title at the right company, saves people from wondering "is this the same person?". If your company has a LinkedIn page, check that the name matches the one on your profile on the business round platform and that the description talks about what you sell today. If it does not have a page, that is no reason to wait: a clear personal profile already covers most of the way.
Read the card when the conversation opens
In the platform's online business round, nobody gets a list of companies or an agenda of conversations in advance. Pairs are formed live, among the people who are present, by matching what one side offers with what the other is looking for. So LinkedIn is not the place to research ahead of time who you will meet: preparing means getting your own side ready. Information about the other side appears on screen when each conversation opens, with the person's name and company. In the first few seconds, read three things:
- What the company does: the product or service, who it sells to and which industry it is in.
- What the person is looking for: a supplier, a client, a partner or a sales representative. That tells you where to start.
- Why you were matched: the point where what you offer meets what they need. That is often where the problem they want to solve shows up.
Turn what you read into an opening question. Instead of "what do you do?", try something like "I saw you are looking for packaging for a new line: does it have a launch date yet?". The person notices that you paid attention, and the conversation starts at the point that matters to them.
Research comes afterwards
Once both sides mark interest, LinkedIn becomes a good research tool: the company page, the role of the person you talked to, what they post about their work. Take your time and stick to what is professional and public. Research does not mean digging into anyone's life, and bringing up something personal you saw on their profile usually comes across as intrusive, even when you mean well.
During the conversation: listen, but do not invite
The temptation is to look the person up on LinkedIn while they are talking, or to send a connection request the moment the conversation ends, to "warm up" the contact. Resist it. On the platform, contact details are only exchanged when both sides mark interest at the end of the conversation. That rule exists so that nobody gets approached by someone they did not want to continue with. Connecting before you know the answer goes around it and, in practice, puts you in the position of someone who is already selling before listening.
The table sums up the role of LinkedIn at each stage:
| Stage | What to do on LinkedIn | What to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| The week before | Adjust your headline, summary and photo | Rewriting the whole profile the night before |
| When the conversation opens | Nothing: read the card and why you were matched | Opening their profile while they speak |
| When the conversation ends | Nothing: mark your interest on the platform | Sending a request before you know the interest is mutual |
| After both sides mark interest | Research the company and connect with a short note | A request with no note, or with a sales pitch |
| The following weeks | Follow and comment with judgment | Liking everything just to be seen |
Connect afterwards
Once both sides have marked interest, the connection request stops being a cold approach and becomes the natural continuation of the conversation. Send it the same day or the next, while the person still remembers your face. Along with the request, write a short note that says where you talked and mentions one detail from that conversation. Example:
"Hi Marina. We spoke today at the online business round about packaging for the kids' line. Glad to stay in touch here as well."
Notice what the note leaves out: price, catalog, a meeting request. It only confirms who you are. The concrete next step goes in your follow-up message, through the channel you agreed on.
What if the other side did not mark interest?
Then no contact details were exchanged, and looking the person up on LinkedIn to insist undoes the decision they made. Accept the answer. If, months later, a real reason comes up (a new product that solves the problem they described, for example), another business round is a more respectful path than an unexpected invitation.
Connecting with more than one person at the company
If the conversation mentioned a colleague who takes part in the decision, such as someone from the technical team, wait for the person you spoke to to make the introduction. Ask in your follow-up message whether it makes sense to bring that colleague in. Skipping steps inside another company usually creates more friction than speed.
The follow-up message
LinkedIn is one possible channel for the follow-up, but it is not always the best one. Use it when the person said they prefer it, when their company is larger and direct contact still feels distant, or when the follow-up is not urgent. If you agreed on WhatsApp or email, write there: sending the same message on two channels on the same day feels like pressure.
When LinkedIn is the channel, the message follows the same logic as any follow-up: context in one line, the problem the person described in their own words, one sentence about what you deliver and a small next step with two date options. Long messages are tiring on a phone screen, so keep it to a few sentences. Ready-made texts for each channel are in the follow-up message templates, and the guide on follow-up after a business meeting explains when to send the second and third message and when to stop.
Attachments and links
If the person asked for material, send what they asked for and nothing more. A light file or a direct link to the right page of your website is worth more than the full catalog. And check the file before you send it: a PDF with last year's price list wipes out the good impression from the conversation.
Keep the connection alive
Connecting is only the start. In the following weeks, LinkedIn helps you stay present without sending messages all the time. Three simple habits:
- Comment with substance: when the person posts something about their work, a comment with an idea or a question is worth more than a like.
- Post about what you solve: a case (without exposing a client), a common question in your industry, something you learned this week. People who talked to you see the topic come back and remember the conversation.
- Watch for changes: a promotion, a new company, a new unit. They are good reasons to get back in touch with something useful, not just to say congratulations.
The care to take is not turning this into pressure in disguise. The guide on how to keep in touch with your network without being a nuisance shows a contact rhythm that keeps the relationship open without pushing anyone.
Where to start
Open your profile now and read only the headline and the summary as if you were a buyer who has just talked to your company. If they do not repeat your pitch, adjust them before the next business round. Then set yourself a simple rule: profile ready before, full attention during the conversation, research and requests only after both sides mark interest and the follow-up message through the agreed channel.
Your company's first online business round is on us: all you need is an active CNPJ (the Brazilian company registration number), once per CNPJ, and contact details are only shared when both sides mark interest. See the upcoming business rounds and walk into your first conversation with a profile that confirms what you are about to say.