| name | linkedin-connect |
| description | Send LinkedIn connection requests to a list of people via browser automation and track status in a CSV/TSV file. Use when the user wants to bulk-connect with a list of people on LinkedIn (founders, speakers, leads, etc.) from a spreadsheet or list containing LinkedIn profile URLs. Handles Connect button, Follow-mode profiles, already-connected detection, stale URL fallback via LinkedIn search and Google search, and incremental status tracking. |
LinkedIn Connect
Automates sending LinkedIn connection requests from a list and tracks results in a data file.
⚠️ Pre-flight Checklist — Confirm Before Starting
Before doing anything else, confirm all of the following with the user. Do not proceed until each item is confirmed.
1. Data File
Ask the user to provide their spreadsheet/CSV/TSV file and confirm it has (or can have) these columns:
- Person/Founder Name — full name of the person to connect with
- Company/Brand Name — their company or brand (used for search fallback)
- LinkedIn Profile URL — optional but highly recommended; reduces automation footprint
If the file lacks any column, tell the user which columns are missing and offer to add them.
2. Browser Setup
Ask which browser setup they're using:
Option A — Chrome Browser Relay (recommended for accounts flagged for automation)
- User must have the OpenClaw Browser Relay Chrome extension installed
- User opens LinkedIn in their regular Chrome browser and clicks the OpenClaw Relay toolbar icon on that tab (badge turns ON)
- Use
profile="chrome" for all browser tool calls in this mode
Option B — OpenClaw Isolated Browser (openclaw profile)
- OpenClaw manages a separate Chrome instance
- On first use, navigate to
https://www.linkedin.com and let the user log in; cookies persist across sessions
- Use
profile="openclaw" for all browser tool calls in this mode
Confirm which option they've set up. Default to Option A (Chrome Relay) if the user's account has been flagged or warned about automation.
3. Ready Check
Only proceed once the user says:
- ✅ File is ready and accessible
- ✅ Browser is open with LinkedIn logged in (and relay is attached if Option A)
Browser Profile
Set the profile variable based on user's choice in the Pre-flight Checklist:
- Option A:
profile="chrome" — reuse the relay-attached tab; get targetId via browser action=tabs
- Option B:
profile="openclaw" — OpenClaw-managed isolated Chrome instance
Do not mix profiles mid-run. Pick one and use it consistently for every browser tool call.
Data File Setup
Ensure the tracking file has a Connection Status column. If missing, add it:
import csv
rows = []
with open('file.tsv', 'r') as f:
reader = csv.DictReader(f, delimiter='\t')
fieldnames = reader.fieldnames + ['Connection Status']
rows = list(reader)
with open('file.tsv', 'w', newline='') as f:
writer = csv.DictWriter(f, fieldnames=fieldnames, delimiter='\t')
writer.writeheader()
for row in rows:
row['Connection Status'] = ''
writer.writerow(row)
Three-Tier Profile Discovery (Priority Order)
Always try in this order. Move to the next tier only if the current one fails.
Tier 1 — Direct LinkedIn URL (fastest, zero ambiguity)
Navigate directly to the LinkedIn profile URL from the data file.
- ✅ URL loads → correct profile, proceed to connect
- ❌ Returns 404 → escalate to Tier 2
- Skip Tier 1 if no URL is in the data file for this person
Tier 2 — Google Search (reliable fallback, preserves accuracy)
Search Google for "Founder Name" "Brand/Company" linkedin.
- Navigate to:
https://www.google.com/search?q=<Name>+<Company>+linkedin
- Find the LinkedIn profile link in results (usually first result), click it
- Once on the profile, proceed to Connect step
- ⚠️ Only escalate to Tier 3 if Google can't find the right person or returns no LinkedIn result
Tier 3 — LinkedIn People Search (last resort)
Run a LinkedIn people search for the founder + brand directly inside LinkedIn.
- Navigate to:
https://www.linkedin.com/search/results/people/?keywords=<Name>+<Company>
- Look for inline
Connect buttons first; otherwise open the profile from search results
- Confirm name + headline/company match before connecting
- ❌ No trustworthy match → mark
Profile Not Found
See references/browser-workflow.md for detailed browser steps for each tier.
Connecting on a Profile
Once on the correct profile, two patterns exist:
Pattern A - Direct Connect button visible on profile → click it → confirm dialog → Send without a note
Pattern B - Follow mode (no Connect button, only Follow + Message + More) → click More actions → use selector .artdeco-dropdown__content--is-open to get dropdown → click Invite [Name] to connect → confirm dialog → Send without a note
If neither Connect nor Invite is available → mark Follow Only.
Status Values
| Status | Meaning |
|---|
Request Sent | Connection request sent this session |
Already Connected | 1st degree - no action needed |
Pending | Request already sent previously |
Follow Only | No Connect option available on this profile |
Profile Not Found | All three tiers failed |
Skipped | Intentionally skipped |
Multi-founder Rows
When a TSV row has multiple founders, track per-founder status separated by |:
Founder1Slug: Request Sent | Founder2Slug: Already Connected
Rate Limiting & Anti-Detection
⚠️ LinkedIn flags accounts that jump directly between profile URLs. Always visit the feed between profiles — no exceptions.
- Navigate to
/feed/ before every single profile, without exception. See references/browser-workflow.md for the exact call. This is the primary anti-detection measure.
- Add a short natural pause (2–4 seconds) after loading the feed before navigating to the next profile.
- If >3 consecutive clean URLs return 404, pause for 10 seconds on the feed before continuing (then fall back to Google/LinkedIn search).
- Do not open new browser tabs — the relay breaks; reuse the same attached tab for every action.
- Aim for no more than 20–25 connection requests per session. Stop and tell the user if you're approaching this limit.
Saving Progress
Use a linkedin_progress.json sidecar file:
{ "statuses": { "https://www.linkedin.com/in/username/": "Request Sent" } }
Update the TSV from this dict every 10 profiles or at the end.
References
references/browser-workflow.md - Detailed browser steps for all three tiers and both connect patterns
