10 Strategic LinkedIn Networking Moves To Grow Your Social INfluence in 2026

If Part 1 of this series was about working the room at Costco breakfasts and conferences, Part 2 is all about working the room on LinkedIn. Think of this as the 'digital hallway conversations' that keep the in-person momentum going long after you fly home.

In this podcast episode of You Are Going To Be Great At This, host Chris Castanes and I dug into exactly that: how to build a real LinkedIn networking strategy that feels human, not spammy.

Chris Castanes is an independent insurance broker who sells with humor, tells the truth about networking, and believes, as he puts it, that the goal of any networking is “just to make yourself referable ultimately.” He has also been a guest on my own Strategy Talks podcast, in an episode called How To Sell With Humor And Choose To Make Everyone Feel Good, which I highly recommend if you want to hear what this looks like in action.

In my previous blog, 10 Fun In-Person Networking Tips for Small Business Owners To Create Lasting Relationships, I walked you through how I network in person as a long-time solopreneur. This time, we are moving that same relationship-first mindset into your LinkedIn networking strategy for 2026.

Let’s turn your LinkedIn from a digital business card into a place where real conversations start.

Why you need a LinkedIn networking strategy in 2026

On the podcast I said something that sets the tone for this whole article:

That means:

• You are not just collecting random connections.

• You are not accepting every invite without looking.

• You are not blasting the same pitch to everyone who connects.

Just like we did in Part 1 with conferences and in-person events, we want to be intentional.

• Who are you trying to meet?

• How do you want to be known?

• How will you move people from “I saw your comment once” to “we had a great Zoom conversation” or “you were on my podcast”?

Here are the 10 moves that make up my LinkedIn networking strategy for 2026.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 1: Be intentional with connection requests.

Networking on LinkedIn starts long before you hit “Connect.”

On the show I explained that when I reach out, I nearly always include a note and a reason:

That one little sentence does a few things:

• It proves I am a real human, not a bot.

• It shows I paid attention to something they said or did.

• It gives them context for why connecting makes sense.

If you want your LinkedIn networking strategy to work, stop sending empty connection requests. Give people a reason to say yes.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 2: Vet inbound requests and ditch the bots

Of course, people are also reaching out to you. That does not mean you have to say yes to everyone.

I shared that I look at:

• Mutual connections. “If we have one or two mutual connections, I usually do not accept. You have to have at least 10 or 15.”

• Their profile. Do they look real, or is it an empty shell with no photo and no history? I have had several bots try to connect with me and they literally have zero friends or zero connections.

• Their first move. If they connect and instantly pitch, it is a red flag.

As I said,

My response is simple: unconnect. That is not a relationship you want to build.

Part of your LinkedIn networking strategy for 2026 should be a clear personal rule for what kind of behavior gets an instant “no.”

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 3: Treat the first DM like a first date

This is one of my favorite analogies from the interview, because it makes people laugh and then nod.

When someone messages you right after connecting, pay attention. Are they saying “Hey, I see you live in Vermont, how is it living there?” or are they saying “Hey, I have this tool I want you to try” and dropping a link in the first message?

I put it this way:

Your LinkedIn networking strategy should treat the first DM as a get-to-know-you moment:

• Ask where they live.

• Ask what they do.

• Ask how long they have been in business.

Then, if there is alignment, you can move toward collaboration, referrals, or sales later.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 4: Let your headline do the networking for you

One of the biggest shifts on LinkedIn right now is how powerful comments are. We will get to that in a moment, but first we need to talk about what people see when you comment.

On the show I explained: when I leave a comment, people see “Dorien Morin-van Dam” and then my headline, which starts with “social strategist” and more.

So the question is: what do your first words say?

I told Chris,

Practical steps for this part of your LinkedIn networking strategy:

• Put what you actually do at the very start of your headline.

• Move “CEO” or “Founder” later if you want to keep it.

• Make sure your headline matches the thing you want to be known for.

We will use this in a minute when we talk about commenting as your main growth engine.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 5: Make commenting your main growth engine

This is the move that often surprises people.

I told Chris,

Here is why:

• LinkedIn is pushing comments into the feed and giving analytics on them.

• People see your name and your headline attached to every thoughtful comment.

• Those comments travel far beyond your own connection list.

I shared an example: “I had a comment the other day that showed me in my notifications that I had 3,500 impressions. That was just a comment on somebody else’s post.”

If you are just starting out, I suggest a simple LinkedIn networking strategy:

• Twice a week, set a 30 minute timer.

• Start with your current feed and look for posts you can comment on.

• If nothing is relevant, “click on a keyword that you want to talk about, say insurance or small business owner, then go to Posts and see what people you are not connected with are talking about.”

When you join those conversations as a second or third connection, you open the door to a whole new group of people who can see you and your work.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 6: Turn comments into connections and real conversations

Comments are not the end of the story. They are the start.

I shared a real example:

Here is the sequence I recommend:

1. Have a real back-and-forth in the comments.

2. Send a connection request while the conversation is fresh.

3. Once they accept, move into the DMs.

From there my next move is usually: “Hey, great to connect with you, like minded. What do you do, where do you live, how long have you been in business. You sound interesting. You have a podcast too. Maybe you can be on my podcast.”

Notice what I am doing:

• I am building a relationship first.

• I am discovering overlap and opportunities.

• I am inviting them into a deeper conversation, sometimes even on my show.

Your LinkedIn networking strategy in 2026 should absolutely include this flow: comment, connect, DM, then invite to something specific if it makes sense.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 7: Reply to comments like a human, not a robot

Comments are not just something you leave on other people’s posts. They are also how you keep your own posts alive.

I told Chris that when people comment on my content, I do not just say “thanks.” I said: “When somebody comments on your content, you comment back and not just hey, thanks for commenting. Say, that is a great point, what do you think of X, Y, ask them a follow up question because you want that conversation to go.”

On one post I had 60 comments. Half of them were mine. That is what it should look like:

• They comment.

• You respond thoughtfully.

• They respond again.

This is how your LinkedIn networking strategy turns your own content into a conversation, not a lecture. And when you see interesting people in your own comments who you are not connected with yet, connect with them.

Often you do not even need a note because, as I said, “They already know who you are, they just had a conversation with you.”

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 8: Train your LinkedIn feed to work for you

If your feed feels noisy, it is hard to network well. The good news is that you have more control than you might think.

On the show I explained that after you comment and connect with more relevant people, “you start building a whole new feed.”

You can also:

• Click the three dots on posts and choose “I don’t want to see this” or “I do not want to see this again” to hide ads or irrelevant content.

• Use the little bell on someone’s profile so their posts show up more in your feed. And “if you see a post of somebody that you do not like that you by accident followed and hit the bell, you can unclick that bell” to quiet things down again.

A healthy LinkedIn networking strategy means curating your environment so that:

• You see more of the people you want to engage with.

• You see fewer distractions that pull you away from real conversations.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 9: Use groups, newsletters and Lives to show up as the expert

Comments and DMs are great for one-to-one networking. Groups, newsletters and live video help you network one-to-many.

Chris shared his own little hack: he joins LinkedIn groups that match his geography or niche, then shares relevant posts and podcast links into those groups. Some of them have hundreds of thousands of members.

I added that when one of my guest’s assistants shared our Strategy Talks live into 12 groups, “close to 400 people ended up seeing the stream.” That experience opened my eyes to the power of groups.

We also talked about:

• Personal positioning. “You want to be known for maybe one thing really good.” For me, that is organic social media strategy.

• Newsletters. “LinkedIn newsletters do really, really well. They actually get indexed in Google.” I write a newsletter every week, and for many people my LinkedIn profile shows up in Google before my website.

• LinkedIn Live and webinars. You do not have to wait for someone else to invite you. “If you show up on LinkedIn like that as the expert that you are, it can really carry you far.”

When you add these elements to your LinkedIn networking strategy, you are not just joining conversations. You are hosting them.

Strategic LinkedIn Networking move 10: Use photos and profile updates to connect online and offline

We cannot talk about a LinkedIn networking strategy heading into 2026 without talking about visuals.

First, selfies. A recent study on LinkedIn showed that “posts with selfies do really, really well,” which is why so many of my friends are posting a daily selfie with a caption. It will not work forever, but right now it is a simple way to get seen and start conversations.

Second, lurkers. I reminded listeners that “there are a lot of lurkers. Even if only one person gives you the thumbs up, there are probably 10 people watching.” So do not give up just because you are not getting floods of likes. People are watching, quietly.

Third, your profile photo. At the very end of the episode I gave one last piece of advice that ties Part 1 and Part 2 together:

If your picture is more than five years old, if your hair changed, if you lost it, if you gained 50 pounds, I do not care what changed, update your picture. You are trying to build trust. When you do not look anything like your photo, you create instant mistrust.

You do not need fancy photography. Take a selfie you like, then, as I suggested, “put the selfie in AI and say keep the person the same but just make it a professional headshot for LinkedIn.”

That one small update supports everything we did in Part 1 (in-person networking) and everything in this LinkedIn networking strategy. People will recognize you both ways.

Putting your LinkedIn networking strategy to work in 2026

In Part 1 we talked about showing up in person, smiling before you walk into the room, rescuing the lonely person at the event, and following up fast. In this Part 2, we moved those same values into a LinkedIn networking strategy that fits how people actually use the platform in 2026.

To recap your 10 strategic moves:

1. Be intentional with connection requests and always give a reason.

2. Vet inbound invites and disconnect from bots and instant pitchers.

3. Treat the first DM like a first date, not a sales call.

4. Let your headline do the networking for you in every comment.

5. Make commenting your main growth engine, not just posting.

6. Turn good comment threads into connections and real conversations.

7. Reply thoughtfully to comments on your own posts and keep the dialogue going.

8. Train your feed and use the bell so you see the right people.

9. Use groups, newsletters and Lives to show up as the expert.

10. Use selfies and an updated profile photo to bridge online and offline trust.

If you want to hear Chris flip the script and come onto my show, selling with humor and making everyone feel good, listen to this Strategy Talks episode.

Then, put 15 to 30 minutes on your calendar this week and apply at least two of these moves. You do not need to overhaul everything at once. You just need to start behaving like the kind of person people feel good about referring, on LinkedIn and in real life.

10 smart AI prompts you can use based on this LinkedIn networking strategy

Here are 10 prompts your audience (and you) can drop into an AI tool to get more value from this blog:

• “Based on Dorien’s 10 moves, create a weekly LinkedIn networking strategy for a small business owner who has 30 minutes twice a week.”

• “Rewrite my current LinkedIn headline to match Dorien’s advice so my comments clearly show what I do. Here is my current headline: [paste].”

• “Draft five personalized connection request messages I can send on LinkedIn that give a clear reason for connecting.”

• “Write three first-DM templates that feel like a friendly first date conversation, not a sales pitch, inspired by this LinkedIn networking strategy.”

• “Turn Dorien’s commenting tips into a 10 day LinkedIn commenting challenge with daily actions.”

• “Create a checklist I can use to vet inbound LinkedIn connection requests so I can avoid bots and instant pitchers.”

• “Help me outline a simple LinkedIn newsletter plan that positions me as an expert on [your topic], following Dorien’s advice.”

• “Give me five ideas for LinkedIn Live or webinar topics that would showcase my expertise and fit into this LinkedIn networking strategy.”

• “Write a short message I can send to someone after a great comment back-and-forth, inviting them to connect and continue the conversation.”

• “Generate an audit checklist for my LinkedIn profile photo and visuals so they match Dorien’s recommendation and build trust online and offline.”