Being able to tell whether someone has read your message can be useful information, especially in a business context. And with LinkedIn being the world's largest professional network, used by job seekers, recruiters and business owners, a feature indicating whether or not your message has been read is actually a pretty big deal. But, does LinkedIn have read receipts? Sure it does! And since they are a relatively new addition to this platform, let's see what LinkedIn read receipts are and how you can make the most out of them.
What Are Read Receipts on LinkedIn?
A read receipt on LinkedIn is simply an indicator that lets you know when your message has been read by the person you've sent it to. This feature is available for both one-on-one messages and group messages in LinkedIn messenger and it’s the only way you can tell whether your messages have been read or not. Also, if you’ve sent someone a message request, read receipts on LinkedIn will be enabled only after the recipient has accepted your message request.
Although this feature is quite popular with other social media platforms, LinkedIn has not extended it to their LinkedIn InMail messaging feature. So, if you’re a recruiter or salesperson using this type of messaging to reach your potential candidates or prospects, unfortunately, you will not be able to tell when or whether your message has been read as there is no LinkedIn InMail read receipt.
How Do LinkedIn Read Receipts Work?
It’s quite simple actually, and very similar to other social media platforms. When you send a message to one of your connections on LinkedIn, a little circle with their LinkedIn profile picture will appear next to the message immediately after it’s been read —that is basically the LinkedIn read receipt. Alternatively, a checkmark will appear.
So, what does the check mark in LinkedIn messages mean? A check mark on a LinkedIn message means that the message has been delivered, but not necessarily opened or read. LinkedIn, similarly to Facebook, uses different icons to show the status of your messages.
In addition to the read receipt on LinkedIn, you can also find out when your LinkedIn message was seen. To do so on your desktop or laptop simply hover your cursor over the icon. A “Seen by [Name Lastname] at [Time]” message will appear informing you about the time this person has read or opened the message. LinkedIn also has a typing indicator feature that displays when the correspondent is composing a reply in message form.
How to Turn on Read Receipts on LinkedIn
The good news is that LinkedIn read receipts are turned on by default, so you don’t have to do anything to activate this feature. This means that all you need to do is send a message and check when the icon will change from the LinkedIn message check mark to the profile picture circle. The same goes for the typing indicator feature —it is turned on by default. Of course, if you prefer, you can turn off both features.
How to Turn Off Read Receipts on LinkedIn
And since read receipts can be tricky, frustrating even, especially if you're not job-hunting and constantly receiving messages from recruiters pressuring you to give them your time. Therefore, you might be wondering whether there is a way to turn off read receipts on LinkedIn. Fortunately, you may quickly disable the function by following these steps:
- Log into LinkedIn and tap the "Me" icon located at the top of your homepage.
- Choose the "Settings & Privacy" option.
- Go to "Communications" and select "Messaging experience."
- Tap the "Change" button located next to "Read receipts and typing indicators" and just toggle the button to "Off".
And that's it, you have now successfully disabled read receipts from your desktop. The steps for disabling LinkedIn messages read receipts from your mobile phone are slightly different but just as simple. To turn off read receipts on LinkedIn via mobile you need to:
- Click on your profile picture and go to the "Settings" menu and open "Communications."
- Find the "Messaging experience" section, and select "Read receipts and typing indicators".
- Turn the toggle to "Off."
You have now successfully disabled read receipts on LinkedIn from your mobile phone.
*Note that when you turn off read receipts, LinkedIn will also disable the typing indicator feature for you as well.
The Takeaway
LinkedIn read receipts can be a great way to keep track of your messages and see when people have read them. It is also a very convenient feature in the sense that when you're prospecting read receipts can help you ensure your recipients understand and actually read your messages. This way you will know whether your approach is good and if not, it might give you a hint on how you can improve your approach. And the best part is, if you're a casual user of this networking platform and don't want to be bothered by constant message requests, you can simply turn off read receipts on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Read Receipts FAQs
Are there read receipts on LinkedIn?
Yes, LinkedIn does have read receipts. This feature was added in 2017 as an option aiming to make the platform more similar to other social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram.
Can you see if someone read your message on LinkedIn?
If your LinkedIn message has been read, a circle with the person's profile picture will appear next to the message. If the person is typing a reply, a "..." will appear next to the message.
How do I know when my LinkedIn message was read?
To find out when your LinkedIn message was read, hover over the profile picture icon next to the message. A "Seen by" message will appear indicating the exact time when the message was read.
Can you turn off read receipts on LinkedIn?
Yes, you can turn off LinkedIn read receipts. To do this, log into LinkedIn and go to "Settings & Privacy." Then select "Communications" and choose "Messaging experience." Finally, toggle the button next to "Read receipts and typing indicators" to "Off."
