The quickest survey sample most professionals have is sitting in their LinkedIn connections. There's no connection request to wait on and no weekly invitation limit to plan around, and the people already know who you are. The risk is the opposite one: treat your network like a mailing list and you spend goodwill you built over years.
Short answer: filter your connections down to the people who fit the study, message each one personally with what the survey is, how long it takes and what it pays, and ask if they'd like the link. Send it only to people who say yes, remind once, close politely, and thank them automatically when their response arrives. Updately's Paid survey to your connections template runs that sequence.
Key Takeaways
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who is this for? | Existing connections, past respondents and research panels you manage |
| Is there a connection request? | No. The first message goes out on day 0 |
| How many messages before they reply? | Three at most: invite, reminder, close |
| Does it say "thanks for connecting"? | No. It's written for people you're already connected to |
| How are finishers thanked? | The survey calls the campaign webhook and a thank-you goes out |
When surveying your network makes sense
This template is the right choice when:
- Your network overlaps your research audience. A founder selling to marketing leaders usually has hundreds of them in their connections.
- You run a panel or community and keep respondents on LinkedIn.
- You've surveyed people before and want to invite past respondents to the next wave.
- You need answers fast. Without an invitation step, people can be answering the same day.
It's the wrong choice when your connections don't match the study. If you need procurement leads at hospitals and your network is mostly software founders, use the Paid survey invite template to reach new people instead.
Pick the right connections
Updately's Network signal pulls in your first-degree connections and filters them by keywords, so "finance manager", "controller" or "head of finance" in a headline brings back just those people. For a panel or past respondents, a CSV import with their LinkedIn URLs works too.
A few rules keep this from feeling like a blast:
- Filter hard. Ten people who fit beat a hundred who don't. Everyone who gets an invite they can't use is a small withdrawal from your goodwill.
- Don't survey the same people every month. Keep a note of who you asked and when, and give your network a rest between studies.
- Leave out people mid-conversation with you about something else, such as an open deal or a hiring process. A survey invite lands badly in the middle of that.
The sequence, day by day
| Day | Step | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | AI message: survey invite | Two short lines: you're running a short paid survey and thought of them given their role, the topic, how long it takes and the reward exactly as you've written it, then "would you like the link?" No link yet, and no "thanks for connecting" |
| 3 | AI follow-up: reminder | One line restating the reward and how quick it is, then a yes/no question |
| 9 | AI follow-up: close the loop | No worries if it's not for them; the offer stands. No question, no link |
| When they finish | Wait for webhook | Holds each person until your survey tool reports their response |
| Then | Message: thank you | "Thanks {FirstName}, your response just came through. Really appreciate the time, and your reward will follow as promised." |
The steps stop as soon as someone replies. From there the reply agent handles the conversation.
Why personal beats a broadcast
You could post the link to your feed or paste it into a group message. Personal invites do better for a simple reason: the person can tell it was meant for them. The AI writes each invite from the person's role, so a finance manager reads about a survey for finance teams, not a generic "I'd love your feedback". And because the link waits for a yes, nobody gets an unexplained URL from someone they connected with three years ago.
What the agent does when they reply
The reply rules are written for research, not sales:
- "Sure" or "send it over": sends the link in one line with how long it takes and how the reward is paid.
- "What's it about?": a sentence or two on the topic and length, then whether they'd like the link.
- "Busy this week": no rush; it sends the link so they can do it when it suits them.
- Questions about the amount, payout or timing: answered only from your Knowledge. Missing facts send the chat to you.
- "Who's running this?" or "Is it anonymous?": answered only from Knowledge, otherwise handed off.
- "Done! When do I get paid?": thanks them and hands off so a person confirms and pays.
- A broken link: a one-line apology and a hand-off.
- "Not for me": a one-line thank-you and the chat ends.
Two more things are built in: the link is only ever shared once, and if someone shares an email or phone number, or asks to move to email, the chat comes to you.
When they say yes and go quiet
Two follow-ups go out: the first 2 days after the conversation stalls, the second 5 days after that. The first checks the link worked and re-shares it, with a reminder that the reward follows once it's done. The second is a no-pressure close that mentions your closing date if you've given one.
Thank people the moment they finish
Your connections will notice whether you followed up. Set the thank-you up once:
- Add
?cid={ContactId}to the survey link on the campaign. - Add a hidden field named
cidin your survey tool so the ID is saved with each response. - Turn on the webhook under AI Agent → Webhooks & external data and paste its URL into your survey tool, or into Zapier.
When a response comes in, that person skips any reminders they haven't had yet and gets the thank-you straight away. You can see in the contact list who's finished and who's still waiting.
Write the facts down first
The agent only says what's in Knowledge. For a network survey, include:
- The topic and why you're running it. With your own network, a line on why it matters to you goes a long way: "We're deciding what to build next and want to hear from people who'd use it."
- Length, and whether it works on a phone.
- The reward, how it's paid and when.
- A closing date, if there is one.
- What happens to the answers, and whether you'll share the results. Offering a summary of the findings is a good extra reward for a professional audience.
Add a few samples of your own messages under Train the voice so the invites sound like you. People you know will notice if they don't.
Mistakes to avoid
- Inviting everyone. If the filter is loose, half your invites go to people who can't take part.
- Using a work-in-progress survey. Test the link, the hidden field and the webhook with a dummy response before launch.
- Following up harder than the template does. One reminder and one close is enough for people you know.
- Selling to respondents afterwards. If you want to talk business with someone who took part, do it in a separate conversation, later, and be upfront.
How to launch it in Updately
- Create a Network signal filtered to the roles you need, or import your panel as a CSV.
- Create a campaign from that list, open the AI Agent tab, click Start from a template and pick Paid survey to your connections.
- Fill in Knowledge, add the survey link with
?cid={ContactId}, and turn on the webhook. - Test replies in the simulator, run Test Sequence with a real connection, then launch.
The campaign templates page shows all four research templates side by side, and the LinkedIn survey campaigns guide covers the wider choices. For more on working your existing network, see the LinkedIn network tab for warm outbound.
FAQ
How many connections can I message a day?
LinkedIn limits messaging as well as invitations, and Updately keeps every account under conservative daily limits. Messaging connections doesn't use your weekly connection request allowance.
Should I still pay connections for a survey?
If the survey takes real time, yes. People you know are more willing to help, but a clear reward still lifts completion and shows you value their time.
What if a connection replies "happy to help, no need to pay me"?
Thank them and send the link. If you'd like to offer a charity donation instead, put that option in Knowledge so the agent can mention it.
Can I reuse the campaign for the next wave?
Yes. Update the topic, reward and link in Knowledge, filter out people who took part last time, and launch again.