How to Ask for an Introduction (with Email Templates)

A warm introduction from someone you both trust is the quickest way to reach a person who would ignore a cold message. The trick to asking for one is to make it almost no work for the person in the middle. Tell them exactly who you want to meet and why, give them a short note they can forward as it is, and make it easy for them to say no. Below are the templates we use for every step, from the first ask to the thank-you.

What a warm introduction is (and why the ask matters)

A warm introduction is when someone who knows both of you puts you in touch, usually by email or message. The person you want to meet hears about you from someone they already trust, so they're far more likely to reply.

The catch is that the introducer is lending you their reputation. Every intro they make costs them a little goodwill with the other person. Your job is to make that cost as small as possible, which comes down to three things:

• Be specific. Name the person, or describe exactly the kind of person you need.
• Give a reason that's about them too. Why would the other person want this conversation?
• Do the writing for them. A short, forwardable blurb means they can help in under a minute.

Before you ask: three checks

Do they actually know this person? Being connected on LinkedIn isn't the same as knowing someone. If you're not sure, ask: "How well do you know Priya? Would it be odd to ask for an intro?"

Is your ask small? "A 20-minute call about how you priced your first wholesale contract" is easy to say yes to. "Pick your brains" and "explore synergies" aren't.

Have you done your homework? Read what the person has written or said in public. If the answer to your question is on their website, you'll waste everyone's time.

How to ask for an introduction: the first message

Send this to the person who knows you both. Keep it short. Put the forwardable blurb in a separate block so they can copy it straight across.

Notice what it does. It names the person, explains why her in particular, keeps the ask small, and gives Rachel an easy way out. That last line matters more than it looks. People are much happier to help when they don't feel cornered.

The forwardable blurb

This is the paragraph the introducer forwards to the other person, so they can ask whether they're happy to be introduced before connecting you. Write it in the third person or the first, but make it stand on its own: the reader should understand who you are and what you want without any other context.

Three to five sentences is plenty. The final line, offering something back, is optional but worth including when you have something genuine to offer.

The double opt-in introduction email

A double opt-in introduction means the introducer checks with both people before connecting them. It's the polite standard, because nobody gets landed with an intro they didn't want. It usually runs in two steps.

Step one: the introducer checks with the other person

If you're the introducer, send something like this to the person being asked to meet:

Step two: the introduction itself

Once they say yes, the introducer sends one email to both people, then steps back.

When you're the person being introduced, reply within a day. Move the introducer to bcc ("Thanks Rachel, moving you to bcc") so they're not copied on scheduling, then suggest two or three specific times or send a booking link. The person who asked for the intro does the chasing, never the busy person.

How to ask a LinkedIn connection for an introduction

LinkedIn shows you which of your connections are also connected to the person you want to meet. That's a useful starting point, but treat it as a list of people to ask, not proof they know each other. Plenty of LinkedIn connections are people who accepted a request once and never spoke.

Message the mutual connection directly. If you don't know them well yourself, be upfront about that and make the ask even smaller:

If they say they barely know him, thank them and drop it. Don't ask them to "just send a quick message anyway". A lukewarm intro from someone who doesn't know the other person can do more harm than a well-written cold message.

Asking for an introduction to "someone who..."

Sometimes you don't know who you need, only what you need. That's fine, but make the description concrete enough that a name pops into their head:

"Anyone in finance" won't trigger a name. "A bookkeeper who works with small hospitality businesses in Leeds" will.

The thank-you message

Thank the introducer twice: once straight after the intro, and again after you've had the conversation, saying what came of it. The second message is the one most people forget, and it's the one that makes the introducer happy to help next time.

Follow-up if there's no reply

People get busy. If the introducer hasn't replied after about a week, one gentle nudge is fine:

If the person you were introduced to goes quiet, follow up once after about a week, ideally by replying in the same thread so they have the context. After that, let it go and don't ask the introducer to chase. Our guide on how to follow up after networking has more on timing and wording.

What to do when someone says no

Thank them, mean it, and move on. People say no to intros for good reasons: they don't know the person well, they've made too many intros recently, or the other person has asked them not to. None of that is about you.

That last line often gets you a different name. What you should never do is go around them and message the person anyway saying "Rachel suggested I get in touch". That burns two relationships at once.

Etiquette and timing, in short

• Ask one person for one intro at a time. Don't send the same request to five mutual contacts.
• Pick your moment. A request that lands in the middle of someone's busiest week is easy to forget, so don't read silence as a no.
• Never ask for an intro to someone you could reasonably reach directly yourself.
• Keep the meeting to the time you asked for. If you said 20 minutes, end at 20 minutes.
• Offer intros as often as you ask for them. A network works both ways.

If you're still building the network you'd ask, start with how to build a professional network. And if the person you need is someone nobody you know can reach, that gap is what we built Linktwos for: it works like an introducer who knows a lot of people, and both sides have to say yes before you're connected. Some people also find a fresh room more useful than LinkedIn; we compared the options in LinkedIn alternatives for networking.

Questions about asking for an introduction

How do you politely ask for an introduction?

Name the person, explain in one line why them in particular, keep the ask small (a 20-minute call, say), include a short note they can forward, and make it easy for them to say no. People help more readily when they don't feel cornered.

What is a double opt-in introduction?

It's when the introducer checks that both people want to be introduced before connecting them. The introducer forwards a short note about you to the other person, and only sends the introduction email once they've said yes.

What should a warm introduction email include?

Who each person is, why they should talk, and a clear next step, usually that the person who asked for the intro will suggest a time. Two or three short paragraphs is enough.

How do I ask a LinkedIn connection for an introduction?

Message the mutual connection directly, ask whether they know the person well enough to introduce you, explain why you want to meet them, and keep the ask small. If they say they barely know them, thank them and drop it.

What if someone says no to making an introduction?

Thank them and move on. Ask whether they can think of anyone else who might help, but never contact the person anyway using their name.