The mysterious green dot on LinkedIn has confused many users. But no need to fret – I’m here to shed light on the meaning behind the different colored dots like green dot mean on linkedin and Green Dot With White Semi-Circle Means on ‘linkedin you may see.
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A Solid Green Dot Means “Online and Active”
If you see a solid bright green dot next to a LinkedIn connection’s name or profile photo, it means they are currently online and active on the platform. Think of it as the LinkedIn version of the “available” status on messaging apps.
This green dot will appear when:
- The user has the LinkedIn mobile app open and is actively using it
- The user is logged into LinkedIn on their desktop and has the tab open and active
So if you need to reach someone urgently, the solid green dot is your signal to ping them and know they’ll likely respond right away. No more guessing if now is a good time to message!
A Green Dot With White Semi-Circle Means “Away”
Once a LinkedIn user steps away from the active app or desktop page, the solid green dot turns into a green dot with a white semi-circle on the side after 5 minutes.
This indicates the user is still logged into LinkedIn but has stepped away or switched tabs/apps. They may not see your message right away, but they’ll likely get back to you faster than if there was no green dot at all.
No Green Dot Means “Offline”
If a LinkedIn connection has no green dot showing, it means they are completely offline and inactive on LinkedIn across all devices.
You can still send messages of course, but there will likely be a delay before they respond since they aren’t currently logged into the platform.
Rare Green Dot Colors and What They Mean
Occasionally you may notice a different colored green dot besides the standard bright green:
- Yellow green dot: This means the user has their LinkedIn status set to “Do Not Disturb”. So they won’t be notified of any messages or notifications. Best to reach out at another time.
- Dark green dot: This indicates the user has enabled “invisible mode” on LinkedIn. So while they can view activity, no one else can see their online status or that they’ve viewed updates. Mysterious!
- Grey green dot with white semi-circle: The user is logged out of LinkedIn on mobile but still has the app open. Send messages with caution as they may not see it right away.
Why You Can See Someone’s Online Status
You may be wondering – how can I see if someone is online and active on LinkedIn anyway? Isn’t that private information?
It is, which is why you’ll only see the green dot online indicator for LinkedIn connections who:
- You have mutually added to your network
- Have opted into the “Let others see my online status” setting under their account Privacy & Settings
If someone is not your connection or has disabled this visibility setting, you won’t see any green dot activity for them.
Also read: How to Add Badges to LinkedIn in 2023 – The Complete Guide
How to Turn Your Green Dot On or Off on LinkedIn
Like being able to peek at others’ online status, sharing your real-time availability is optional on LinkedIn. You can easily adjust the visibility in your account settings:
On Desktop:
- Click your profile photo > View profile
- Scroll down and click More > Settings & Privacy
- Go to the Privacy tab and adjust “Let others see my online status”
On Mobile App:
- Tap your profile photo
- Tap Settings & Privacy > Privacy
- Toggle “Let others see my online status” on or off
And that’s it! The green dot is purely opt-in only for both seeing others’ status and displaying your own.
When the Green Dot Can Be Useful
While some users may find the real-time status indicator creepy or unnecessary, it can be useful in many situations:
- Knowing the best time to contact someone urgently about a time-sensitive matter
- Avoiding bothering connections who have set their status to “Do Not Disturb”
- Identifying when someone may be free for a quick call or video chat
- Seeing when your messages are being ignored (hey, it happens!) based on dot activity
So next time you log into LinkedIn on desktop or mobile, be sure to pay attention to the green dots if you want insights into your network’s availability. Just don’t get too distracted staring!
Also read: How to Enable Dark Mode on LinkedIn for a Better Browsing Experience
How to See Who Viewed Your LinkedIn Profile
One of LinkedIn’s most-requested features is the ability to see who’s viewed your profile. This info can be valuable for identifying prospects or gauging your content’s reach.
Unfortunately LinkedIn still doesn’t have a direct way to see profile visitors. But clever users have found a workaround using LinkedIn’s premium account options.
Here are 3 methods to see who’s viewed your LinkedIn profile:
1. Upgrade to a Premium Account
The most straightforward approach is upgrading to a Premium Business or Sales Navigator account.
With LinkedIn Premium, you gain access to the “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” feature under Your Dashboard. This shows full details on the last 90 days of profile visitors, including name, title, company, location, and how they landed on your page.
The downside is Premium plans aren’t cheap – they range from $29.99 to $84.99 per month. But if you want easy and accurate viewer insights, going Premium is the way to go.
2. Check Views On Individual Posts
Even without a Premium account, you can get some clues by checking the post analytics on your LinkedIn activity.
Whenever you share an update, article, or other content, look at the list of viewers under your post. You’ll see a sampling of people who engaged with or clicked on the content directly from your profile.
This gives you a snapshot of a few profile visitors from your network. It’s not complete data, but it’s better than nothing!
3. Use LinkedIn’s Free Account Tools
Two often-overlooked free features can give hints at who’s been browsing your profile:
- Who’s Viewed Your Updates: Under Analytics, you can see the companies and titles of people who have viewed your 10 most recent posts. Look for titles that line up with your target audience.
- Similar Profiles: LinkedIn lists a handful of profiles considered “similar” to yours, which likely means they’ve viewed you. See if any viewers stand out.
Again, neither of these tools provides complete or definitive data. But they can reveal a couple breadcrumbs until you’re ready to spring for Premium!
Other Ways to Get Viewer Insights
If the above options aren’t sufficient, third-party apps like ViewedMe and Clearbit Connect can pull more profile visitor data. However, be wary of privacy and permission concerns with these.
For the most part, you’ll need to invest in a paid Premium account if you really want to unlock full viewer analytics. But if you’re scrappy, the free features can still provide hints to who’s scoping out your profile.
How to Change Your LinkedIn URL
Your LinkedIn URL (the web address that leads to your profile) automatically populates from your name when you create your account. But you aren’t stuck with that default vanity URL forever.
With LinkedIn’s customizable public profile settings, you can change your profile URL to something short, sweet and memorable.
Here are the steps to change your LinkedIn URL on desktop or mobile:
On LinkedIn Desktop:
- Click your profile photo in the top right and select View Profile
- Scroll down and click Edit public profile & URL on the right rail
- Click the pencil icon next to your URL
- Type your new custom URL – must be at least 5 characters and unique
- Click Save to confirm the new URL
And done! Your new vanity URL will be live on your LinkedIn profile.
After changing your URL on mobile, you may need to force close and restart the LinkedIn app for it to take effect everywhere.
Also read: How to Find Your LinkedIn URL
Tips for the Best LinkedIn URL:
- Make it short and simple, like your name (john-doe) or business (acme-marketing)
- Add your industry or profession like linkedin/in/john-doe-marketing
- Choose keywords relevant to you or your business
- Make sure it’s unique – LinkedIn will append numbers if taken
- Don’t use underscores or special characters, just hyphens
- Double check there are no typos before saving!
Finally, after you update your LinkedIn URL, check for broken inbound links redirecting properly, update marketing materials, and share the change with your network. Enjoy your new vanity profile address!
How to Add a Profile Background Photo on LinkedIn
LinkedIn now allows users to customize their profiles with cover photos just like Facebook or Twitter. Adding a header image lets you showcase your personality, brand, or interests beyond just your profile picture.
Follow these steps to add a background photo to your LinkedIn profile:
- Click on your profile picture and select View Profile
- Click on the default background image or the Edit button
- Click the plus Upload Image button
- Select your desired photo file from your computer
- Adjust and reposition the photo as needed
- Click Save
Tips for an Awesome LinkedIn Header:
- Use high resolution landscape images for best quality
- Showcase your team, office, events, portfolio, etc.
- Ensure text and logos are still visible over the image
- Pick a photo that reflects your personal or company brand
- Optimize the image for your industry and target audience
- Remember, this will be most people’s first impression!
Adding a background photo to your LinkedIn profile is an easy way to upgrade your personal branding on the platform. So pick an eye-catching header that promotes and enhances your professional image.
Also read: How to Tag People on LinkedIn to Expand Your Network
How to Hide Your LinkedIn Connections
By default, your LinkedIn connections are publicly viewable to anyone who lands on your profile. But you can choose to keep your network private and hidden if you prefer.
Here are 2 ways to hide your LinkedIn connections:
Option 1: Turn Off the Public Profile Setting on LinkedIn
The easiest approach is changing your overall public profile visibility in your account settings:
- Click your profile picture > View Profile
- Scroll down and click More > Settings & Privacy
- Go to Profile viewing options
- Uncheck the box for Make your public profile visible to everyone
- Save by clicking Apply
This will remove the Connections section from your public profile so they remain private.
Option 2: Customize Individual Sections on LinkedIn
For more granular control, you can toggle the Connections section visibility specifically:
On Desktop:
- From your profile, click Edit public profile & URL
- Go to the Details section
- Locate Connections and click the pencil icon
- Uncheck the box for Show this section on my public profile
- Click Save
on Mobile:
- Tap your profile picture and go to your profile
- Tap Edit public profile & URL
- Tap Details
- Next to Connections tap Visible to and choose Only Me from the dropdown menu
- Confirm by tapping Save
Either option will effectively hide your connections from public viewing. You can tweak visibility settings anytime in your profile edit settings.
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