How to export your LinkedIn connections and turn them into a referral short list

The short answer: export one file, then screen it in four passes

You export LinkedIn connections from a desktop browser: open the Me menu, choose Settings & Privacy, go to Data privacy, select Get a copy of your data, tick Connections and request the archive. LinkedIn emails you when the file is ready, and you download a ZIP that contains a Connections CSV. Menu labels change from time to time, so check LinkedIn's Help Center if a step looks different.

The export takes minutes. The useful part is the one-hour screen that follows, which turns hundreds or thousands of names into a short list of owners and executives you could call about a data licensing introduction. This guide covers both, and explains why the file never leaves your own computer.

What you need before you start

• A desktop or laptop browser, because the steps below follow the desktop settings pages.
• Your LinkedIn password, in case LinkedIn asks you to confirm it before preparing the archive.
• A spreadsheet tool such as Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers.
• An hour for the first screen, and a calendar block the following week for a few personal calls.

How do you export LinkedIn connections, step by step?

1. Sign in on desktop, click the Me icon at the top of the page, then choose Settings & Privacy.
2. Open Data privacy in the left-hand menu and choose Get a copy of your data.
3. Pick the option to select specific data files instead of the full archive, and tick Connections. A narrow request is usually ready sooner than a full archive.
4. Click Request archive and confirm your password if prompted.
5. Wait for LinkedIn's email saying the archive is ready, then return to the same page and download it.
6. Unzip the download and open Connections.csv. It typically lists first name, last name, profile URL, email address, company, position and the date you connected.
7. Save a working copy, delete any note lines that sit above the header row, and freeze the header so the columns stay visible while you sort.

Expect the email column to be mostly blank. LinkedIn includes a connection's email address only when that member's settings allow connections to download it, which is another reason to treat the list as a prompt for conversations rather than a mailing list.

How do you screen the list for referral candidates?

Add four columns to your working copy and score each connection quickly. Call it the TCHR pass: Title, Company, Headcount, Relationship. You are building a short list, not a perfect database.

Company size ranges on LinkedIn are self-reported, and member counts include anyone who lists the company on a profile, so treat both as hints. The peak headcount test is confirmed with the owner; the guide to finding a private company's employee count and peak headcount lists better clues.

Expect heavy filtering. Most US firms are tiny: the SBA Office of Advocacy's 2026 small business FAQ reports that 82.3% of firms have no employees at all. Do not be surprised if several hundred names produce only a handful worth a call; that is the screen working.

What do you do with the short list?

1. Add a column for the systems you already know the company runs, such as CRM, ticketing or ERP, and roughly how long it has run them. Use what you know from working together; do not ask anyone for data.
2. Rank the short list by how directly you can reach the decision-maker.
3. Work through the top names in the network opportunity finder or the company fit screening worksheet to decide which relationships to start with.
4. Call or message the top three personally. Ask about the business first, not about its data.
5. With the owner's agreement, draft the introduction in the introduction email builder.

Keep the file on your own computer

The export contains other people's personal details, so treat it as confidential.

• Store it on your own device or in your own secured storage, and delete working copies you no longer need.
• Never upload it to SourceX, a chatbot, a lead-enrichment service or a shared drive. SourceX does not ask partners for contact lists, and the company fit checker is a preliminary, non-binding screen that needs no contact details.
• Never use it for bulk messaging. The program works through people who know a company's decision-maker; cold outreach to an exported list is not what it is for.
• Share nothing about a company with SourceX until its owner has agreed to the introduction.

Common mistakes

Example (Illustrative)

Illustrative and fictional: Dana, a fractional COO, exports a list of about 1,200 connections. The title pass leaves around 300 names, the company pass around 120, the headcount pass about 40, and the relationship pass 11. Over two weeks Dana calls four of them. One, the founder of a fictional 140-person logistics software firm with nine years of ticketing and CRM history, wants to learn more. Dana gets written consent, sends the referral link, and the founder applies. From there SourceX reviews the company, and nothing about the outcome is assured.

Disclose before you introduce

When someone on your list agrees to talk, tell them up front that you are a SourceX partner and may earn a reward. The page on whether you have to disclose a referral fee covers the details by profession.

Partners earn 25% of the eligible platform fees SourceX actually collects from the referred company's licensing deals, capped at $100,000 per referred company. Rewards become payable only after the buyer pays and SourceX receives its fee, and no reward is guaranteed. What happens after an introduction is set out on how it works.

Next step

Block an hour this week, request the Connections export and run the TCHR pass. When you have three names you could call today, register as a partner so your referral link is ready before the first conversation.