Sales Navigator automation: what you can automate and what you can't
Sales Navigator finds the people. Here is which parts of the work around it a tool can automate, from search to lead list to sequence to replies, and the limits to plan for.
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Sales Navigator is LinkedIn's paid prospecting product. It is very good at finding people and weak at the work that comes after: contacting hundreds of them, following up on time and keeping track of replies. That later work is what an outreach tool automates. LinkedIn's limits and terms stay in force whatever tool you use.
This guide walks through the job step by step: build the search, turn it into a lead list, contact the list in a sequence, then handle replies. At each step it says what a tool can do and what you still decide.
What does Sales Navigator do on its own?
Sales Navigator gives you search filters that free LinkedIn does not have, such as seniority level, function, company headcount and years in current role. It also gives you saved searches, lead lists and a monthly allowance of InMail messages, depending on your plan.
What it does not do is run a sequence for you. It has no canvas where you add a connection request, wait three days, send a message if the person accepted and something else if they did not. Each of those steps is a manual action in Sales Navigator, one person at a time.
So "Sales Navigator automation" usually means one of four things:
- Turning a Sales Navigator search into a list of leads.
- Sending connection requests, messages and InMails to that list in a sequence.
- Following up only with the people who did not answer.
- Collecting and sorting replies from several accounts in one place.
Step 1: turn a search into a lead list
The simplest route is to build the search in Sales Navigator, then copy its link. In Mako Reach you paste the link of a people search into a lead list and choose which connected account runs it. The search then runs in the background, page by page, and fills the list. People already in the list are skipped.
The second route starts from a description. You write who you want to reach, for example "heads of sales at software companies in France with 50 to 500 employees". The AI turns the text into Sales Navigator filters and may split a broad audience into several searches. You review and edit every filter before anything runs.
Both routes need a Sales Navigator subscription on the account that runs the search. The description route also needs your own AI key, which a workspace admin adds in the settings. Mako Reach accepts people searches only. It does not import account searches or your saved Sales Navigator lead lists, so copy the search itself.
Step 2: split a broad audience into smaller searches
Sales Navigator does not show more than about 2,500 results for one search. If your filters match 40,000 people, you can only reach the first 2,500 through that one search. Mako Reach stops a search once it has added 2,500 leads for that reason.
The fix is to split the audience. Common splits are:
- By geography: one search per country or region.
- By seniority or function: directors in one search, VPs in another.
- By company headcount: 11 to 50, 51 to 200, 201 to 500, and so on.
When you start from a description, the AI can propose this split for you. Several searches in one list run one after another, not all at once, so one account is not asked to run five searches in parallel.
Smaller searches also make better messages. A note written for VPs of sales at 200-person software companies reads better than one written for "everyone in sales".
Step 3: contact the list in a sequence
A sequence is where the time saving is. In the Mako Reach sequence builder you add steps on a canvas:
- Connection request, with or without a note. A note is at most 200 characters from a free account and 300 from Premium or Sales Navigator.
- Message, after the person has accepted. Up to 8,000 characters.
- InMail, for people you are not connected to. The body is at most 1,900 characters, and it uses what your LinkedIn account allows.
- View profile, follow, like post and find email, as lighter touches.
- Conditions and waits. A connection request splits into accepted and not accepted yet. A message splits into replied and no reply. An If open profile check shows whether a person accepts free InMail.
A message or InMail can only follow a confirmed connection or that open profile check, and the builder checks this before the campaign can go live. Mako Reach does not accept a text that is over LinkedIn's length limit.
You can write each message yourself with merge fields, or switch a message step to AI and describe what it should say. The AI then writes a message for each lead from your instructions, and you can generate samples first to see what it will send. AI steps run on your own AI key.
Step 4: follow up and handle replies
Follow-ups are the part people forget by hand. In a sequence they go out on schedule, and only on the branch you chose: a second message after five days goes only to people who did not reply.
When someone replies, the reply lands in one inbox together with replies from every other connected account. Replies get a sentiment tag, positive, neutral or negative, so you can start with interested people. An AI reply agent can draft an answer in your tone. It sends on its own only in AUTO mode, which you switch on per chat or for the whole workspace.
What you should not try to automate
Some things are better left to a person, and some cannot be automated away:
- LinkedIn's limits. A tool can only stay under them. Mako Reach applies daily caps per account, 28 invitations and 40 messages a day by default, adjustable from 0 to 100. Our guide to LinkedIn limits in 2026 has the numbers and their sources.
- Your judgement on who to contact. A search with loose filters fills a list fast and wastes your invitations. Read a sample of the list before you start the campaign.
- The first message. Automation sends what you write. A generic note sent to 2,500 people is still a generic note.
- LinkedIn's terms. LinkedIn's terms restrict automated tools, and all LinkedIn automation carries that risk. No tool can promise that an account will not be restricted.
A checklist before you start
- Does the account that runs the search have Sales Navigator?
- Is each search under about 2,500 results, or split into smaller ones?
- Did you read a sample of the leads before launching?
- Is the connection note within 200 or 300 characters?
- Do follow-ups go only to people who did not reply?
- Are the daily caps set for each sending account?
- Who on the team reads the replies, and how fast?
FAQ
Do I need Sales Navigator to automate LinkedIn outreach?
No. You need it only to search. In Mako Reach you can build a lead list from LinkedIn profile URLs or a CSV and run the same sequences without Sales Navigator.
How many leads can I get from one Sales Navigator search?
About 2,500. Sales Navigator does not show more results than that for one search, so split a larger audience into several narrower searches.
Can I send InMail automatically?
Yes. InMail is a step in the sequence builder. It uses what your LinkedIn account allows, and an If open profile check shows whether a person accepts free InMail.
Can I import my saved Sales Navigator lead lists?
Not directly. Mako Reach takes the link of a people search, including a saved search you open and copy. Lead lists and account searches are not imported. If the people are in a list, paste their profile URLs or rebuild the search that found them.
Does Sales Navigator raise my invitation limit?
Sources disagree. Some guides say Sales Navigator accounts can send more invitations, and others say the weekly figure is the same. LinkedIn publishes no number. See LinkedIn limits in 2026 for what each source says.