Five relationship phases and implied phases
Which five phases a relationship goes through, how the phase is calculated from steps and why lower phases show as completed without a date.
What it is for
The phase shows how far a relationship with a person has got. You do not set it by hand, it comes from the steps you and your colleagues record.
How to
| Phase | What it means | Step that records it |
|---|---|---|
| Looked up | you have looked at the profile | Looked up |
| Invited | you have sent a connection invitation | Invitation |
| Connected | the invitation is accepted, you are connected | Connected |
| Messaging | a conversation is in progress | Message |
| Working together | you are working together or have met | Meeting |
You record a step by clicking the phase icon in the Progress column in the list, in the contact detail in the Outreach progress section, or in the side panel on LinkedIn. It is recorded with today's date. A double click undoes your step, but only one from this week or from the start of the current action plan.
Good to know
- The phase of a relationship is the highest phase anyone has recorded for it. When a step is undone, the phase goes down.
- Implied phases: anyone with a higher phase recorded has also gone through the lower ones. Missing lower phases show as completed without a date, with the label implied by. Nothing is recorded by this, and they do not count in activity overviews.
- Invited and Connected are two different phases: a sent invitation and an accepted connection.
- Call, Email, Comment and Other do not move the phase.
- A relationship without a step has the status Not yet.
- The same step by the same member is recorded only once a day.
- An admin can rename the phases in Space settings, section Funnel phases. The number and order of the phases are fixed.
Whose steps you see
The Progress switch in the list shows Mine (your steps), Team (steps by anyone in the team, with the authors' avatars) or By member (a row for each member).
Frequently asked questions
I recorded Connected, and Looked up and Invited are highlighted too. Is that right?
Yes. The lower phases are implied by the higher step. They show without a date and cannot be removed.
Can I record a step with an earlier date?
A phase step is always recorded with today's date. An earlier date can only be entered for actions outside the phases, for example for a call. Importing your LinkedIn connections adds the Connected step with the connection date.