Sick of wasting hours copy-pasting LinkedIn profiles into a spreadsheet? You're not alone. If you're a founder, marketer, or sales pro who needs more leads but can't stand mindless data entry, this one's for you. We're talking about how to use Texau to automate LinkedIn lead gen—without turning into a spam bot or getting your account restricted.
Let’s cut through the noise and get to what works, what doesn’t, and how to actually build a workflow that saves real time.
What is Texau, Really?
Texau is a tool that automates stuff you’d normally do by hand on LinkedIn (and a bunch of other sites). Think of it as a set of bots you can string together—search for people, grab their info, send messages, and more. The idea is to stop doing repetitive tasks yourself.
But let’s be honest: automation on LinkedIn is a bit of a cat-and-mouse game. LinkedIn doesn’t love bots scraping their site or sending mass connections. So the trick is to keep things realistic, don’t go wild, and use Texau as a helper—not a blunt-force spam machine.
Step 1: Set Up Your Texau Account and Chrome Extension
Before you automate anything, you need to get Texau running.
- Sign up: Go to Texau and create an account. The free trial gets you started, but most real use-cases need a paid plan.
- Install the Chrome extension: This lets Texau interact directly with LinkedIn, using your session (so it looks like you).
- Log in to LinkedIn: Stay logged in on Chrome. Texau needs access to your active session to mimic a real user.
Pro tip: Don’t use your main LinkedIn account for risky automation. If you can, use a “burner” profile or at least start slow to avoid restrictions.
Step 2: Define Your Lead Criteria (Don’t Skip This)
Automation is only as good as your targeting. If you just scrape everyone, you’ll end up with junk leads and possibly get flagged by LinkedIn.
- Decide who you want: Industry, job title, location, company size, whatever matters to you.
- Build a LinkedIn search: Use LinkedIn’s filters to get a tight list. The more specific, the better.
What not to do: Don’t try to automate “finding leads” without knowing what a good lead looks like. That’s just noise—no tool can tell you who’s actually a fit for your business.
Step 3: Use Texau’s “LinkedIn Search Export” Spice
In Texau, a “Spice” is a single automation step. The “LinkedIn Search Export” grabs data from your search results.
- Copy your LinkedIn search URL: This is the filtered search you just built.
- Open Texau, find the Spice: Look for “LinkedIn Search Export.”
- Paste the URL: Texau will scrape profile data from that search.
- Set how many profiles: Don’t go nuts. Try 50–100 per day to start. LinkedIn notices if you scrape thousands.
What you’ll get: Name, headline, company, location, profile URL—enough to start your outreach.
Real talk: Sometimes LinkedIn changes its layout or blocks scraping. If you get errors, try again later or tweak your settings. This is normal with any automation tool, not just Texau.
Step 4: Chain Your Spices into a Workflow
The real power of Texau is chaining multiple Spices into a “Recipe.” Here’s a simple, realistic workflow for lead gen:
- Export profiles: Use the “LinkedIn Search Export” Spice.
- Enrich with email: Add the “Find Email Using Profile URL” Spice. This tries to find a work email for each profile. It’s hit-or-miss, but when it works, it saves a ton of time.
- Send a connection request (optional): Use “Send LinkedIn Connection Request” Spice, but customize your message. Don’t just use the default; write something that sounds like a human, not a bot.
- Save data to Google Sheet: Use the “Send Data to Google Sheet” Spice to log everything in one place.
How to set it up:
- In Texau, go to “Recipes,” then “Create Recipe.”
- Drag in your chosen Spices, connect them in order.
- Set up inputs (like your search URL, message templates, Google Sheet link).
Pro tip: Start with a test run—just 5–10 leads. Make sure everything works before you scale up.
Step 5: Avoid Rookie Mistakes (and Getting Banned)
LinkedIn is pretty good at spotting fake activity. Here’s how to stay under the radar:
- Limit daily actions: Don’t send more than 20–30 connection requests a day, especially with a newer account.
- Rotate your messages: Use personalization tokens (like first name, company) so you’re not sending the same thing every time.
- Take breaks: Spread actions out over several hours. Texau lets you set delays—use them.
- Monitor your LinkedIn inbox: Respond to people who accept. Don’t just blast and forget.
What doesn’t work: Mass-blasting hundreds of generic messages. At best, you’ll get ignored. At worst, you’ll get restricted or banned.
Step 6: Clean and Use Your Lead Data
Automation gives you a list, not a sales strategy. Once you’ve got your leads:
- Check for duplicates and junk: Even with filters, you’ll get bad data. Clean it up in your spreadsheet.
- Prioritize real prospects: Look for people who fit your ideal customer profile.
- Start real conversations: Use LinkedIn or email, but make it personal. Reference something from their profile. Automation gets you here faster, but don’t let it turn you into a robot.
What Actually Works (and What to Ignore)
Works: - Targeted searches with clear criteria - Small, steady volumes - Personalizing everything you send
Doesn’t work: - Buying “lead lists” off random sites (you’ll get garbage) - Mass connection requests with zero context - Relying only on automation for your sales funnel
Ignore: - Overcomplicated workflows with 10+ steps—keep it simple. - Shiny “AI” add-ons promising magical results. Most just add noise.
Troubleshooting: When Texau (or LinkedIn) Breaks
Nothing’s perfect. Here’s what to do when things glitch:
- Spice not working? Check that you’re logged in to LinkedIn and that the Chrome extension is running.
- Data missing? LinkedIn sometimes hides info, especially for 2nd/3rd connections. There’s no fix for this—just live with it.
- Blocked or restricted? Stop all automation immediately. Wait a few days before trying again, and lower your daily limits.
Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Spam
Automation is a tool, not a magic trick. Start small, see what works, and tweak as you go. If you find yourself spending hours debugging workflows, you’re missing the point—this should save time, not create more hassle.
The best results come from combining a bit of automation with a lot of common sense. Use Texau to build a pipeline, but keep your outreach real. Fewer, better leads beat a mountain of junk every time.