So, you want LinkedIn data inside your Clay workflows, but you don’t want to waste hours fighting with brittle scrapers or getting your LinkedIn account locked? You’re in the right place. This guide is for people who actually need reliable data in their sales, recruiting, or research workflows, and who have better things to do than chase every shiny automation tool. I’ll walk you through the process step by step—what works, what doesn’t, what to skip, and what to watch out for.
By the end, you’ll know exactly how to connect LinkedIn to Clay without falling for the usual traps or hype.
Why Is LinkedIn Data So Tricky?
Let’s get this out of the way: LinkedIn doesn’t offer a public API for profile or company lookups the way Twitter or Facebook once did. They don’t want you scraping, and they have plenty of ways to detect and block automated tools. That means you can’t just “connect your LinkedIn account” to Clay and start pulling in data. Any tool that promises this is either risky or flat-out lying.
Clay is smart about this: it doesn’t do shady scraping, but it does let you use third-party data providers, built-in enrichment, and even browser-based automations to get around some of these limits (without getting you banned).
Step 1: Decide What You Really Need From LinkedIn
Before you connect anything, get clear on your goal. Are you after:
- Profile data (name, job, location, company)?
- Company info (size, industry, funding)?
- Contact info (emails, phone numbers—which LinkedIn doesn’t actually show)?
- Lists of people (for outreach or recruiting)?
This matters, because your approach will depend on what’s realistic. For example, LinkedIn never gives you personal emails, and most “enrichment” tools are just making educated guesses from other sources.
Pro tip: Don’t try to build the “perfect” dataset—just get what matters for your current workflow. You can always enrich later.
Step 2: Set Up Your Clay Account
If you haven’t already, sign up for Clay. The free tier is generous enough to experiment, but serious use (especially with enrichment) will need a paid plan.
- Go to Clay and sign up.
- Explore the workspace—Clay uses tables (like Airtable or Google Sheets) but adds automation on top.
No LinkedIn login required at this stage.
Step 3: Gather Your LinkedIn URLs or Search Criteria
Clay (and most enrichment tools) need a way to identify the people or companies you care about. Usually, that means:
- A list of LinkedIn profile URLs (best for accuracy)
- A list of company LinkedIn URLs
- Names and companies (less precise, but usable)
If you already have a CSV with LinkedIn links, great. If not, you may have to build one manually or semi-automatically (with LinkedIn search, Sales Navigator exports, or browser extensions).
Warning: Don’t use browser plugins that promise to “scrape 1000s of LinkedIn results in one click”—they can get your LinkedIn account restricted.
Step 4: Import Your Data Into Clay
- Create a new table in Clay.
- Import your CSV or paste your data. Make sure you have at least one column for LinkedIn URLs, names, or company names.
If you’re starting from scratch, you can build your list right in Clay as you go.
Step 5: Enrich Your Data Using Clay’s Built-In Integrations
This is where the magic happens. Clay doesn’t scrape LinkedIn directly. Instead, it plugs into data providers that are allowed to aggregate public info, or that have their own (legal) scraping or enrichment setups.
Here’s how:
- Select your table.
- Click “+ Add Enrichment.”
- Search for LinkedIn-related enrichments. You’ll see options like:
- Apollo.io (for emails, job titles, company info)
- People Data Labs
- Clay’s own “Find LinkedIn Profile from Name and Company”
- Clearbit or similar (for company data)
Choose the enrichment that matches your needs.
Heads up:
- Most of these integrations require you to bring your own API key. You’ll need to sign up for an account (usually free for small use) at the provider’s website.
- These tools don’t break LinkedIn’s terms, but they may not have every profile you’re looking for.
- Expect some incomplete data, especially for less-public individuals.
Example: Enriching with Apollo.io
- Sign up at Apollo.io and get your API key.
- In Clay, pick the Apollo.io enrichment and paste in your key.
- Map your data columns (e.g., LinkedIn URL or name + company).
- Run the enrichment. Clay will pull back whatever info Apollo.io has on those people or companies.
What If You Don’t Have LinkedIn URLs?
Most enrichment tools can try to find a LinkedIn profile based on name + company, but expect mixed results—especially if the name is common.
Honest take:
If LinkedIn URLs are your “source of truth,” stick with those. Name + company works, but you’ll get more mismatches.
Step 6: Automate Updates & Build Workflows
Now that you’ve got enriched data, you can:
- Set up automations (e.g., notify your team when a prospect changes jobs)
- Push data to your CRM, email tool, or Slack
- Trigger follow-ups or sequences
In Clay, you do this by adding actions to your table (like “Send to HubSpot” or “Email via Gmail”). You can chain these together, so new data flows wherever you need it.
Pro tip:
Start simple. Get the enrichment working before you build a giant, interconnected workflow. It’s way easier to debug.
What About LinkedIn Automation Tools and Chrome Extensions?
You’ll see tons of tools that promise to “scrape” LinkedIn or automate messaging. A few hard truths:
- LinkedIn cracks down on automation: Automated profile viewing, scraping, or messaging can get your account restricted or banned.
- Browser plugins are risky: If you’re going to use them, stick to tools with a good reputation (like PhantomBuster or TexAu), and use a burner LinkedIn account, not your main one.
- Clay doesn’t need these: For most use cases, Clay’s official enrichments are safer and more reliable.
If you absolutely need data that only LinkedIn shows (like mutual connections or private info), nothing is 100% safe. Weigh the risk before going down this path.
Limitations and Gotchas
- Data isn’t always real-time: Enrichment tools update data on their own schedules, not LinkedIn’s.
- You won’t get private info: No tool can pull personal emails or DMs from LinkedIn legally.
- Duplicates and mismatches happen: Always sanity-check your enriched data before you use it in campaigns.
- Costs can add up: Many enrichment APIs charge per lookup. Keep an eye on your usage.
Quick Recap & Real-World Advice
- Figure out exactly what LinkedIn data you need.
- Gather your list (the more LinkedIn URLs, the better).
- Import into Clay, and use built-in enrichments—not risky scrapers.
- Automate after you’ve nailed the basics.
- Don’t believe anyone who says they can get you every email or LinkedIn profile without limits.
Keep it simple. Start with a test batch, check the results, and build from there. Iteration beats overengineering every time.
If you’re stuck, don’t waste hours trying to “hack” LinkedIn—focus on what works, and move on. Your future self will thank you.