If I’ve never met you in any way shape or form, then I’m not going to accept a LinkedIn connection from you.
I’m pretty generous on the “met” part, for a few people this includes having only ever “met” online. I should also note that in some cases even if I have met you, I won’t approve a LinkedIn connection. That situation usually only comes up with recruiters.
In the last 6 months or so, I’ve noticed an increase in LinkedIn connect requests that appear to be run of the mill spam. If we’ve never met and you want to get ahold of me, try my contact form instead. Don’t send me a LinkedIn connection request, it will be ignored.