Do InMails put contacts off? NO!!!
LinkedIn promotes InMails, just like the Follow feature.
You can send 200 InMails per week! We only use 100 as a guideline because 200 sounds like a lot to any new user, and you will most likely not manage 200 per week without expertise in target audiences and without Sales Navigator.
If your InMail gets straight to the point, is not a huge block of text, and your profile is informative and professional, InMails are well received.
Your profile can make or break your outreach on LinkedIn. The contact needs to see immediately what value you provide.
You will not get a 100% InMail reply rate, but they are free, and anyone interested in your offer will reply.
Of course, you need a thick skin, because some people will take offence at your message. Following the Pareto principle, you simply need to ignore them.
Focus on positive contacts.